The Baltimore Orioles are calling up shortstop Jackson Holliday, MLB’s No. 1 prospect, a league source confirmed Tuesday. Holliday is ranked #1 on Athleticism Keith Law’s Top 100 MLB Prospects for 2024.
ESPN was the first to report the news.
It was a surprise not to see Holliday on the Orioles Opening Day roster after a red-hot spring training, and he quickly showed the team what it was missing in Triple-A with a blistering start for the Norfolk Tides. Holliday had his first Triple-A at-bat of the year. In nine games, he had 14 hits in 42 at-bats with two home runs and five doubles. He also walked 12 times and posted a 1.077 OPS. He was part of the Tides offense that scored 102 points in its first 10 games. Holliday went 1 for 4 with a walk and a double Monday for the Tides. This is likely the last minor league game – barring an injury rehab assignment – that Holliday will play for the foreseeable future.
Although Holliday is only 20 years old, the top pick in the 2022 MLB Draft has destroyed pitchers at every level since turning pro. The son of former MLB slugger Matt Holliday, Jackson hit .323/.442/.499 across four levels of the minor leagues as a 19-year-old last season.
The likely plan for the Orioles is to use left-handed Holliday at second base against most right-handed pitchers, with Jordan Westburg and Ramón Urías sharing time at third. Against some lefties, the Orioles can sit Holliday while playing Westburg and Urías in their infield to fit their right-handed bats into the lineup.
The Orioles entered this season with the highest-rated farm system in MLB, according to AthleticismIt’s Keith Law.
If Holliday wins American League Rookie of the Year, the Orioles won’t get the draft compensation for having him on the roster all season, but Holliday will still be eligible to earn an additional year of service. he finishes first or second. Rookie of the Year voting, meaning keeping him in the minor leagues for a few weeks won’t automatically give the Orioles another year of control for Holliday. The new rules were designed to prevent teams from keeping players in the minor leagues for a few weeks at the start of a season in order to manipulate their service time.
Reconnaissance report
Holliday went from “maybe he’s a first rounder” in the fall of 2021, his senior year of high school, to “oh my God, he’s the best prospect in baseball” in May 2023. It was a incredible increase which is a testament to both his natural talent and his incredible sense of the game.
He has exceptional hand-eye coordination, so even when he gets fooled by a throw, he often manages to make contact with it, even hard. I think major league pitchers will sometimes force him to shorten his swing, because he almost always swings hard and no one has given him a reason to do otherwise. He’s a 50/55 runner, likely to finish average once he’s done, a process that will begin once he starts shaving every day. — Keith Law, Senior MLB Writer
What is Holliday’s ceiling?
Holliday is a natural shortstop whose position wouldn’t be in doubt if the Orioles didn’t already have a starter there – and Holliday is a better defender than Gunnar Henderson in short – but he’s moved around a bit in the infield and could come in at third or second if Baltimore doesn’t want to dislodge the AL Rookie of the Year.
He reminds me in many ways of Troy Tulowitzki, but he has the left-handed batting advantage and has better feel for the strike zone. I think he’ll hit .280-.300 with high walk rates and 25+ home runs a year with above-average defense at shortstop, and that’s a profile that can win the MVP award. — Law
Required reading
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