Jackson Holliday rehab setback gives Orioles unexpected reprieve from short-term roster crunch

Jackson Holliday's minor-league rehab assignment is over, but not because he will be rejoining the Baltimore Orioles soon. Holliday has been dealing with some right wrist soreness, forcing the Orioles to pause his initial recovery plan. Resting is the current status for Holliday, who will start another rehab assignment once he is cleared.

While the news does mean a further delay of Holliday's 2026 debut, it's not unexpected. Wrist soreness is expected of players recovering from hamate surgery. It's worth mentioning that Holliday's recovery has been notably longer than Francisco Lindor of the Mets and Corbin Carroll of the Diamondbacks. Both suffered the same injury around the same time as Holliday and were cleared in time for Opening Day.

With Jordan Westburg still weeks away from returning and Ryan Mountcastle placed on the 60-day IL last week, admittedly, the Orioles aren't facing quite the roster logjam they had during spring training. Had Holliday returned sooner, there would have been an uneasy decision to make, considering Jeremiah Jackson, because of his options remaining, would have been the possible roster casualty. That no longer should be the case.

Jackson Holliday's return won't complicate the Orioles' roster....yet

The Orioles essentially have four players hanging around on their bench until the rest of the roster. Catchers Maverick Hundley and Sam Huff, utility man Weston Wilson, and outfielder Johnathon Rodriguez.

Through simple deduction, it's easy to map out Holliday's return without Jackson's spot being in jeopardy. Once Adley Rutschman returns from his ankle inflammation, Hundley or Huff will be off the roster. It's possible the Orioles still hold three catchers after Rutschman's return, but that isn't a common practice across baseball. Tyler O'Neill's return from the concussion IL will remove one of the Wilson or Rodriguez from the roster, and Holliday's return will likely take care of the holdover.

It's an early confirmation that situations surrounding roster logjams often take care of themselves once the season starts. No matter the position, a team can never have enough depth.

Now, once everyone gets healthy, including Westburgh and Mountcastle, there could be a difficult decision that needs to be made. Though chances are, by then, the decision will be obvious.

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