The Opener: Holliday, Astros, Miley

As the 2024 MLB regular season continues, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Holliday in Baltimore:

The sport’s consensus No. 1 overall prospect, infielder Jackson Holliday, is reportedly set to be called up to the majors today. The 20-year-old was taken first overall by the Orioles in the 2022 draft and has done nothing but dominate at the plate since, slashing .297/.489/.422 in 20 games down the stretch that year before delivering a .323/.442/.499 line during a 2023 campaign that saw him promoted across four levels of the minors. Holliday hasn’t taken his foot off the gas as the calendar flipped to 2024, with a .311/.354/.600 slash in 15 Spring Training games and an even more impressive .333/.482/.595 line through ten games at Triple-A this season.

The Orioles will not need to make room for Holliday on the 40-man roster, which currently stands at 38, but will need to make a corresponding move on the active roster in order to officially activate the youngster. It’s worth noting that the O’s are short on players who can be easily optioned out. Infielder Jordan Westburg is one candidate, but none of Ramon Urias, Jorge Mateo, Tony Kemp or Ryan O’Hearn can be optioned. O’Hearn technically has an option left but must consent to being optioned as a player with five-plus years of service. The others would need to clear waivers before being sent down.

2. Astros to select Arrighetti:

Another prospect making his big league debut Wednesday will be Astros right-hander Spencer Arrighetti, who’ll start this evening’s game against the Royals. Arrighetti, 24, was a sixth-round pick by Houston in the 2021 draft and enjoyed a solid 2023 season that saw him pitch to a respectable 4.40 ERA in 124 2/3 innings of work split between the Double- and Triple-A levels. His  return to the Triple-A level this year has gone quite well across two starts, as he’s yielded just two earned runs in 8 1/3 innings of work while striking out 27% of batters faced.

Arrighetti steps into the rotation at a time of clear need for the Astros, with each of Justin Verlander, Framber Valdez, Luis Garcia Jr., Jose Urquidy, and Lance McCullers Jr. on the shelf for the time being. In order to officially select Arrighetti’s contract, the Astros will need to make a corresponding move at some point this evening that clears space on both the 40-man and active rosters.

3. Miley to make season debut:

Veteran southpaw Wade Miley, who re-signed with the Brewers on a one-year deal over the offseason, has been shelved to this point in the 2024 campaign by a shoulder impingement. His time on the injured list is poised to come to an end today, however, as MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy notes that the lefty is scheduled to take the mound opposite right-handed youngster Hunter Greene in this evening’s game between the Brewers and Reds in Cincinnati.

The start will kick off Miley’s third season in Milwaukee after he pitched for the club both last year and back in 2018. He’s racked up an impressive 2.91 ERA across 39 starts (201 innings) to this point in his Brewers career and now will enter the club’s new-look 2024 rotation that lacks long-time co-aces Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff. Miley is already on the 40-man roster, but the Brewers will need to make a corresponding move to clear space for the 37-year-old on the active roster in order to officially activate him.