Orioles News: Orioles’ Jackson Holliday sets new career first with huge blast vs. Royals

Jackson Holliday is figuring it out for the Orioles amid their rough start to the 2025 campaign made even worse by their loss to the Royals.

Believed to be an AL East powerhouse for years to come, especially with their bright young prospects, such as Jackson Holliday, breaking through in the big leagues, the Orioles have begun the season playing sub-.500 baseball, with things going from bad to worse on Sunday as an 11-6 loss to the Kansas City Royals handed them their 20th loss of the season in 33 games.

At the very least, there are some bright spots for the Orioles to hold on to amid their rough start to the 2025 season.

For instance, Holliday had the first multi-home run game of his career, going yard against Royals starter Michael Lorenzen in his first two plate appearances of the day to keep the Orioles within striking distance before the game completely got away from them in the final few innings.

Holliday was excellent on the day and shoulders no blame whatsoever for the Orioles’ defeat. He went 3-4 on the day and was the biggest threat in the Orioles order despite being in the sixth spot.

The 21-year-old boasts excellent power production potential for a middle infielder, which is what made him the game’s most highly-touted prospect in recent seasons. Holliday is now getting consistent playing time after a rough rookie season and he’s quickly showing why he was held in such high regard by talent evaluators.

The key now for the Orioles, however, is to supplement their burgeoning hitting core with some excellent pitching. They are the third-worst team in the MLB in terms of runs allowed per game, and their roster is a bit imbalanced at the moment. The good news is that the MLB regular season is long and they have plenty of time to right the ship.

Jackson Holliday is figuring it out for the Orioles

Baltimore Orioles second baseman Jackson Holliday (7) rounds the bases after hitting a home run during the second inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. — Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

Suffice to say, Jackson Holliday’s 2024 cup of coffee for the Orioles’ big-league roster did not go according to plan. He was striking out on over a third of his plate appearances and it seemed to sap his confidence en route to a 208-plate appearance cameo with a .566 OPS. He was promptly sent down to the minors to get it together.

But Holliday has been markedly better through the first month or so of 2025. He’s been making better contact and getting on base more often, and on Sunday, he showed that the power production is coming around just when the Orioles need a bit of a spark to re-ignite their season.