BALTIMORE — The Baltimore Orioles have reportedly reach an $8.19 million deal with shortstop Jackson Holliday, the ballclub’s No. 1 overall selection in the First-Year Player Draft.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported the deal.
Holliday’s bonus is slightly higher than No. 2 overall pick Druw Jones, who received $8,189,400 from the Arizona Diamondbacks, and is nearly $662,000 under the assigned value for the pick, according to Major League Baseball.
Orioles executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias can use those savings on bonuses for tougher-to-sign draft picks.
According to MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis, Holliday’s bonus is the highest ever paid to a high school player, eclipsing the mark just set by Jones. The previous high was the $7,787,400 shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. received from the Kansas City Royals in 2019, according to Callis.
It’s also more higher than the $8.1 million the Orioles gave prized catching prospect Adley Rustchman in 2019.
Under MLB’s draft bonus pool rules, the Orioles were allotted $16,933,000 to spend on picks in the 2022 draft, most in the league.
A product of Stillwater High School in Oklahoma, Holliday hit .685 in his senior season with 28 doubles and 17 home runs in 41 games, working out to an eye-popping 2.121 OPS. His 89 hits broke the national high school record set by J.T. Realmuto, now a catcher with the Philadelphia Phillies.
Holliday is the son seven-time All-Star and the 2007 NL batting champion Matt Holliday.
And Jones is the son of former Atlanta Braves outfielder Andruw Jones, a 10-time Gold Glove winner and five-time All-Star.
Although many analysts ranked Jones as the better prospect, MLB Pipeline’s scouting report says the left-handed hitting Holliday is an advanced hitter who could stick at shortstop.
“After getting bigger and stronger, he’s hitting the ball with more authority than ever this spring, and he also looks more relaxed at the plate and is letting his considerable power come naturally,” the report says.
Holliday was committed to play college baseball at Oklahoma State, where his uncle, Josh, is the head coach and his father is a volunteer assistant.