Jackson Holliday 2024

[Too Tall]

I think, the tools are there. The pedigree is there. He is young. We are going to find out over the next 18 months what kind of "head" he has. Like all Oriole youngsters, I hope he can produce equal to his hype. But I think/hope he will have to earn his place starting with next spring. He will set the narrative and the Orioles control his future unless he is traded. IMO, he has a lot of work to do to earn what circumstance has presented this year..

[Moose Milligan]

I'm really waiting until this time next year to make any prognostications about where he is and what type of career he'll have. 

Obviously this season has been disappointing but there's a huge upside.  I don't think his homer barrage after getting called back up was a fluke.

[Just Regular]

ZiPS being an inhuman thing incapable of recency bias is not much out on Holliday.    It only dings his 2025-2029 forecast WAR by about 3% today relative to what it was forecasting this spring.

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/reassessing-the-future-for-this-seasons-disappointing-rookies/

Jackson Holliday’s numbers didn’t take a big hit for a few reasons. First, and most importantly, despite a really lousy debut in the majors, he played well enough in the minors — plus he’s so young and his résumé is so strong — that his small-sample struggles barely register. By reverse-o-fying Holliday’s major league woes into an untranslated minor league line and including it in his overall Triple-A production, ZiPS estimates that he would’ve had a 118 wRC+ in Triple-A this season, down from his actual mark of 142. A 20-year-old shortstop with a 118 wRC+ in Triple-A would still top everybody’s prospect list.

[LA2]

Very dismayed that we're trying to win this season with unproven players like Holliday and Mayo plugging gaps. Very glad to have picked up Rivera  (+151 OPS as an Orioles) and Slater has a much-needed .354 OBP, plays a reassuringly fine LF, and is a good baserunner. I hope that the defensively versatile, LH-batting Livan Soto proves to be yet another surprise--his limited MLB stats show it's possible.

Edited Tuesday at 20:40 by LA2

[Brooks The Great]

20 hours ago, LA2 said:

Very dismayed that we're trying to win this season with unproven players like Holliday and Mayo plugging gaps. Very glad to have picked up Rivera  (+151 OPS as an Orioles) and Slater has a much-needed .354 OBP, plays a reassuringly fine LF, and is a good baserunner. I hope that the defensively versatile, LH-batting Livan Soto proves to be yet another surprise--his limited MLB stats show it's possible.

After going just 0-3 last night, Slater now has a .318 OBP on the season and a .296 OBP in September. Slater has an ugly swing, as well as ugly underlying advanced metrics.

Slater was never a good pickup for this team, especially because Elias sold him as some sort of ideal buy low platoon option against lefties even though he has been a better hitter against righties this season.

Heston Kjerstad needs to be playing every day from now on, and in particular Kjerstad should NOT be pinch hit for late in games against lefties for Slater. It's just not worth it to keep giving Slater at bats just hoping for a walk, which has predominantly been his "value" to the team as a hitter. But since Hyde is a slave to senseless platooning, especially when it favors vets, I'm sure that's what we'll see moving forward.

[LookitsPuck]

15 minutes ago, Brooks The Great said:

After going just 0-3 last night, Slater now has a .318 OBP on the season and a .296 OBP in September. Slater has an ugly swing, as well as ugly underlying advanced metrics.

Slater was never a good pickup for this team, especially because Elias sold him as some sort of ideal buy low platoon option against lefties even though he has been a better hitter against righties this season.

Heston Kjerstad needs to be playing every day from now on, and in particular Kjerstad should NOT be pinch hit for late in games against lefties for Slater. It's just not worth it to keep giving Slater at bats just hoping for a walk, which has predominantly been his "value" to the team as a hitter. But since Hyde is a slave to senseless platooning, especially when it favors vets, I'm sure that's what we'll see moving forward.

They've been able to eke out 0.4 WAR out of him by using him mostly situationally and his defense has been adequate and flexible. He's been a solid pickup and TBH better overall than Hays who brought a clubhouse issue with him re: wanting to be a regular.

That said, I am 100% of the mindset that Heston needs to be starting every game. At the very least, Eloy should never be starting over him. 

[KojiSplit]

Things you didn’t expect to hear when the season started: Austin Slater pinch hitting for Jackson Holliday.

Overall Holliday is hitting .172 with a .524 ops in 174 at bats with the big league club.

Pain

[Flightless]

Have to wonder how you can call this player development if they can’t play at the major league level.

[LA2]

Rivera and Soto should be playing over Holliday and Mayo until Westburg and Urias return. It's what Buck would have done in 2014.

[sportsfan8703]

Holliday had a big hit today. He smacked that ball right back up the middle with two strikes to knock in Adley.

Big hit. 

[ChuckS]

He's had a few nice at bats the last two days.  Say he looks half way decent at the plate over the weekend, is it possible for him to a regular in the lineup after Urias and Westburg return?

I was thinking Urias at 3B and Westburg at 2B would be the primary configuration of the infield once they return over the next few days, but maybe Urias is just used against LHP and a late defensive replacement if Holliday is heating up. 

Edited 2 hours ago by ChuckS

[Fiver6565]

9 minutes ago, ChuckS said:

He's had a few nice at bats the last two days.  Say he looks half way decent at the plate over the weekend, is it possible for him to a regular in the lineup after Urias and Westburg return?

I was thinking Urias at 3B and Westburg at 2B would be the primary configuration of the infield once they return over the next few days, but maybe Urias is just used against LHP and a late defensive replacement if Holliday is heating up. 

Holliday will get his chances but I suspect there will be a lot of Urias third and Westburg second.  Not a coincidence those were the positions they played in AAA today, I would imagine.

[Just Regular]

Westburg 3B/2B flex gives game to game opportunity to hit Holliday for Urias or vice versa if the situation seems right.

There also will be a couple extra Not Ryan O'Hearn plate appearances in Cole Ragans or Carlos Rodon games, hopefully Mountcastle's but his forecast seems a few days behind the other two at a time of year a day is a long time.

A guess is out of the 3 Mountcastle might be closest to a Carlos Correa get a painkiller and rub some dirt on it kind of situation.