Holliday’s readiness – Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said he’s confident Jackson Holliday can play center field now, even as Holliday kept the focus on readiness and comfort after his return from right hamate surgery. Holliday, who missed time with rehab interruptions, is batting h
ST. PETERSBURG — The question didn’t wait until the lineup card was printed. It came as soon as Jackson Holliday was finally available again: where would he play next, and would the Orioles’ plan change before the Rays series ended Wednesday?
Orioles manager Craig Albernaz sounded energized about one thing above all else — simply having Holliday on hand.
“I have confidence that Holliday can play center field right now,” Albernaz said prior to Tuesday’s game against the Rays at Tropicana Field.
Then the conversation shifted to the uncomfortable part for any player returning from a major detour: the unknown.
Wait, will he play center at some point?
“He might catch, who knows,” Albernaz responded.
Holliday, asked if he expects to play third before the Rays series ends Wednesday, didn’t make it sound like a promise. He framed it as readiness — the kind you earn after surgery, after setbacks in rehab, after learning what your body will do when the stakes feel real.
“I would like to think maybe, if I’m going out there and taking grounders and rehabbing over there,” Holliday said. “I’ll be as ready as I can be, I guess. If that’s what’s called upon me, and I’ll give it all I got.
“I might not even play out there, but just to have it and be able to go out there and at least feel a little confident, a little comfortable has been fun.”
The movement on the field is one side of the comeback. The other is the swing.
Holliday has been getting more comfortable at the plate, but it did not come quickly. After undergoing right hamate surgery on Feb. 12, he had to pause his rehab assignment twice — first due to right wrist soreness and then due to right hand discomfort.
He returned to action on May 7. In 22 rehab games, he batted .176 with a .575 OPS.
But the finishing stretch of those rehab games looked different. He had a hit in each of his final four rehab games with Triple-A Norfolk, including a home run on May 16 and a triple on May 17. Over the same span, he walked 10 times in 22 games.
“I thought I saw the ball well, took some walks, but it was definitely much easier to get off a good swing than in the past,” Holliday said. “They weren’t great, but it’s rehab for a reason. Unfortunately, a broken hand isn’t exactly the easiest to kind of deal with.”
Even with the progress, there’s still a sensation he’s paying attention to. Holliday said he still feels a slight bit of nagging pain near his surgical scar, but added that that is “completely normal.”
For him, the bigger issue is trust — the ability to unleash the best swing without worrying about reinjury. He said it took a few rehab games to build that trust, and that it’s now behind him, replaced by forward-looking focus on how he can help the Orioles.
“As long as Holliday is in the lineup and on our team, you feel really good about it,” Albernaz said.
Jackson Holliday Craig Albernaz Orioles Rays Tropicana Field right hamate surgery rehab return center field third base