Not much has gone right for the Baltimore Orioles this season, as their 36-47 record would indicate, but Jackson Holliday has been one of the few bright spots for this team. After a rough rookie year, Holliday has proven he belongs this season, slashing .259/.310/.414 with 10 home runs and 33 RBI in 76 games this season. He hopes to improve those numbers even further with a series against the Texas Rangers beginning on Monday.
Holliday's numbers might not jump off the page, but he ranks fourth among all qualified AL second basemen with a 105 WRC+ and is tied for third with 0.9 fWAR. He's been rock solid, and at 21 years old, he's got a ton of room to grow.
With Game 1 of this series just hours away, let's take a look at everything you need to know regarding Baltimore's rising star.
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Jackson Holliday injury status and possibility of rest
Holliday has been healthy all year and has been in the lineup just about every day as a result. He's appeared in 76 of Baltimore's 83 games this season, and has started in 74 of those games. While a day of rest can't be ruled out, the fact that Holliday is fully healthy right now and the Orioles need every win they can get makes it unlikely that they'd bench the 21-year-old, especially against one of the many teams they're chasing in the AL Wild Card race.
Jackson Holliday history vs. Patrick Corbin
The Orioles will begin this series facing Patrick Corbin, a southpaw having somewhat of a resurgent season with Texas. After being one of MLB's worst starters for half a decade, Corbin has a serviceable 4.24 ERA in 14 starts for the Rangers and has been a nice fit in the back-end of their rotation. There's reason to believe Holliday, a young left-handed hitter, might struggle against a left-handed pitcher, but his history against Corbin suggests anything but.
Holliday faced Corbin a week ago in Baltimore and had a huge game, going 2-for-3 against him with a double and an opposite-field, three-run homer. Corbin allowed five runs in five innings of work, and Holliday drove in four of those runs. He hopes to keep the good times rolling against Corbin, this time in Texas.
Jackson Holliday extends the @Orioles lead with a 3-run jack 💪 pic.twitter.com/JmYWa4z5AM
— MLB (@MLB) June 23, 2025
Where will Jackson Holliday be in the Orioles' lineup?
As has been the case since mid-May, Holliday finds himself in the leadoff spot for Monday's contest. He'll hope to set the table against Corbin, a pitcher he had a ton of success against last week.
Deep in the Heart of Texas 🤠 pic.twitter.com/b0a9x8HegU
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) June 30, 2025
It's certainly interesting to see a 21-year-old left-handed hitter leading off against a left-handed starter, but Holliday has been almost as good against lefties as he has against righties. His .714 OPS against southpaws is just 14 points lower than his mark against right-handers, and his .264 batting average against left-handers is actually higher than his mark against righties.
Holliday can more than hold his own against southpaws, and will hope to prove that against Corbin for a second time in a week.