Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker speaks during a baseball news conference Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019, in St. Louis. The St. Louis Cardinals and Braves are scheduled to play Game 3 of the National League Division Series on Sunday in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Baltimore Orioles Former Top Pick Expected To Have Break Out Season
The Baltimore Orioles are a team with a lot of young talent. That was highlighted by two of their players being inside the top-40 of ESPN’s Top 100 players in baseball list having a combined three years of service time.
They might not be the only young Orioles to make that list in the next couple of seasons.
ESPN also looked at each team’s most likely player to be the next one to make the list and made an easy choice for Baltimore.
The first overall pick in the 2022 MLB draft, Jackson Holliday, was ESPN’s selection as the next one to be a Top 100 player in baseball.
It’s a pretty clear choice as he continues to look more and more comfortable against big league pitching in Spring Training.
Across all leagues he played in last season, Holliday had 12 home runs and 75 runs batted in with a .323 batting average and .941 on-base plus slugging percentage.
He has similar numbers so far this spring and is looking like every bit of the player that the Orioles hoped he would become when they drafted him.
Holliday still has to make the roster, though, but it would be surprising to not see him make it past the final cuts. He is likely going to be the team’s second baseman this season.
If for some reason Holliday is not the next one to break out and make the Top 100, it would likely be another young player in Grayson Rodriguez.
The 24-year-old pitcher, and also former first round pick, has a nice fastball but needs to work on his off-speed pitches. He didn’t set the league on fire as a rookie, but showcased some potential and wouldn’t be a complete shock to see him have a breakout season too.
