Orioles call up No. 1 MLB prospect Jackson Holliday; SS to debut Wednesday

The Baltimore Orioles have announced that they have called up shortstop Jackson Holliday, the consensus top prospect in baseball, and that he will make his MLB debut on Wednesday against the Boston Red Sox.

With the move, Holliday saw his odds to win AL Rookie of the Year shorten, moving to +320. They sat at +450 at the end of March, and he trails Texas rookies Wyatt Langford (+225) and Evan Carter (+310) on the oddsboard. 

Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr. also revealed on social media that Holliday will be wearing No. 7, a number worn by Cal Ripken Sr. and also at times by Holliday's father, seven-time All-Star Matt Holliday, who played 15 years in the big leagues.

Holliday was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft and has lived up to the hype as a generational prospect.

The 20-year-old Holliday had a .323 batting average with a .941 OPS, 12 home runs and 75 RBIs across four minor league levels in 2023, ascending from low-A to Triple-A in his first full professional season. Holliday then turned heads with a .311 batting average and .954 OPS in big-league spring training, only to be sent back to Triple-A to begin the 2024 campaign. Still, he made Ben Verlander's preseason list of MLB position player breakout candidates.

Holliday then hit two leadoff home runs in his first four games of the season for Triple-A Norfolk, where he owns a .342 batting average and 1.096 OPS in 51 plate appearances this year. 

Holliday is a natural shortstop but is likely to see time at third base as the Orioles have 2023 AL Rookie of the Year Gunnar Henderson as their incumbent shortstop.

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