Matt Holliday

American baseball player (born 1980)

Matthew Thomas Holliday (born January 15, 1980) is an American former professional baseball left fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2004 to 2018 for the Colorado Rockies, Oakland Athletics, St. Louis Cardinals, and New York Yankees. A World Series champion in 2011 with the Cardinals, Holliday played a key role in seven postseasons, including the Rockies' first ever World Series appearance in 2007 and Cardinals' playoff success in the 2010s. His distinctions include a National League (NL) batting championship, the 2007 NL Championship Series Most Valuable Player Award (NLCS MVP), seven All Star selections, and four Silver Slugger Awards. Other career accomplishments include 300 home runs, more than 2,000 hits, and batting over .300 eight times. The Colorado Rockies selected Holliday in the seventh round of the 1998 MLB draft from high school in Oklahoma, where he also starred as a highly touted quarterback prospect. He debuted in MLB in 2004, becoming the Rockies' starting left fielder and a middle of the lineup presence. In 2006, he became the 19th player ever to reach 195 hits, 30 home runs, 45 doubles, 115 runs and 110 runs batted in (RBI) in one season. The next season, he won the NL batting title, September National League Player of the Month honors and NLCS MVP as the Rockies won 21 of 22 games at the end of the regular season and in the playoffs en route to their first World Series appearance. In the first of four consecutive NLCS appearances starting in 2011, he batted .435 with a .652 slugging percentage in the 2011 NLCS on his way to winning his first World Series ring with the Cardinals. In 2014, he became just the fifth player in MLB history to amass nine consecutive seasons of at least 20 home runs, 30 doubles, 75 RBI and 80 runs scored each season. In addition to his presence as a leader on the field, Holliday is active in charity work and assisting his teammates off the field. Thus, the St. Louis chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America has awarded him the Darryl Kile Good Guy Award. He is a frequent visitor to children's hospitals. From 2012 to 2016, Holliday co sponsored a pledge drive for Greater St. Louis hospitals called "Homers for Health", which raised more than $3.7 million. Because of his hitting abilities and strength, he has sometimes been called the "Stillwater Stinger". His son, Jackson, was selected first overall in the 2022 MLB draft.

Matt Holliday was born and raised in Stillwater, Oklahoma. With easy athletic skill, he showed marked talent in baseball, football and basketball as a youth. He was also physically larger than most of his friends, so when they played games, they often modified the rules to offset his size advantage. In football, Holliday was required to play quarterback for both teams. In baseball, every three of his home runs were credited as one. He spent much of his free time with his father, Tom Holliday, and brother, Josh, at the Oklahoma State University (OSU) baseball field and training complex, where his father was a coach. There, the Holliday boys learned about the fundamentals of the sport, voluntarily trained and practiced, and watched future major leaguers such as Robin Ventura play and develop. In addition, he played American Legion Baseball during the summer. In spite of the extensive time spent around the sport of baseball, Tom Holliday abstained from attempting to influence his sons on which sport or sports to concentrate. At Stillwater High School, Holliday played both baseball and football. He was a quarterback while playing football. As a senior, he earned All American honors in football and baseball and also earned his region's Gatorade Player of the Year award in both sports. He also competed for the 1997 USA Junior National Team. In his next to last football game for Stillwater, he helped bring the Pioneers back from a 42–21 deficit against Tulsa Union by throwing three touchdowns (TD) in the final six minutes of the game for a 43–42 score. However, his high school football career ended with a 63–0 loss to Jenks in the state semifinal contest. His career passing totals included 6,211 yards and 68 TD. His 35 TD passes as a junior set a then 11 man state record. Numerous connections throughout college and professional baseball span Holliday's family ties. His father, Tom Holliday, has been the pitching coach for the Tigers of Auburn University, and former baseball head coach of OSU. Current Atlanta Braves MLB scout, Dave Holliday, is an uncle. His older brother, Josh, is currently the head baseball coach at OSU, and a former minor league player in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. A cousin, Heath Holliday, has also played baseball as a catcher for OSU.

The contract to which Holliday and the Cardinals agreed before the 2010 season was widely viewed as a great success. Over its first five seasons, he averaged 147 games per season, .295 batting average, .383 OBP and .496 SLG for a 141 OPS+; his counting stats average included 24 home runs, 93 RBI, and 92 runs scored. In that span, he ranked 11th in all MLB, and fifth among outfielders, with 23.8 WAR. Holliday was a key factor in the 2011 championship run with a big NLCS. In spite of missing significant time in 2015 and 2016, Holliday contributed 24.1 WAR during the life of his 2010−16 contract with St. Louis, worth $168.6 million in total contributions according to Fangraphs. They have three sons, Jackson (born December 4, 2003), Ethan (b. February 23, 2007), and Reed (b. July 24, 2013) and a daughter, Gracyn (b. November 7, 2009). Jackson was selected first overall in the 2022 Major League Baseball draft by the Baltimore Orioles and made his MLB debut in 2024. The Hollidays formerly resided in Austin, Texas, during the offseason until December 2010, following his signing of the contract with the Cardinals in January 2010. During the offseason, Holliday and his family have also lived in Stillwater, where he also has worked with his brother, Josh, on his swing. In the 2014−15 offseason, Holliday and his family moved to South Florida, allowing him to stay in optimal shape year round, and his sons to continue to play sports in winter months. Holliday is a Christian and is part of a Bible study group with fellow Christian teammates. He has spoken about his faith saying, "I play for God. It says in the Bible that we are to do all things for Him. So I try to do the best that I can for Him. This is my job, not who I am." Leslee has led a Bible study in the St. Louis area for professional athletes' wives. Scott Boras has represented Holliday as his agent since he turned professional. Holliday described his relationship with Boras and his staff in that he "enjoy(s) sitting down and talking to them. Scott is as accessible as you want him to be. I could call him right now. He's got a lot of clients and people say they don't hear from Scott but he'll give you as much or as little attention as you want." Holliday further explained that due to the amenities the Boras Corporation provides, including a staff psychologist, research to assist players in prolonging careers, studies into arbitration cases, and statistical performance computation, he felt that Boras' agency gave him the best opportunities to succeed. Known primarily as a reserved figure, Holliday has played for years in the shadows of such franchise icons as Todd Helton and Albert Pujols, which accommodated his demeanor well. However, he has emerged as a veteran presence for the Cardinals willing to assist and entertain younger players and top prospects as they attempt to adjust to a lifestyle of playing baseball. In January 2012, he invited Matt Adams, Ryan Jackson, Charlie Tilson and Kolten Wong for a weeklong stay in St. Louis at the tony Frontenac Hotel. Activities included eating out, hitting, working out and attending a St. Louis Blues game. Holliday also became more active on his Twitter account and more readily availed himself as a guest on talk radio shows. Further, he befriended former teammate David Freese, who, shortly after Holliday's arrival in St. Louis in 2009, was arrested for driving under the influence. However, after becoming daily workout partners and socializing, teammates noted a "positive influence" on Freese. With intense off season physical training regimens, Holliday plays squash and likes to incorporate an NFL approach. He has trained with teammates, such as Freese, and pitcher Trevor Rosenthal, in activities such as "sled pushing, tire flipping and some fireman carries", and each player taking turns carrying each other for about 20 meters. One opponent with long time ties to the Hollidays is former Boston Red Sox manager John Farrell. Farrell pitched for Tom Holliday at OSU, helping propel them to four College World Series appearances. When Matt and Josh were still toddlers, Farrell often babysat them when their parents went out. Years later, when Matt Holliday was a member of the Rockies team that played the Red Sox in the 2007 World Series, Farrell was the Red Sox pitching coach. Six years after that, as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals, Holliday again played against Farrell. This time, he was the Red Sox manager. In both Series, however, Farrell's teams were victorious over Holliday's.