Reintroducing The Kid

 

Sometimes we, the fans, shouldn't be trusted for our opinions. For when we, all in one voice, shout out 'JACKSON HOLLIDAY SHOULD MAKE THE OPENING DAY ROSTER', sometimes we don't know what the hell we're talking about.

In April, after a week or so of MLB play had elapsed, the Orioles decided to call up Holliday, their prized prospect and one of the surefire phenoms of the future of baseball. It didn't go very well at all. In 10 games he was responsible for 2 hits and 1 RBI. All that promise, all that raking in Norfolk, all of the eyes of the world thinking he was gonna hit the ground running, and nothing was happening. If the Orioles weren't still playing really well in April it would have been more disappointing.

For a while, the storyline of the year was 'is Jackson Holliday the biggest bust in MLB history', solely because of what he accomplished in his first ten games. Now...first of all, he's not the biggest bust in MLB history [I have two punchlines here, so either we're going with Brien Taylor or Justin Verlander's wife]. You cannot judge someone by how they react to MLB pitching for the first time at age 20. This guy isn't old enough to partake in the most hallowed of all Baltimore traditions, namely imbibing a National Bohemian. Obviously he's gonna have a learning curve, even if he grows to be a superstar. But people were calling him cooked, and suggesting the O's trade him for Tarik Skubal, which was never gonna happen. People did ask, but they were never gonna trade Jackson Holliday. It's weird to say this about a team that already has Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson and Grayson Rodriguez killing it presently, but this is the future of Orioles baseball. And they're not gonna walk away from that. 

Now, Kyle Stowers evidently? He can be flipped. But not Holliday.

And so, the day after the trade deadline, Holliday re-ascended to the majors for an all-important second chance. And almost immediately he hit a home run. Since his July 31st call-up, he's batting .375 with 9 hits, 10 RBIs and 4 home runs. And that's in seven games, for the record. So next time you're gonna judge someone by his first 10 games, wait til his next 7, cause the good shit may very well be in there.

Just like that, another piece of a potential Orioles dynasty just clicked into place. It's annoying that Jordan Westburg is hurt, and Coby Mayo is currently having similar problems to Holliday during his first 10 games, but having Holliday finally getting the hang of the majors certainly helps, and adds another great piece to a team that's already getting 34 homers out of Anthony Santander and awards-caliber years out of Henderson and Corbin Burnes. This is the kind of piece that makes the Orioles dangerous come October.

There are obviously still some minor hiccups, like losing Rodriguez, some general rotation woes, including Trevor Rogers doing exactly what we all thought he'd do, and just how close some of these divisional games have been. But the Orioles still look extremely confident, and could pull something together this year if all these pieces stay steady. 

And if this is what Jackson Holliday is supposed to look like going forward, this might be the beginning of some fruitful playoff years for Baltimore. At last.

Coming Tonight: There was an earthquake. Immediately after that, he hit a home run. The following night he hit three more. I know Castellanos is supposed to be the one who only hits homers after national tragedies, but this guy may be gaining on him.