Baltimore Orioles Top Prospect Jackson Holliday Records 1st MLB Hit After Long Wait

Jackson Holliday, the top prospect in baseball, recorded a clutch single in the seventh inning of the Baltimore Orioles' game against the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday.
Apr 10, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Baltimore Orioles second base Jackson Holliday (7) strikes out.
Apr 10, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Baltimore Orioles second base Jackson Holliday (7) strikes out. / David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
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It may have taken a few more tries than many fans had hoped, but Jackson Holliday finally notched a major milestone Sunday afternoon.

The Baltimore Orioles second baseman, who was the consensus top prospect in baseball before he got called up last week, started his MLB career 0-for-13. Across his first three big league appearances, Holliday failed to record a hit, and he got benched Saturday as a result.

Holliday's slump continued into Sunday's game between the Orioles and Milwaukee Brewers, as he opened the game 0-for-2 with two strikeouts out of the No. 9 hole.

The rising star finally came through with a base hit in the bottom of the seventh, though, roping a 1-0 sinker to right for a single. Holliday advanced the tying run to third in the process, and he came around to score the go-ahead run himself when catcher Adley Rutschman grounded into a double play two at-bats later.

It wasn't the first run of Holliday's MLB career – he scored twice Thursday against the Boston Red Sox – but it surely felt even sweeter knowing it came off the back of his first big league hit.

The Orioles went on to win 6-4, thanks in no small part to Holliday's role in the seventh-inning rally.

Holliday was batting .333 with a 1.077 OPS in 10 games of Triple-A action before the Orioles selected his contract. In Spring Training, he hit .311 with a .954 OPS.

So for as shocking as the slow start to Holliday's MLB career at the plate might have been, he has at least gotten the monkey off his back now. The 20-year-old son of longtime Colorado Rockies and St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday has a bright future ahead of him – according to virtually every scout and analyst on the planet – and Sunday may have officially marked the start of that long journey to stardom.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a Staff Writer for Fastball on the Sports Illustrated/FanNation networks. He previously covered UCLA Athletics for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's All Bruins, 247Sports' Bruin Report Online, Rivals' Bruin Blitz, the Bleav Podcast Network and the Daily Bruin, with his work as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk.