Orioles observations on Jackson Holliday’s grand slam, split-squad home run barrage and more vs. Blue Jays

SARASOTA, Fla. — On a day the Orioles hit nine home runs between their two split-squad games against the Toronto Blue Jays, the biggest swing of the afternoon belonged to a 20-year-old middle infielder.

Of course, Jackson Holliday is no typical youngster. He’s the consensus No. 1 overall prospect in the sport getting the chance to make his case for a spot on the Orioles’ opening day roster. Holliday improved that case Sunday, crushing a grand slam off Blue Jays starter Yusei Kikuchi in the road squad’s 11-6 win for his first home run of the spring.

It’s been an all-around impressive first half of spring for Holliday, who finished the day hitting .286 with the home run, two doubles, two triples and a stolen base in nine Grapefruit League games. How his power would manifest itself this season was a significant question mark surrounding Holliday, who had 12 home runs over 581 plate appearances in the minor leagues last year, heading into the spring.

“That was my main focus, right, an offseason is to get stronger and be able to hit the ball harder because some of the big league stadiums are big,” Holliday said after playing the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday. “It’s important to be able to drive the ball all over the fields but anytime that you can hit the barrel I think is a win, no matter how hard it is.”

Listed at 6 feet, 185 pounds, Holliday is expected to grow into his power as his body matures, but he showed Sunday that he’s already capable of hitting the ball a long way. Though Statcast failed to pick up a reading on the ball, Holliday knew it was gone right off the bat and the long fly ball cleared the home bullpen in right field.

Holliday has racked up a few strikeouts (11) with only one walk. Even so, it’s hardly limited his production. Manager Brandon Hyde, who was back in Sarasota managing the home squad’s 6-6 tie, said earlier in spring that the Orioles were trying not to look at Holliday’s stats when evaluating his case for a roster spot. The infielder is also playing a relatively new position in the field at second base with Gunnar Henderson locked in at shortstop.

If Holliday’s power, which has a 55 grade on the 20-80 scale used by Baseball America, starts to emerge in 2024, he will have yet another factor working in his favor as the Orioles determine whether he’s ready for an everyday job in the majors.

The homers keep on coming

Holliday’s grand slam wasn’t the first of the day for the Orioles, nor was it the last as the two split-squad lineups sent the ball flying all afternoon.

Outfielder Anthony Santander got things started with a 406-foot shot off Kikuchi in the top of the first, the first of his two home runs on the day. In Sarasota, catcher Adley Rutschman shook off his slow start to the spring by launching a left-handed home run to the pull side in his first at-bat.

Following suit in Dunedin was Holliday, catcher Michael Pérez and outfielder Ryan McKenna. Outfielder Colton Cowser, catcher James McCann and third baseman Ramón Urías also went deep at Ed Smith Stadium. McCann and Santander, playing almost 60 miles apart, homered within seconds of each other.

The home run barrage raised the Orioles’ total on the spring to 26, second highest in the league behind only the Pittsburgh Pirates (31). Cowser leads the way with four, a mark tied by six other players for the MLB lead this spring. Santander (three), outfielder Kyle Stowers (three), shortstop Jorge Mateo (two), Rutschman (two) and Urías (two) are the other Orioles with multiple long balls so far in Grapefruit League play.

“We have guys that can hit the ball out of the ballpark, we’re pretty athletic and can run also,” Hyde said of the lineup’s potential. “So, I like the mix that we have. We have guys that are going to hit with some power and hit with some power in the future and it’s an exciting group of offensive guys.”

Around the horn

• Orioles’ opening day starter Corbin Burnes took the mound in Sarasota for his third Grapefruit League start and threw 60 pitches for the first time. His pitching line wasn’t pretty — five runs allowed on six hits, a walk and two strikeouts in three innings — but he went into the start planning to work on his cutter rather than optimize his pitch mix to get outs. Burnes expects to make two more starts before the regular season.

• Infield prospect Coby Mayo made his first start of the spring at first base in Dunedin. Hyde said Sunday morning he wouldn’t expect to see Mayo play there much more this spring but it’s a position he could see more time at later this season. Hyde believes Mayo, who has been a standout at the plate this spring, is an option for the Orioles at first base, his natural position of third base and the corner outfield spots.

• All nine players in the Orioles’ road starting lineup recorded at least one hit. Henderson (2-for-3 with a walk), Santander (2-for-4 with four RBIs), outfielder Heston Kjerstad (2-for-3 with a walk) and McKenna (2-for-3 with a walk) each had multiple knocks. Henderson is 7-for-11 (.636) in four games since returning from an oblique injury.

Orioles at Yankees (SS)

Monday, 1:05 p.m.

TV: MASN