NORFOLK, Va. — Jackson Holliday is waiting for his pitch. They just aren’t coming very often.
Holliday, 20, has spent the greater part of the past two months at Triple-A Norfolk working to correct the mistakes that surfaced during his first stint in the major leagues. The Orioles’ top prospect crushed every level of the minors during his ascent to the top of every major prospect rankings list, but his 2-for-34 performance over 10 big league games halted his momentum and forced him to make some changes.
“Just trying to get back to the sort of things that I was doing last year,” Holliday told The Baltimore Sun last week. “Kind of like the angle of my bat, making sure that it’s in a better position. I think everything else is in a good spot. I think there’s just small things when it comes to hitting that get out of whack. I feel like that’s what happened with the big leagues. I got exposed a little bit with that and hitting in bad positions that caused me to look like I was overswinging or doing other things. But it’s part of the game and hitting is really difficult, but just trying to get back to some things that I was doing last year.”
Since returning to Norfolk, Holliday has slashed .259/.442/.448 with six home runs and 15 doubles in 231 plate appearances. His batting average and slugging percentage over that span are both slightly down from Holliday’s career Triple-A figures of .272 and .457, respectively, but opponents haven’t been throwing him many pitches he can hit.
Pitchers facing Holliday have thrown 56.4% of their Statcast-tracked pitches outside the strike zone, the highest rate among any of the 140 qualified hitters in Triple-A this season and nearly 2% higher than the next-closest top 100 prospect on MLB Pipeline’s rankings (Luisangel Acuña, 54.5%). He’s taking what they’re giving him; Holliday leads the minor leagues with 69 walks while striking out 64 times.
When the ball is in the zone, Holliday is doing damage. He boasts a hard-hit rate of 52% on pitches within the strike zone, tied for 13th among Triple-A hitters and second among the level’s top 100 prospects behind only the San Francisco Giants’ Marco Luciano (53.3%). Holliday hasn’t shown much home run power, but that’s an element the Orioles expect will further develop as he physically matures.
“The ability to command the strike zone the way he does is, for a young kid, the moment down here doesn’t ever seem to get too big for him,” Norfolk manager Buck Britton said. “He stays within the strike zone. Yeah, you can look at batting average, but the on-base is there. He’s getting stronger physically. So, it’s scary to think that he’s still physically maturing.”
While Holliday’s prospect status still has plenty of luster, his struggles at the major league level did knock him from the No. 1 spot on several lists. Baseball America slotted him second in each of its last two midseason rankings updates, first behind Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes and later in favor of Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood. Skenes was just named an All-Star and Wood earned his call up to the majors on July 1, so the spotlight has shifted in their direction.
Currently playing designated hitter exclusively to manage an elbow injury that sidelined him for two weeks, Holliday doesn’t expect to get another chance with the Orioles until at least after the All-Star break when he resumes playing the infield. Until then, he’s just waiting for his pitch.
“Obviously, it’s humbling to be able to go up there and struggle and fail at the level that I did,” Holliday said. “The outlook that I have is it was small. I get [34] at-bats, or whatever how many at-bats I got, in three or four games here. So, it’s part of it. I know that everything is part of a plan. Just trusting the Lord with this one. Obviously, not what I wanted to happen, but it’s good to come down here and work on some things.”
Pipeline producers
Each week, The Baltimore Sun will break down five of the top performers in the Orioles’ prospect ranks and hand out some superlatives for those who didn’t make that cut. Here’s who stood out:
1. Triple-A Norfolk second baseman Connor Norby
After joining the Orioles in Baltimore as a taxi squad member last weekend, Connor Norby returned to Norfolk and picked up right where he left off. He slashed .345/.367/.690 for the week with three home runs and nine RBIs in five games for the Tides. With the trade deadline looming, Norby is proving he’s earned the chance for an opportunity at the MLB level — with the Orioles or another MLB team.
2. Triple-A Norfolk infielder-designated hitter Jackson Holliday
Holliday only had 15 at-bats last week, but that’s because he recorded nine walks on his way to putting up a .583 on-base percentage over five games. He recorded five hits over that span with four going for extra bases, including a go-ahead home run in the eighth inning against the Durham Bulls on July 1.
The kid goes yard! @J_Holliday7 breaks the tie with his 8th home run of the year!#DefendtheHarbor pic.twitter.com/MzOlP4jUuD
— Norfolk Tides (@NorfolkTides) July 2, 2024
3. Double-A Bowie catcher Samuel Basallo
Samuel Basallo reached base in all five games for Double-A Bowie last week, posting an .808 OPS with a home run and four RBIs. He has 12 homers on the season, tied with his total from Low-A Delmarva last year in almost 50 fewer plate appearances. Basallo was promoted twice after hitting those long balls for Delmarva in 2023 and a promotion to Triple-A appears likely to come soon after he was named to the MLB Futures Game last week.
4. Triple-A infielder Coby Mayo
Another week, another impressive string of games for Coby Mayo. The Orioles’ infield prospect is pounding on the door of the major leagues as he posted an .802 OPS last week with a home run and as many walks (six) as strikeouts. The Tides’ everyday third baseman appeared in two games at first base as he continues to strengthen his resume for a call-up.
5. Double-A Bowie right-hander Seth Johnson
From Cade Povich and Chayce McDermott to Jackson Baumeister and Luis De Leon, it wasn’t a banner week for Orioles pitching prospects. The biggest standout was Seth Johnson, who allowed two runs on four hits and a walk with one strikeout in four innings for Bowie. Johnson has a 2.94 ERA in 15 starts this season.
The top prospect not featured so far
After missing a week with minor left wrist tendinitis, Enrique Bradfield Jr. returned for High-A Aberdeen on June 29 before slashing .227/.292/.227 in five games last week. The Orioles’ 2023 first-round pick hasn’t shown much power in his first full professional season but has displayed the speed (41 stolen bases), bat-to-ball skills (.347 on-base percentage) and defensive prowess that suggest he can be a quality major leaguer when he’s ready.
International acquisition of the week
If there was an award for the most unusual stat line of the week, it would go to Emilio Sanchez of the Orioles’ Dominican Summer League team. Sanchez, the Orioles’ No. 23 prospect on Baseball America’s organizational top 30 rankings, went 1-for-12 (.083) last week but still managed a .726 OPS after drawing eight walks in four games. He also stole four bases and his one hit went for a triple.
Time to give a shoutout to …
He’s not a prospect, but the Orioles’ recent minor league signee Garrett Cooper has gotten off to a blistering start with Triple-A Norfolk. Named the International Player of the Week on Monday, Cooper has gone 10-for-29 (.345) with four home runs and eight RBIs in eight games since signing with Baltimore. Cooper was designated for assignment by both the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox this season, but he was a productive major leaguer as recently as 2023 and an All-Star the year before.