Jackson Holliday 2023

[OriolesMagic83]

3 minutes ago, deward said:

What has Westburg done to deserve being supplanted by Ortiz? 

I don't think he's done anything, but it's not my opinion that matters.  If Elias thinks that Ortiz can bring offense that's close to Westburg's, it might make sense to trade Westburg and play Ortiz.  The O's just have too many middle IF to play them all.  That's why it would have made sense to give Ortiz a true trial this year.  It's not like he would have been a downgrade from Mateo.  I think a weak spot for Elias is that he can never give up an asset he finds valuable.  That's usually a good thing, but the time is quick approaching when the O's will have too many MLB capable players and not enough slots.

[frankwhite]

48 minutes ago, deward said:

What has Westburg done to deserve being supplanted by Ortiz? 

Maybe the O's just think Westy will be the better overall player? Westburg has looked pretty good for the little time he has been here. He will come around and hit for more power. He seems like a great team mate, a real competitor. I think he will be the better player overall. It's a good problem to have and Ortiz will eventually get his chance to prove himself. 

[ShoelesJoe]

If I'm reading his game logs correctly Holliday has received ten walks in his last five games. SSS and all that, but I'm wondering if opposing teams are starting to subconsciously pitch around him. 

[Frobby]

1 hour ago, ShoelesJoe said:

If I'm reading his game logs correctly Holliday has received ten walks in his last five games. SSS and all that, but I'm wondering if opposing teams are starting to subconsciously pitch around him. 

More likely, they are consciously pitching around him.  Plus, he’s a very disciplined hitter.  

[ShoelesJoe]

21 minutes ago, Frobby said:

More likely, they are consciously pitching around him.  Plus, he’s a very disciplined hitter.  

If you were an opposing AA manager wouldn't you want your pitchers going after a good young hitter like Holliday? I mean, if you're afraid of a 19 year old at AA how are you ever going to face major league batters with any confidence?

[Frobby]

7 minutes ago, ShoelesJoe said:

If you were an opposing AA manager wouldn't you want your pitchers going after a good young hitter like Holliday? I mean, if you're afraid of a 19 year old at AA how are you ever going to face major league batters with any confidence?

Very true. I’d like to think that minor league managers don’t tell their pitchers to pitch around guys.  

[InsideCoroner]

13 minutes ago, ShoelesJoe said:

If you were an opposing AA manager wouldn't you want your pitchers going after a good young hitter like Holliday? I mean, if you're afraid of a 19 year old at AA how are you ever going to face major league batters with any confidence?

The managers might want it but some opposing pitchers struggling to get noticed probably have an entirely different take. 

[brucewayne]

1 hour ago, Frobby said:

More likely, they are consciously pitching around him.  Plus, he’s a very disciplined hitter.  

I think there is value in a young hitter experiencing pitch arounds. You don't want a situation where hes spending months in a level getting pitched around. But at the same time there is value in learning how to take your walks and hammering a mistake. That way, if and when it starts happening in the majors he will have experience being pitched around and wont get too anxious and undisciplined and get himself out.

[LookinUp]

If he's not being pitched to, AAA should come soon.

If he is being pitched to but fouling balls off and working walks, it's an entirely different story.

Either way I think AAA is in his near future.

Edited August 25, 2023 by LookinUp

[Sports Guy]

https://x.com/sabadossports/status/1697338668342489372?s=46&t=G3On-_LleGmZce-r3ClVZA

[Can_of_corn]

Fangraph's piece on minor league shortstop defense.

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/lets-watch-some-shortstop-prospects-play-defense/

Quote

Holliday isn’t currently a big league-quality shortstop defender, but he’s talented enough to project as a suitable one within the next couple of years. He’s most comfortable throwing on the move from right to left, and he often goes out of his way to do so even when it isn’t called for. His ability to make accurate throws from odd platforms is impressive, as are Holliday’s poise and internal clock. But his hands are not always sound, and Holliday lets a lot of choppers take an unnecessarily high hop, with the direction of that hop sometimes surprising him. He needs to do a better job of staying low and attacking this type of groundball closer to the ground, especially when he’s moving toward the hole to his right. He also tends to take an extra step or two to gather himself before throwing, which the speed of major league play might not allow for. Again, I think Holliday will eventually be fine, but right now his bat is pretty comfortably ahead of his defense.

Bonus Ortiz content.

Quote

I’ve dialed down the grades on Orioles infield prospect Joey Ortiz’s defense and arm by a full standard deviation. His diminutive size makes him especially agile, but he lacks any other exceptional defensive attributes. I haven’t altered Ortiz’s FV grade, however, because he is still making a ton of contact and hitting the ball hard, with a 46% hard-hit rate at Norfolk.

 

[Say O!]

Great insight in the fangraphs article and the video comparison content is quite illuminating.  
 

My take-away is that we may see Gunnar stick at SS, and others flank around him. 

Edited September 1, 2023 by Say O!

[ChuckS]

19 minutes ago, Say O! said:

Great insight in the fangraphs article and the video comparison content is quite illuminating.  
 

My take-away is that we may see Gunnar stick at SS, and others flank around him. 

Agreed.  Even if Holliday develops into a capable major league shortstop, he's not going to have the same arm Gunnar has.  I see him as a second baseman long term, potentially a gold glove one given his speed and athleticism. 

 

[interloper]

Holliday is bigger than I realized. 

[scarey1999]

7 hours ago, Sports Guy said:

https://x.com/sabadossports/status/1697338668342489372?s=46&t=G3On-_LleGmZce-r3ClVZA

Imagine him being a bigger, stronger faster version of his current day self, and then imagine what kind of additional damage he’s going to do at the dish, in the field and on the bases. I’m guessing he’s hearing some of the noise about his solid if unspectacular SS play, and we’re going to see a much more mobile player with a stronger arm a la what we saw with Gunnar.  There were a lot of questions about him being able to stick at short too.  I think he heard it and put in the work. Clearly, it paid off.

For Holliday, the question is not if he gets the call next year, but what month it happens.