CHICAGO -- Call them The Jackson 3 -- and they made it look as easy as A-B-C.
In a fun, quirky, never-before-seen lineup oddity, the Orioles started Jackson Holliday at second base, Jeremiah Jackson in right field and Alex Jackson at catcher for Sunday’s 5-3 loss in the series finale vs. the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Per the Elias Sports Bureau, it was the first time a team in the Modern Era (since 1900) has started at least three players with the name Jackson (first or last).
The fact alone is fun, but an event during the first inning took the Jacksons to another level.
Ian Happ hit a two-out RBI double to right field that pushed Chicago’s lead to 2-0, but Carson Kelly was thrown out at home trying to score on the play. It was a 9-4-2 relay play -- so Jackson (Jeremiah) to Jackson (Holliday) to Jackson (Alex).
How about that?
Perhaps the Orioles will someday have a chance to extend their new record. There are plenty of Jacksons throughout baseball (both first- and last-named), so maybe even more could come to Baltimore in the future. (And Holliday figures to be a lineup fixture for a long time.)
Jakson Reetz signed with the O’s on Tuesday and is playing for Triple-A Norfolk, though the 29-year-old catcher doesn’t have a “C” in his spelling of the name.
Alex Jackson has been with the O’s since July 6, when he was acquired from the Yankees in a trade. The 29-year-old is now serving as the backup catcher to Adley Rutschman, who was at designated hitter on Sunday.
However, the Jackson 3 lineup wasn’t possible until Friday, when Jeremiah Jackson was promoted from Triple-A Norfolk for his first big league callup. The 25-year-old utility man played 372 games at Double-A from 2022-25, before reaching Triple-A for the first time earlier this year. He was brought to the Majors amid the fallout of the Orioles’ Trade Deadline moves.
It’s been an eventful few days for Jeremiah Jackson, who debuted Friday and collected his first big league hit. He went 3-for-8 (.375) during the series loss in Chicago, and Baltimore even moved him up to the No. 5 spot in the lineup for the finale.
“I just need someone to make contact in that five-hole right there,” interim manager Tony Mansolino said. “You’ve got your four best hitters, and the odds are if you’re going to create traffic, it’s going to be with those four guys at the top. Whoever is sitting in that five-hole has got to put the ball in play. ...
“For Jeremiah, he’s shown some ability to make contact in a couple days.”
Although Jeremiah Jackson has started in right field each of the past two days, he only made seven starts there during his 579-game Minor League career, as he’s more of an infielder by trade. But the O’s wanted his bat in the lineup and were without Tyler O’Neill, who was out Saturday and Sunday due to illness.
Jeremiah Jackson’s inexperience showed at the start of the bottom of the first inning, when he missed a routine fly ball off the bat of Michael Busch for a two-base error. The miscue led to a pair of unearned runs scored off right-hander Brandon Young.
Mansolino was happy to see Jeremiah Jackson fare better later, including on the relay play.
“We’re asking a lot out of him. I mean, in a way, it’s unfair that we’re asking him to go play right field in Wrigley Field with the wind and everything going on. But we’re doing it because we need offense,” Mansolino said. “I am proud of Jeremiah for bouncing back and making some big plays. Plays the ball off the wall, gets the assist at home plate, makes another play up against the wall in foul territory. Couple tricky balls down there. He did really good. We are asking a ton out of him, and it’s tough.”
As the Orioles (51-61) begin to look more toward 2026, they’re likely to give less-proven players -- like Jeremiah Jackson -- some longer looks over the final two months of the season. His bat has the potential to stand out, as he hit .377 with 15 doubles, 11 home runs, 22 RBIs and a 1.073 OPS in 40 Triple-A games.
“Really just sticking to an approach,” Jeremiah Jackson said. “Just being ready and competing in the box, I think that’s really been the biggest separator for me.”