SARASOTA, Fla. — Baseball’s No. 1 prospect, Jackson Holiday, looks 16 years old, is 20 years old, acts professional and feels comfortable in the Orioles clubhouse. Rumor has it that he has a good chance to join the O’s as the starting second baseman, and if they decide that the natural shortstop needs some more reps as a second baseman, he could be available sometime this year while still only 20 years old. Will compete (not until December 4th until age 21).
“He’s ahead of the curve in everything he does,” Orioles GM Mike Elias said.
Elias means baseball field, but it also applies to life. Holliday married his high school sweetheart, Chloe Cox, just weeks after they became teenagers. Now, two months later, he’s here in camp, joining highly ranked players like veterans Jorge Mateo, Ramon Urias, Kolten Wong, and Jordan Westberg in baseball’s consensus No. 1 farm system. He is competing for second base with a promising prospect (though not as good as him, of course).
For Holliday, who specializes in immediate, the only question is how fast.
The oldest of Cardinals baseball great Matt Holliday’s three sons, he progressed through the minor leagues faster than Derek Jeter and justified being drafted No. 1 overall — Braves legend Andrew・He was one spot ahead of Jones’ son Dru. He played in just 14 games with Low-A Delmarva, 57 with High-A Aberdeen, 36 with Double-A Bowie, and 14 with Triple-A Norfolk, totaling .323/.442/.499/ He recorded a slash line of .941. He’s already ready.
On Sunday, he hit his first home run of the spring — a grand slam, to boot — and raised his OPS to .917. He has a batting average of .286 in 32 at-bats.
“He comes to play every minute of the day and brings an A swing every time,” says one American League scout. “This kid has great tools with a lot of fun and energy at a very high level, and she’s going to excel at the highest level for many years right away.”
While Holiday has been touted as a future star by everyone who has followed him, there are some questions as the Orioles evaluate his readiness over the next two-plus weeks. Remaining.
1) Does he have enough time at second base? He played one day a week at second base last year and plays 80 percent of the time here?
2) Have left-handed hitters seen enough left-handed hitters at the Major League level?
3) Can he beat a stacked roster of infielders?
The common question of whether the Orioles want to slow down MLB records in a small, once-very-tight market is a non-issue now that they have a new owner in David Rubenstein, likely by Opening Day. According to Elias, the Orioles are in “win-now mode.” As The Athletic’s Jason Stark pointed out, if Holiday joins shortstop Gunnar Henderson, there’s a chance the back-to-back Rookie of the Year winners could form a double play duo.
The Orioles, who are tearing up the Grapefruit League at 14-2, should likely be the favorites to win the American League title, even if the Las Vegas arrow still points slightly toward the more experienced Yankees and more seasoned Astros. . The O’s escaped what is said to be the toughest division in baseball, won 101 games against what is said to be the toughest competition in baseball, and showed their youth in the playoffs. They did it with the seventh-youngest batter age (27.2 years, Baseball Reference) and 11th-youngest pitcher age (28.4 years) in MLB.
Holiday is supposed to be the youngest player in the majors, so that should only help those numbers. But don’t be fooled by age or angelic face. He’s more mature, professional and respectful (he admired the spring coaching of Brian Roberts, JJ Hardy and others).
“He works hard every day,” Elias said.
Honestly, as the son of a seven-time Major League All-Star who hung around the clubhouse of the championship-winning Cardinals, he knew what he was getting into. And in his case, his father, who hit .299 with 316 home runs over a 15-year career, and his uncle Josh Holliday, the head coach at Oklahoma State University (where his older brother, Ethan, a power hitter, is currently committed). There is). Go) and extraordinary skills that barely emerged from the crib, he was groomed for it. He was educated at his home while playing at Stillwater (Okla.) High School and had no intention of doing anything else. Before he became a pro, when someone asked him what time he woke up in the morning, he would honestly answer that he would sleep until about 10 o’clock in order to prepare for his “professional life,” where most of his matches would be held. At night.
Now that he has arrived in a major league clubhouse, there is no customary acclimation period.
“It feels like home,” Holliday said. “This is where I grew up.”
The Major League clubhouse is where everyone imagines he’ll be for the next 10 or 20 years, even if he has to wait until May or June to start. He’s aiming to make the team, but isn’t worried about potentially waiting several months for the young giant to join.
“I can’t imagine a more perfect location,” he says. “It’s a win-win.”
This Orioles camp looks like a two-day win-win. Pretty much all they do is win here, and with their ability and youth, and Holiday having all the unique attributes, things will only get better.
