Baltimore Orioles Send Jackson Holliday Back To Minors After Nightmarish Start
Well, that didn’t last long.
Baltimore Orioles prospect Jackson Holliday got called up to the big leagues on April 10, an event that was hyped up with good reason since he is the son of former MLB star Matt Holiday. Jackson’s arrival in the show was billed as the start of a brilliant career.
It was anything but.
Holiday has played in 10 games since being called up from the minors, and has done horrifically. In 34 at-bats, he posted a .059 batting average with just two hits, two walks, and 18 strikeouts.
Jackson Holliday did not have a good start to his MLB career. Photo: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
As such, Baltimore is officially sending him back down to Triple AAA for him to regain his swagger and get out of his hitting slump.
Last week, manager Brandon Hyde expressed full confidence in the 20-year-old, saying he was encountering the challenges that every major leaguer encounters.
"You’re talking about somebody who’s never failed before," Hyde said. "It’s a tough place to be. I don’t think anybody, except for the people that are down here in uni, understand how hard this is. He’s going to go through struggles, and that’s part of being a professional baseball player — how you deal with it, adversity, tough at-bats."
Read: Jackson Holliday Debut Put Up Huge Ratings For MLB Network
Hyde wasn’t kidding when he said that Holliday hasn’t failed before. Last week, the youngster called the MLB the first challenge he’s ever faced in his life.
Obviously, I wasn’t expecting this," Holliday said. "I knew what I was getting myself into. It’s the best of the best of the best for a reason. I guess I haven’t had a challenge yet, and this is the first one. … It’s obviously challenging, but I feel like I’m handling it the best that I can."
This isn’t an indictment on his talent, he’s the No. 1 prospect for a reason. The MLB is just a different beast, and every rookie learns that eventually.
Holliday just learned that a little quicker than usual.