Time Away from Baltimore Orioles Has Helped Jumpstart Holliday's Second Stint

It seems like the time the Baltimore Orioles star prospect spend in Triple-A has helped him during his second stint in the Majors.

Jul 31, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles second baseman Jackson Holliday (7) is interviewed following the game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays at Oriole Park at Camden Yards / Reggie Hildred-USA TODAY Sports

Back in the early portion of the season, many fans were disappointed when the Baltimore Orioles ultimately decided to keep their superstar prospect Jackson Holliday off the Opening Day roster.

Despite the limited sample size, all reports indicated he was ready from a hitting standpoint to come in and be able to produce at the Major League level.

So when he was promoted for his MLB debut, the expectation was he would hit the ground running and immediately be part of the AL Rookie of the Year conversation with a shot to give this franchise back-to-back winners.

Instead, his jarring struggles got him sent down to Triple-A just 10 games into the experiment.

It was clear that Holliday was completely overmatched at the plate, and the organization wasted no time in sending him to the minors with the intent on him getting more reps against better pitching than he has faced throughout his career.

That decision seems to have paid off in a big way.

Holliday has looked like a completely different player during his second stint, hitting his first career Major League home run that also happened to be a grand slam. He then followed that up with another long ball four days later, all while going 7-for-18 with seven RBI since getting promoted.

What changed?

All the work he was quietly doing down in Triple-A got him to the point where he would no longer be completely outmatched by the pitchers he would face in the MLB.

"In Norfolk, Holliday slightly altered his batting stance, starting with more weight on his back leg and holding his bat closer to his ear. These changes were meant to put him in a better position to hit high-velocity fastballs and adjust to breaking balls while keeping his large leg kick," writes Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun.

Why the Orioles have what is considered to be the best farm system in baseball isn't just the immense talent they have been able to draft and acquire over the years, but it's also been because they are able to develop at a high level.

That's been clear with Holliday.

Of course, this five-game sample size is way too limited to crown him as the game's next great player, but he was considered the consensus No. 1 prospect for a reason.

"It translates, being in a better position to hit. I'm starting to see the ball a little deeper and allowing myself to go the other way, which allows me to see the ball for a longer time," Holliday said about his new approach.

How long this lasts will be seen, but this doesn't feel like it's a short-term fix.

Holliday was able to put in the work during his time with their Triple-A affiliate, starting to make adjustments that would help him be more competitive at the plate when called up.

Now, he's reaping those benefits.