Baltimore Orioles infielder Jackson Holliday, who was ranked as the No. 1 prospect on CBS Sports' preseason top 50, has encountered a challenging start to his major league career. Despite his talent and potential, Holliday has struggled at the plate, recording just one hit in his first 25 at-bats. Additionally, he has racked up 14 strikeouts and only one walk, indicating a need to refine his batting skills.

However, there is hope for Holliday's future in the majors. His fellow Orioles teammates have demonstrated that slow starts do not define a player's career trajectory. Baltimore's player-development system has produced several notable young hitters who initially struggled before finding their stride. For instance, C Adley Rutschman had a batting average of .210 through his first 176 plate appearances, SS Gunnar Henderson hit .224 through his first 289 plate appearances, and OF Colton Cowser had a .115 batting average through his first 77 plate appearances. Yet, all three have since shown significant improvement and have become impactful contributors to the team.

Despite his current struggles, Holliday's approach at the plate has shown promise. Although his chase rate is high at 33.3%, his overall swing decisions have been commendable. He has displayed a tendency to hunt for pitches that are up and on the inside half of the plate, while also showing the ability to expand the zone away. Based on a metric called "SEAGER," which measures a batter's selectiveness and aggressiveness, Holliday has the best score among Orioles players, suggesting that he is making good swing decisions early in his career.

However, Holliday's timing appears to be off, as indicated by his swing and miss percentages and foul balls. He has predominantly pulled ground balls and hit line drives and fly balls to the opposite field. In his minor league career, Holliday showed a tendency to do damage to right and right-center field, but he has yet to display that power in the majors. This could be attributed to the adjustment period of facing improved velocity and more advanced pitching. As he adapts, it is expected that he will start driving the ball to the right side of the field.

While Holliday's offensive production has been underwhelming, his secondary skills, such as his defense and baserunning, have not gone unnoticed. He has looked impressive at second base, and his arm has proven to be reliable in making plays. Once his offensive game clicks, Holliday has the potential to become a well-rounded player who contributes in various aspects of the game.

It is essential to exercise patience with young prospects like Holliday, especially considering he won't turn 21 until December. Making big conclusions based on small sample sizes can be misleading, and in the Orioles' case, history has shown that their hitters often take time to adjust to the major league level before finding success.

Moving forward, it is expected that Holliday will continue to work on his approach and timing at the plate. The Orioles organization remains confident in his abilities and believes that his offensive production will come along in due course. With guidance and support from his teammates and coaches, Holliday has the potential to become a key contributor to the Orioles' lineup in the future.