Orioles rookie Jackson Holliday is taking his major-league experience in stride.
As the No. 1 prospect in Major League Baseball, Holliday faces lofty expectations for a 20-year-old.
After a meteoric rise through the minor leagues where he dominated opposing pitching in each of Baltimore’s affiliates last season, Jackson was promoted to the Orioles on April 10.
It hasn’t been an easy transition.
Holidays has gone just 1 for 19 with 10 strikeouts over his first five games. Nonetheless, he has not lost his confidence and is working on the necessary adjustments to be a productive major-league hitter.
Holliday was No. 1 overall draft pick in the 2022 Major League Baseball Draft from Stillwater High School in Oklahoma. He made an immediate impact in the minor leagues, batting .323 with 12 homers, 75 RBIs, and 24 steals across Single-A Delmarva, high-A Aberdeen, Double-A Bowie, and Triple-A Norfolk.
He was named USA Today’s Minor League Player of the Year.
That success carried over to spring training for the Orioles where he made a push to make the final major-league roster. He batted .311 with two home runs, three doubles, two triples, and six RBIs over 15 games.
However, Orioles general manager Mike Elias sent him back to Norfolk to begin the season to work on his hitting against left-handed pitching. He responded by batting .333 with two home runs, nine RBIs, and 14 runs scored this season in 42 at-bats for the Tides.
That performance earned him a promotion and he’s been in the Orioles lineup almost every day at second base.
“I don’t think I would ever take it for granted, the experience that I’m having,” Holliday said about the promotion.
There have been some whispers that Holliday might need more seasoning in the minors because of the initial slump. However, the Orioles’ young prospects have a history of making adjustments to become productive.
Last season, then-rookie shortstop Gunnar Henderson batted just .170 in his first month in Baltimore. However, Henderson improved his average to .246 by the All-Star Break. He only got better. By the end of the season, Henderson led all AL rookies in home runs (28), triples (9), RBIs (82), and runs scored (100), en route to being named the unanimous American League Rookie of the Year.
Outfielder Colton Cowser batted .115 (7 for 61) with two doubles, 15 runs, four RBI, 13 walks, and one stolen base in 26 games with the Orioles when he was promoted last season. Cowser learned from the experience and was recently named the American League Player of the Week after batting .435 with four home runs and 12 RBIs. The Orioles went 5–2 over that span.
As a result, they are not concerned about Holliday’s potential to be productive.
“We’re not worried at all,” Baltimore’s co-hitting coach Ryan Fuller said over the weekend. “He’s had all the cameras in his face and a lot of stuff going on the first couple of days. We can’t wait to just have him be in a normal routine. Be one of the guys and come here and not feel like he has to get a hit today. Just let his process take over and hopefully that initial knock will take a little steam away and he'll be ready to roll.”
The Orioles are confident it’s the first of many hits for Holliday.
