Baltimore Orioles third baseman Jordan Westburg has a classic issue for professional athletes: he's talented and productive, but he's been held back by injuries.

The 26-year-old played just 85 games in 2025 due to hamstring, finger, and ankle ailments. Interim manager Tony Monsolino commented on his bad luck in September, via MLB.com's Ryan Herrera.

“He's had some kind of freak injuries in some ways,” Mansolino said. “He's a guy that, last year, prior to breaking his hand in that Toronto series before the Trade Deadline, he was the guy that we said is going to be really, really durable. I think he's had some unusual things happen to him.”

Westburg was effective when he did play, as he notched a .770 OPS with 17 homers and 41 RBIs. He logged a .792 OPS with 18 homers and 63 RBIs over 107 games in 2024.

“We've missed him in a lot of ways this year,” Mansolino continued. “On the field, off the field, the whole package. … I still think he's a very durable guy in a lot of ways, and looking forward to watching this guy throw up 140, 150 games in 2026.”

Jordan Westburg Could Elevate Orioles if Healthy

The Orioles will begin a new era under first-year manager Craig Albernaz next season, which will give Westburg and the entire organization a chance to reset. If the 6-foot-1, 210-pounder does play a full season in 2026 as Mansolino hoped for, then he'd make a talented Baltimore lineup even more stacked.

Westburg has a .768 OPS over 260 career games since breaking into the big leagues in 2023. The native Texan also has a .980 career fielding percentage at third base, where he's slated to start in 2026.

If Westburg notches a .750-plus OPS over a full slate of games, he could be the difference between the Orioles being good and elite. Newly-acquired superstar first baseman Pete Alonso and franchise shortstop Gunnar Henderson already pose threats to opposing pitchers, and newly-acquired outfielder Taylor Ward hit 36 homers for the Los Angeles Angels last season. Adding a healthy Westburg to that mix over the course of the season would help Baltimore's chances of winning the AL East.

The Orioles did just that when the former Mississippi State Bulldog had his career year in 2024, but fell to last place during his injury-marred campaign in 2025. That's no coincidence, but the bright side is that Westburg will be healthy heading into Spring Training.