For the third time in three seasons, the top prospect in baseball is getting called up to join the Baltimore Orioles. First it was Adley Rutschman. Then it was Gunnar Henderson. Now, Jackson Holliday is getting his shot at the majors.
But even more notably, he’ll wear number seven for the Orioles, not worn since Cal Ripken Sr. passed in 1999. Billy Ripken is the last player to wear it on the field. That was in 1988.
Number seven is also Matt Holliday‘s number, Jackson’s father, who suited up for 15 MLB seasons from 2004 to 2018.
Baltimore asked permission from the Ripken family before giving number seven to Holliday. Cal Jr. helped announce the move with his and the family’s blessing on Twitter.
Our family is thrilled that @J_Holliday7 will be wearing dad’s #7 … Excited to watch him play!
“Our family is thrilled that @J_Holliday7 will be wearing dad’s #7,” Ripken Jr. wrote. “Excited to watch him play!”
Cal Jr. has recently returned to Camden Yards, as a member of the team’s new ownership group, led by David Rubenstein.
It’s the latest signal of a new era in Baltimore, one that’s only weeks old.
Jackson Holliday’s call-up is another one of those signals. He’ll look to hit the ground running, in the footsteps of those before him like Henderson and Rutschman.
Holliday to Join Orioles in Fenway
After waiting two weeks to call him up, Baltimore isn’t wasting any (more) time with Holliday.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports the newest Oriole will be with the team for their next game against the Boston Red Sox.
“Holliday is expected to join the Orioles, who are 6-4 after a win against Boston on Tuesday, at Fenway Park on Wednesday,” Passan wrote in an April 9 news report.
Holliday, after missing the Opening Day Roster by the peach fuzz on his 20-year-old chin, slashed a .333/.482/.595 line through his first nine games of the Triple-A season. He hit for two home runs and nine RBIs.
His message to fans? The MLB Twitter account broadcasted it in an April 10 video.
“I’m someone who takes pride in playing the game the right way,” Holliday started off saying. “Being raised in baseball, I think that’s something that just carried over from how my parents raised me and how I watched my dad play. Played the game the right way, and respected the game and I don’t really like losing. I’m pretty excited to be apart of an organization that’s headed in the right direction. All I know growing up is playoff baseball and that’s what hopefully the Orioles fans have to look forward to. A lot of years in the playoffs.”
You’d be hard-pressed to find a Baltimore fan who didn’t love every second of that one.
Orioles Take Gamble in Holliday Call-Up
After it was announced that Holliday wouldn’t make the Opening Day roster, speculation went rampant as to why Baltimore was holding off on calling up the top prospect.
Jacob Calvin Meyer broke down potential timelines and their repercussions in an April 2 column for the Baltimore Sun.
April 9 was not on his list.
Likely because in doing the call-up now, the Orioles are taking a gamble.
In not waiting until April 10 to call up Holliday, Baltimore rolls the dice on future draft compensation.
Passan echoed those sentiments in his news report.
“By calling up Holliday within the first two weeks of the season, Baltimore can reap an extra first-round draft pick through the Prospect Promotion Incentive, which awards teams with top prospects who attain a full year of service time and win the Rookie of the Year award.”
If a player wins ROY, they automatically earn a year of service time, regardless of whether or not they spent 172 days on the roster.
Therefore, a guy like Rutschman, who spent less than 172 days on the roster but won ROY, got a full year of service time. But the Orioles didn’t earn an extra draft pick.
Gunnar Henderson debuted in 2022, but only had less than 60 days on the roster.
So in the end, he was considered a prospect per the lists, and was eligible for the Prospect Promotion Incentive in 2023. He won the ROY, was on the roster all year, and Baltimore earned an additional draft pick.
Baltimore is banking on Holliday to win Rookie of the Year and earn themselves another draft pick by calling him up within the first two weeks of the season.
And Orioles fans everywhere are banking on him living up to that famous number seven.
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Cal Ripken Jr. Responds to Jackson Holliday’s Orioles Jersey Number Reveal