How Rockies Draft Pick Ethan Holliday Can Reclaim Brother’s Signing Record

The Colorado Rockies must still sign No. 4 overall selection Ethan Holliday and there’s a chance he could reclaim a record his brother set.

Ethan Holliday warms up during the Class 6A State Baseball Tournament as Choctaw plays Stillwater on May 9, 2024; Norman, OK, [USA]; at Norman North HS. / Steve Sisney / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Colorado Rockies have until July 28 to sign their first-round pick, Ethan Holliday. There’s a good bet they’ll get it done.

The only question is how much — and whether Holliday can reclaim the family legacy.

On Saturday, the Washington Nationals signed the No. 1 overall pick, prep shortstop Eli Willits. He and Holliday’s paths have assuredly crossed. Willits played at Fort Cobb-Broxton High School in Fort Cobb, Okla. Holliday prepped at Stillwater High School in Stillwater, Okla.

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Willits was the youngest player in the draft, and he signed an offer worth $8.2 million, per MLB Pipeline. Since Willits was a younger player — he’s not yet 17 — some teams were not keen on selecting him that high. Per MLB.com, he made it know he was willing to sign for less than the slot bonus to be drafted as high as No. 1.

By signing with the Nats, he left nearly $3 million in bonus money on the table, as the slot bonus for No. 1 overall was $11.08 million.

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Now, historically, Willits still did well. His bonus was the seventh highest in MLB draft history, per MLB. It was also the highest bonus ever paid to a prep player.

The record Willits broke belonged to Ethan’s older brother, Jackson Holliday, who signed a $8.19 million bonus with the Baltimore Orioles when he was selected No. 1 overall in 2022 out of Stillwater.

Willits took over the Holliday family legacy — but perhaps not for long.

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The Rockies owe the younger Holliday a slot bonus of $8.77 million. Colorado can either pay him the slot, more than the slot or less than the slot. But, if the Rockies pay him one penny more than Willits received, then the record for the highest bonus given to a prep player returns to the Holliday family. The two players selected between Willits and Holliday were collegiates.

Colorado would be wise to ensure the deal gets done. His father, Matt, played with the Rockies for the first six years of his career and the last year, as he played in the Majors for 15 years from 2004-2018. The Rockies selected him in the seventh round of the 1998 MLB draft out of Stillwater High School.

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The left fielder was a seven-time All-Star, a four-time Silver Slugger, won a National League batting title, claimed an NL Championship Series MVP and a 2011 World Series ring with the St. Louis Cardinals. With the Rockies, he made the All-Star Game three times, won three Silver Sluggers and the 2007 NL batting title with a .340 average.

Matt Holliday was back in Denver last year when his older son, Baltimore Orioles infielder Jackson Holliday, made his first appearance at Coors Field as a player.

No doubt dad would love nothing more than to see both play each other on the same field one day.

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