The Baltimore Orioles have drawn a ton of criticism for their approach when it came to their starting rotation, and for good reason, but their lineup is a big reason why they're just 12-18 entering Friday's action. Injuries have hurt them, but that doesn't fully excuse them for being 20th in the majors in runs scored. In an effort to shake things up on that end, the Orioles moved Jackson Holliday up to the No. 6 spot in their lineup in their most recent game. They have him hitting in that same spot in Friday's series opener against the Kansas City Royals.
Holliday, a player who had never hit higher than seventh and had primarily hit ninth in the order this season, is now playing a larger role in the lineup, and for good reason.
The Orioles hope his ascension can be what helps turn their offense around.
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Orioles ought to stick with Jackson Holliday experiment as long as he continues to produce
As Jacob Calvin Meyer noted in the tweet above, Holliday has been raking lately, hitting almost .300 with an on-base percentage well over .400 and an OPS over .800 over his past 13 games. His season OPS is still lower than Baltimore would want at .680, and he only has one extra-base hit in that 13-game span, but considering how lackluster this Orioles offense has been, particularly lately, how can he not be elevated in the lineup?
The player most impacted by this decision is Heston Kjerstad, an outfielder who was primarily hitting in Holliday's new spot. While Kjerstad has more power than Holliday, he has gone just 3-for-28 over his past 10 games. Given Holliday's hot streak and Kjerstad's struggles, this swap makes perfect sense.
Now, it's on Holliday to continue to hit to keep this experiment going long-term. He went 1-for-4 in his debut in that No. 6 spot, while also driving in and scoring a run. More games like that will keep Holliday in a more prominent spot in the order, if not move him higher.
The Orioles don't have better options to hit where Holliday is right now due to Kjerstad's struggles and injuries to guys like Colton Cowser, Jordan Westburg, and Tyler O'Neill. Holliday hopes to justify the experiment and maybe even stick in that spot when the team gets better and healthier.