Baltimore Orioles select Jackson Holliday as No. 1 pick in MLB Draft

Another baseball prospect from a second generation is making an MLB debut.

Jackson Holliday, the son of seven-time All-Star Matt Holliday, will be selected first overall by the Orioles in the 2022 MLB Draft.

Matt Holliday played for four different clubs throughout the course of his 15-year career, mostly the Cardinals and Rockies, and hit 316 home runs with an.889 OPS. He presently serves as Oklahoma State’s baseball team’s unpaid assistant coach, mostly focusing on offensive growth and outfield play.

Jackson, a shortstop from Stillwater, Oklahoma, has pledged to play at Oklahoma State with his dad if he decides not to sign with the Cowboys. Josh Holliday, Matt’s older brother and Jackson’s uncle, is the Cowboys’ baseball coach.

The No. 2 prospect according to MLB.com, who throws right-handed and hits left-handed, compiled a.686 batting average with 17 home runs as a senior in high school.

Holliday thus officially becomes a second-generation player in the MLB, joining a growing group of them. Dusty Baker’s son Darren and Al Leiter’s son Jack also participated in the Future’s Game on Saturday, but according to MLB.com, Andruw Jones’ son Druw is the only prospect with a better draught position.

The Orioles finished the 2021 season with a 52-110 record, which tied them with the Diamondbacks for the worst record in baseball, earning the No. 1 pick. Baltimore “won” the tiebreaker over Arizona for the top pick because they had the worse 2020 record.

Baltimore has earned a top-five selection for the fourth straight year, including their second No. 1 overall pick. Adley Rutschman, a catcher chosen by the Orioles in 2019 out of Oregon State, rose to the top of MLB’s prospect rankings before being promoted to the majors earlier this season.

The run of top-five selections, however, is probably coming to an end this year. Baltimore has surprised baseball with a strong first half, and they are currently 46-46 heading into the All-Star break, which is their best mark at this point in the season since 2017.