On holiday: MLB top prospect Jackson Holliday, with his family in tow, visits Polar Park

WORCESTER — At just 20 years old, Jackson Holliday, the top prospect in all of baseball, has gotten to see many sides of baseball. Growing up with a father, Matt, who was a seven-time All-Star and enjoyed a 15-year career, and Jackson got to grow up inside MLB clubhouses.

Now he’s blazing his own path, and getting the chance to take on that role for his younger brothers. The Holliday family was in attendance for a couple of games at Polar Park during this week’s series against the Norfolk Tides, and the family includes four baseball players; Matt and Jackson, of course, but also 17-year-old Ethan and 10-year-old Reed.

Ethan, considered to be one of the top high school players in the country, is starting summer ball shortly, so the family was getting in a little holiday in Central Mass as one of the last chances for the entire group to catch Jackson play for a little while.

“The game of baseball is very special to my family and to be able to share that with them and be able to have them here is, it’s really cool,” Holliday said.

Now Jackson gets to take on the role that his dad did for him, showing Reed around the clubhouse. Reed was still young when his dad’s career wrapped up in 2018, so the experiences are new to him.

“He didn’t really get to experience it and have, so to be able to come out in the field and have some of the guys take him out in the outfield, it’s pretty cool for me to see,” Holliday said.

Jackson says he’s still relying on his dad, who looks like he could still get out on the field and hit a few dingers.

“[I go to him] quite often, especially right now trying to get back up to the big leagues,” Jackson Holliday said. “He’s someone who understands my swing as well as anybody…that’s who I hit with for my whole life so far and a lot during the offseason. So to be able to just talk to him and kind of try to help me get back to what I was doing is very helpful.”

Not all of Jackson Holliday’s experiences in his young career have been positive. When he was promoted to the Orioles earlier this season, he went just 2-for-34 in his first stint in the majors.

“It was learning how to handle failure at an extremely high rate,” Holliday said. “I think I did a pretty good job of handling myself with everything that was going on. But yeah, the experience of just learning from it and coming down here and being able to just play baseball, I’m excited to be able to get back up there hopefully sooner rather than later and can use that experience to help me kickstart a great rest of the year.”

For now, Holliday’s focus is on getting his confidence back up while he’s in Triple A. He’s had help from teammates Kyle Stowers, who was just recently recalled to Baltimore, and Heston Kjerstad, another top prospect in the Orioles system.

Holliday’s reviews of Polar Park were very positive – “It’s a great place to hit, a lot better than Norfolk,” he said – and he even enjoyed the different selections of holiday-themed music that was played every time he came up to bat the first couple of games.

“Pretty much every ballpark that has a sense of humor [does that]…it’s definitely funny and that’s something that I do notice,” Holliday said.

Tides 9, WooSox 5

It was a tight game through the first three innings, but from the fourth on it was pretty much all Norfolk.

Starter Grant Gambrell wasn’t very economical with his pitches Friday, lasting just 3 2/3 innings but throwing 91 pitches. He gave up three runs (two earned) on three hits and four walks, striking out four. The Tides then teed off against reliever Sal Romano, tagging him for five runs on six hits and a walk. Chase Shugart finished out the final 3 1/3 innings, giving up a run on two hits and two walks and racking up six strikeouts.

The top of the WooSox lineup had a productive night with both Chase Meidroth reaching four times on three hits, including a double and a walk, and Nick Sogard collecting three hits. Dalton Guthrie also went 3-for-4 with a RBI, and Jamie Westbrook had two hits, a run driven in and a run scored.

The WooSox rallied in the ninth to plate a couple of runs thanks to a couple of hits and some sloppy play from Norfolk.

What’s Next

The WooSox look for their first win since Tuesday’s 20-run explosion as Jason Alexander (2-4, 4.83) takes the mound for a 4:05 p.m. start. Before the game, the Great Polar Park Writers Series will feature former Boston Red Sox beat writer, WooSox columnist, and Worcester/Central Mass baseball historian, Bill Ballou from 1-2 pm in DCU Club. Also, Clara, The Heart of the Commonwealth”, the first-ever female WooSox mascot, will be unveiled.

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