With Jackson Holliday mired in a slump, the Baltimore Orioles may have been doubting the second baseman.
However, the 21-year-old showed why they shouldn’t give up on him in the bottom of the second inning of their home game against the Cleveland Guardians on Wednesday night.
Holliday crushed an 88 mph sweeper from Cleveland starting pitcher Gavin Williams for a 396-foot grand slam, giving the Orioles a 4-0 lead. Before the home run, he was 0-for-17 at the plate in his past five games.
Entering Wednesday’s matchup against the Guardians, the 2022 No. 1 pick had one grand slam and six home runs in his first 73 games with the Orioles.
Per Jake Rill of MLB.com, only two other players in team history have recorded two grand slams in their first seven homers: Fritzie Connally (1983) and Brian Roberts (2001-03).
Through his first 13 games this season, Holliday posted a subpar .213 batting average. If he starts making contact more consistently, he could provide the power Baltimore needs following its underwhelming 6-10 start