BALTIMORE — As the Orioles continue to give Jeremiah Jackson an extended run in the big leagues for the first time in his career, the 25-year-old continues to show encouraging signs.
For one, Jackson can really hit. Also, he’s proving he is capable of improving defensively.
On Thursday afternoon, Jackson contributed to a win in both ways.
Jackson knocked an RBI single and recorded an outfield assist in Baltimore’s 5-3 victory over Seattle at Camden Yards. His run-scoring hit came during a three-run rally in the fourth inning in support of right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano, who allowed only one run over 5 1/3 frames.
The game featured a rain delay of 2 hours and 18 minutes during the sixth inning.
Before that, Jackson used his arm to help out Sugano. Josh Naylor ripped a one-out single in the top of the first, but he was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double by Jackson, who made a nice play on the ball and quickly got it in to shortstop Gunnar Henderson covering second.
“I just tried to take an aggressive route to the ball,” Jackson said. “Once I looked up, I was pretty set on going to second. I got there quick, so I thought I had time and was just able to make a pretty good throw and let Gunnar do the rest.”
It was an example of how much better Jackson — an infielder by trade — has looked in right, where he played only seven times over seven Minor League seasons. He has already made seven starts there during his 11-game MLB career, showing improvement since his second defensive appearance at Wrigley Field on Aug. 3, when he dropped a routine fly ball.
“It’s a sign of being a good infielder — you pick up the ball on the ground and make a throw and put it on the base, those are his infield skills, which lend themselves nicely to playing the outfield, because the ball on the ground and throwing to bases is a huge part of playing the outfield,” interim manager Tony Mansolino said. “Where Jeremiah’s going to get better in front of our eyes, as long as he’s here and going forward in his career, is the ball in the air.”
Jackson, who signed a Minor League contract last November, was among the players called up to fill out the Orioles’ roster following their Trade Deadline fire sale. His bat stood out at Triple-A Norfolk, where he slashed .377/.400/.673 with 15 doubles, 11 home runs and 22 RBIs in 40 games after spending four seasons in Double-A.
A 2018 second-round Draft pick of the Angels, Jackson is now batting .267 with a .723 OPS for the O’s, who took two of three from the Mariners. He had a pinch-hit RBI triple in the seventh inning of Wednesday night’s 4-3 win, becoming only the second player in Orioles history (since 1954) to hit two triples within his first 10 MLB games. (Orioles Hall of Famer Bobby Grich was the first to do so in ‘70.)
“It’s awesome. Ever since I’ve gotten here, it’s been really gritty games. We’re right there every time,” Jackson said. “To be able to come in and help the team win, it’s awesome. It’s been fun.”
While Jackson has often been in the lineup of late, that could potentially change over the final 6 1/2 weeks of the season. Baltimore is likely to call up some prospects down the stretch — including corner outfielder Dylan Beavers (O’s No. 3 per MLB Pipeline), who is loudly knocking on the door — which may cut into Jackson’s playing time.
So it’ll be important for Jackson to continue showing what he’s capable of when given opportunities as he tries to force his way into the Orioles’ roster plans for 2026.
But Jackson isn’t putting any pressure on himself, nor is he feeling fully settled in. He’s still quite new to the Majors and is leaning on veterans inside Baltimore’s clubhouse to help him continue to get accustomed to the highest level of play.
“I don’t know if comfortable is the right word, but I definitely feel like I’m getting my footing,” Jackson said. “There’s a lot of good guys around here that are helping me get better every day. Just to be in a group like this, it’s easy to get better, and it’s been awesome.”
