“Whenever you’re struggling a little bit, you just start searching" – Orioles’ Jackson Holliday reflects on rough start to his Big League career

The Baltimore Orioles called up the MLB’s no. 1 prospect, Jackson Holliday, to the big leagues two weeks ago. However, Holliday’s highly anticipated debut didn’t go according to plan as he struggled to settle in.

Holliday has gone 1-for-30 since he debuted against the Boston Red Sox. His batting average of .033 is way below average, and he got struck out 16 times, showing his struggle to keep up with the Major League’s pace.

However, the 20-year-old Orioles rookie is optimistic about rebounding soon.

“Whenever you’re struggling a little bit, you just start searching,” Holliday told The Athletic, via Sam Blum. “And start creating little habits. I’m just making some adjustments because you got to. It’s a lot more difficult than Triple-A.

“I don’t think there’s very many people in the big leagues who haven’t struggled. It just happens to be at the beginning.”

Holliday’s major-league promotion was sudden but not unexpected. During spring training, he displayed impressive performances that convinced the O’s front office of his potential.

When management was looking for a replacement for Tony Kemp at second base, Holliday was strongly considered. He was playing for the Norfolk Tides, an AAA-affiliated team of the Orioles when he got the call-up.

Jackson Holliday faces heavy expectations to carry his MLB All-Star father Matt Holliday’s legacy forward.

Orioles manager backs young prospect Jackson Holliday

Despite the struggle, Baltimore Orioles manager Brandon Hyde believes in Jackson Holliday. He has faith that, with time, Holliday will overcome his setbacks.

“It’s not easy on this stage to not get off to the start that you want to,” said Hyde. “Especially if you’re 20 and you have one year of professional experience. You just try to put your arm around him, try to make sure that he’s okay mentally.”

Jackson Holliday is striving to overcome new challenges and believes that failures will only make him better in the future.

“Obviously, I wasn’t expecting this,” Holliday said, via The Athletic. “I knew what I was getting myself into. It’s the best of the best of the best for a reason. I guess I haven’t had a challenge yet, and this is the first one … It’s obviously challenging, but I feel like I’m handling it the best that I can.

“I think you can learn from anything, especially failure. Definitely something I’ll look back on in a few years and be thankful for.”

The Orioles (15-7) are the new leader of the AL East after their latest victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Monday.