The Norfolk Tides scored 24 runs over their first two games, then exceeded that output in a single, 26-run outburst in the fifth game of the season. All told, a star-studded Norfolk lineup shredded opposing pitchers for 102 runs in the first 10 games of the Triple-A International League season.
“It was really fun to watch,” Tides hitting coach Michael Montville said. “These guys were swinging at good pitches and doing what they wanted to do when the ball went over the plate.”
Though that production is likely not sustainable, it isn’t an accident that the Tides were putting some NFL offenses to shame in the early going this season. Their lineup featured a veritable “who’s who” of top prospects, starting with the No. 1 prospect in baseball, infielder Jackson Holliday.
Holliday’s stay with the Tides proved short, as he was called up to Baltimore following the Tides’ game on Tuesday. The 20-year-old heads to the big leagues with only 28 games of Triple-A experience over the past two seasons but coming off of a strong spring training that almost landed him on the Orioles’ Opening Day roster.
Montville joined the Orioles organization this season and was immediately impressed with Holliday’s maturity, work ethic and attention to detail.
“When we had conversations, he usually knew what he wanted to do in his next at-bat, or what he needed to make a little bit of an adjustment on,” Montville said.
It’s another Jackson Holliday leadoff homer!
The @Orioles‘ top prospect drills one 414 feet for the @NorfolkTides. pic.twitter.com/4IDyfejMWl
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) April 2, 2024
Sometimes young hitters will press after they have impressive spring trainings, trying to put up the stats they posted in the spring. Holliday’s numbers with Triple-A Norfolk were outstanding (.333/.482/.595 with two home runs), but the way he amassed them was perhaps even more impressive. International League pitchers weren’t that interested in challenging him, and Holliday stayed with his approach, walking 12 times in 10 games.
“He started to recognize that he wasn’t getting pitches in the zone, and he had to look in a certain area and not try to do too much,” Montville said.
Though Holliday is gone, the Tides have plenty of talent remaining in the line-up. Top-100 prospects Coby Mayo (No. 27) and Heston Kjerstad (No. 62), Orioles’ No. 8 prospect Connor Norby, as well as outfielder Kyle Stowers, who almost won a spot on the Orioles’ roster this spring, and outfielder Peyton Burdick, a 2019 Marlins’ third-round pick, have been the team leaders offensively, along with Holliday. Major-league veterans Nick Maton and Ryan McKenna are also off to strong starts.
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On a team of red-hot hitters, Kjerstad burns the brightest. Through 10 games, the corner outfielder has 18 hits in 44 at-bats (.409 BA). Those 18 hits are tied with Norby for the league lead. Ten of Kjerstad’s hits have gone for extra bases and he’s tied with Stowers for the league lead in home runs with six. Kjerstad leads the International League in RBIs with 25.
Montville says Kjerstad, a 2020 first-round pick, maintains a simple approach that has served him well.
“He’s just controlled at-bats really well,” Montville said. “It sounds really simple, but when he’s gotten a pitch to hit over the plate, he’s done what he’s supposed to do with it. And he’s also taken some good pitches and put good barrels on it. It just makes it really hard to pitch to him.”
Montville also noted that beyond the gaudy stats, he was impressed with how the team approached each at-bat, playing situational baseball when it was needed and maintaining their plan of attack.
“A big thing we talked about as a group was making sure we’re focused on the right stuff,” he said. “You could see the guys continue to stay focused even when there was a big difference in the score of the game.
“It was really good team baseball on top of the individual stuff.”
Pregame preparation has been a big part of the Tides’ early-season offensive success, says Montville. No matter how many hits and runs the team had the night before, the players are back in the cage again the next day, sticking with their routines.
Holliday may have been the first of the Tides’ star hitters to move on to Baltimore, but he’s assuredly not going to be the last. How close they are to the big leagues can be a distraction for any player in Triple-A, but Montville continues to stress with his hitters the importance of keeping their focus on what’s in front of them.
“We talked as a group early about having good energy,” he said. “Everyday we want to make sure we have good energy and enjoy this because I think you truly play your best when you focus on that night, that pitch, that moment, wherever that moment is.”
Opposing International League pitchers can’t wait until those moments start happening for the Orioles’ prospects in Baltimore rather than Norfolk.
(Photo of Jackson Holliday on Tuesday in Norfolk: Scott Sears / Norfolk Tides)
