An hour before a Team USA game, fans leaned over the dugout panting for autographs.
Derek Jeter elicited screams normally associated with boy bands. Alex Rodriguez and Ken Griffey Jr. produced fawning befitting marquee home run hitters. As they picked up pens, Matt Holliday walked past, drawing but a few inquisitive stares.
That neatly sums up where Holliday’s career sits: He’s almost famous. Anonymity, however, could soon become a stranger if Holliday, 26, uses the World Baseball Classic stage as his first step toward stardom this season.
“To me, he is about to blossom into a star,” Colorado Rockies general manager Dan O’Dowd said of his player. “When you have that kind of ability and it finally clicks, that’s what happens. Every star player has that platform year, and I think Matty is about to have that.”
There’s no way to overstate Holliday’s importance to the Rockies. He’s a walking argument for their youth movement–a 6-foot-4-inch, 228-pound cleanup hitter capable of becoming the most prolific home run threat the organization has ever produced.
“I hope my time with Team USA is the start of my breakthrough,” Holliday said. “I always look forward to challenges. That’s how I see this season. I know what’s at stake.”
For those who know Rockies history, it’s hard to look at Holliday and not think of Dante Bichette, who clubbed 201 home runs in seven seasons with Colorado.
Holliday, like Bichette, is a work in progress in left field. He can look uncomfortable until he steps into the batter’s box. His batting practice sessions are becoming the stuff of legend.
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“He has light-tower power,” gushed Team USA batting coach Reggie Smith.
Holliday socked 19 home runs with 87 RBIs. Skeptics view him as a Coors Field creation, citing his paltry seven home runs on the road. Dig deeper, and the tectonic plates suggest something else: He’s on the verge of an eruption.
Holliday averaged a home run every 18.9 at-bats after the All-Star break. It’s no wonder former Rockies catcher Todd Greene predicted Holliday will reach 30 this season and that Todd Helton, slow to praise, believes Holliday could hit 50 eventually.
Big deal? Remember, Helton led the Rockies with 20 home runs a year ago and no Rockie has topped 40 since 2001.
“Matt could mis-hit 20 balls and take them out,” Helton said. “He’s that strong, and his swing is beautiful.”
The challenge for Holliday is to achieve power through consistent contact. Hitters who try to go deep too often usually fall deep into a slump. Holliday went 139 at-bats without hitting his first home run last season.
He called the rut “hard to explain” while admitting that he was pressing and could not get comfortable at the plate.
What changed? His knowledge.
“As you gain experience, you can feel what’s wrong with your swing even when you just take a pitch,” Holliday said. “I got my timing back. And I always know I have to remain patient.”