If there is anything Heston Kjerstad can grab onto as evidence of his potential, it’s a 14-game sample in June and July last season, when he arrived from Triple-A Norfolk and couldn’t stop hitting.

During that span, the Orioles outfielder looked like the player evaluators have long predicted he’d become — a power hitter who can also spray the ball to all parts of the field. In other words: a premier offensive threat who can hit in the middle of any lineup in Major League Baseball.

The 25-year-old hit .378 with a 1.141 on-base-plus-slugging percentage. And then it came to a painful close, when New York Yankees reliever Clay Holmes hit Kjerstad in the helmet with a 97 mph fastball, concussing him.

That has been the ill fortune of Kjerstad. Be it roster construction limiting his playing time or medical concerns keeping him away from the field entirely, the former first-round pick has waited for his moment. When it has arrived — like that midsummer hot streak — he has largely delivered.

“It showed the type of player I’m capable of being and the type of player I strive to be,” Kjerstad said in a phone interview. “Once you’re able to do that, you know it’s there. Now it’s the consistency of doing that a lot more. Because that’s the name of the game: consistency. Everybody can take one good at-bat or hit a home run here or there. But the guys who are day in, day out, in the lineup every day, really impactful players show up and do that the most. And that’s the goal for me.”

Kjerstad is entering a pivotal year. He has proven there’s little else for him to accomplish at the Triple-A level. In 132 games with the Norfolk Tides in 2023 and 2024, Kjerstad hit .299. But he has played only 52 games in the majors because of injury or lack of opportunity.

That could change this season. With outfielder Anthony Santander removed from the equation, there could be additional opportunities for Kjerstad to play, even with the signing of Tyler O’Neill. And Kjerstad knows it.

“Going into this spring training is obviously the best opportunity I’ve had in front of me,” he said. “With just the way things are working out, where I’m at with my game, my experience.”

That chance is part of why Kjerstad is using this offseason to undergo a comprehensive training regimen, focusing on more than the physical act of playing baseball. He once again worked on his plate discipline and all-fields approach, but on top of that, Kjerstad has put time and effort into his mental preparation as never before.

He always heard from coaches and mentors about the value of a strong mental game, and growing up in baseball, he quickly learned how to flush failure in one plate appearance to prepare for the next. The mental aspect goes beyond that, though.

“It’s been there,” Kjerstad said, “but probably never really executed it the way I am now.”

Throughout the time Kjerstad spent in Baltimore’s clubhouse during his up-and-down 2024 season, the Amarillo, Texas, native paid special attention to right-hander Corbin Burnes. In a clubhouse full of young players, some of whom have already blossomed into stars, Burnes was different. He was a Cy Young Award winner. He was an ace in the prime of his career.

Before he became the top-end arm he is now, Burnes met with mental skills coach Brian Cain. The lessons learned in those sessions — such as detailed notes inside three notebooks every day — helped propel Burnes on a path to success.

His mental process between starts played as big a role in how he would perform as his midweek bullpen session. Some may think Burnes nods off for a nap when he shuts his eyes in the clubhouse before a start, but he’s visualizing how he will pitch each batter that night.

Kjerstad said his attention for so long centered on gaining speed and strength — concrete metrics that can be measured by data such as exit velocity — but that watching Burnes’ preparation showed an entirely different aspect of the sport.

“He was really big on the mental side of the game, and being around him was definitely an influence to emphasize it more,” Kjerstad said of Burnes, who signed this offseason with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

This winter, apart from marrying his longtime partner, Klaire, in December, Kjerstad dove into a new offseason routine. He still lifted and spent time in the batting cage, but an additional amount of work occurred without a bat in hand. To improve his plate discipline and take more walks, he challenged himself in batting practice sessions to take near misses. He studied his best and worst at-bats and gained an understanding of when and why he found success.

And he sat, eyes closed, emulating Burnes.

In his mind, Kjerstad visualized how his 2025 season might go, albeit on an individual plate appearance basis. He played make-believe baseball in his head — because when the real baseball arrives next month, his sharper mental skills could translate to success in a larger role in Baltimore.

“It’s such a unique game, where there’s so much failure, and as baseball players we naturally handle it really well,” Kjerstad said. “It’s so negative, so if you can kind of focus on the mental side, and focus on the things you can control, and focus on your process and not the outcome, I think it makes the season a lot more enjoyable.”