Baltimore Orioles manager Craig Albernaz had an update on injured second baseman Jackson Holliday.
The Baltimore Orioles entered the week hoping to finally get some good news on Jackson Holliday’s status, but instead they received another setback in what has become a frustrating start to the 2026 season.
Holliday, now in his third MLB season, was expected to return within a couple of weeks of Opening Day after recovering from left hamate bone surgery in February. Instead, his progress has stalled again, and the Orioles are preparing to move forward without him for a little longer.
“Craig Albernaz said we won’t see Jackson Holliday playing for #orioles this week,” reported Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports. The update confirmed what had already become clear: Holliday is not close to returning.
Shortly after Albernaz’s comments, the Orioles announced that Holliday had been shut down for a few days due to renewed wrist soreness (h/t Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun).
Because of that setback, he will now need another rehab assignment before rejoining the major-league roster. It is a disappointing development for Holliday, who had been trending toward a return but has instead seen his timeline pushed back again.
This delay extends his stay on the injured list at a time when the Orioles are already dealing with a long list of injuries. Holliday joins key contributors Jordan Westburg and Adley Rutschman on the IL, leaving Baltimore without several core pieces as they try to stabilize their lineup.
This season is an important one for Holliday. The 22-year-old entered 2026 needing to show growth after an underwhelming first two years in the majors. Across 209 career games, he owns a .229 batting average, .300 on-base percentage and .659 OPS.
Those numbers are not what Baltimore envisioned when they selected him first overall in the 2022 MLB Draft, but his age and pedigree still give the organization confidence that he can develop into a long-term piece.
The Orioles need him to become that player if they hope to remain competitive and return to the MLB playoffs. His combination of contact ability, athleticism and defensive versatility is exactly what their roster is missing right now.
Holliday originally suffered the injury in early February and underwent surgery shortly after. The Orioles believed he was nearing the end of the recovery process, but the renewed soreness has forced them to reset the timeline once again.
For now, Baltimore will wait, hope the shutdown helps and prepare for another rehab stint before Holliday can finally return.