Ethan Holliday

Ethan Smith Holliday

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 6' 4", Weight 210 lb.
• High School Stillwater (OK) High School

• Born February 23, 2007 in Austin, TX USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Shortstop Ethan Holliday was the fourth overall pick of the 2025 amateur draft, taken by the Colorado Rockies out of high school. He is the son of former Rockies outfielder Matt Holliday and the brother of infielder Jackson Holliday, who was the first overall pick in the 2022 amateur draft. His uncle is long-time college coach Josh Holliday and is grandfather is another college coach, Tom Holliday.

He was considered the top available prospect coming into the 2025 draft and it was expected that he would be taken first overall by the Washington Nationals, who held the top pick, but they caused a bit of a surprise by taking another second-generation high school shortstop from Oklahoma instead, in Eli Willits. It was assumed that Holliday would not get past the Rockies at pick number 4 if he was still available, as he was exactly the type of player the rebuilding franchise was looking for. He was described by most scouts as a future star, and possibly even better. He was an outstanding high school player, as his brother Jackson had been (the two were teammates during Ethan's freshman year) and he played on the USA U15 National Team. He had committed to attend the University of Oklahoma to play for his uncle Josh, as had Willits, but it was assumed by everyone that he would instead play professionally as he was assured of being a top pick in the draft.

He signed quickly with the Rockies, his $9 million signing bonus setting a new record for a high school player. He started his pro career with the Fresno Grizzlies of the California League, where he was the youngest player in the circuit. On September 6th he made the news for homering off Hyun-Seok Jang of the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, himself a top-rated prospect in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. The newsworthy part was the blast, his second as a pro, came exactly 15 minutes before his brother Jackson also hit one for the Baltimore Orioles, his homer breaking a bid for a no-hitter by Yoshinobu Yamamoto of the major league Dodgers with two outs in the 9th inning. In 18 games for Fresno, he hit .239 with 2 homers and 6 RBIs. He ended up at .239 with 2 homers and 6 RBIs in 18 games. He was back with Fresno at the start of the 2026 season and hit .262 in 33 games with 9 homers and 32 RBIs. However, on June 29th, the Rockies announced that he would need surgery for a stress fracture in his left foot and that his season was over.

At 6' 4", he is considered tall for a shortstop, and may eventually end up as a corner infielder or outfielder. He certainly has the power to play at any position.

Further Reading

• Jesse Borek: "No. 1 Draft prospect Holliday attends game between clubs with top 2 picks", mlb.com, June 29, 2025. [1]
• Jesse Borek: "Holliday brothers homer on same night for 1st time as pros -- 15 minutes apart!", mlb.com, September 7, 2025. [2]
• Thomas Harding: "Rockies take Ethan Holliday, son of franchise great, at No. 4 overall", mlb.com, July 14, 2025. [3]
• Thomas Harding: "No. 4 Draftee Holliday offers window to Rockies' future with first Coors Field visit", mlb.com, September 19, 2025. [4]
• Thomas Harding: "Rox top prospect Holliday to have foot surgery, out for the season", mlb.com, May 29, 2026. [5]