St. Paul – It was only a matter of time before Will Holland would rejoin the St. Paul Saints roster. He and his coaches just didn’t expect it to be so soon. However, the roster needed some reinforcements following a bad left ankle sprain to third baseman Armando Alvarez last week in Columbus.
Holland has had many setbacks over the last season. His 2024 season was over in late June due to a right fibula fracture, and he suffered another setback in spring training when a wild pitch broke his right hand. The setbacks kept him off the field for nearly a year, but he hasn’t wasted any time making an impact for the Saints during his return.
“It felt like a dream,” said Holland. “After last year, having the season-ending injury and then delaying it even more with the hand injury, getting hit by a pitch in spring training. It’s kind of like that fire was building inside of me the whole time. When I put spikes on, it’s just fun being out there with the guys.”
The fire building up in Holland has resulted in a 6-for-21 (.286 batting average) start over his first six games, with two home runs and seven RBI to accompany those hits. He hasn’t missed a beat. Holland put up a .299/.428/.556 slash line with six home runs and 20 RBI in 145 plate appearances with St. Paul before his season-ending injury.
Despite going 10 months without wearing a Saints uniform, Holland had a strong support system around him, making transitioning back into playing full-time all the easier.
“The injuries were definitely frustrating at the time, but I have a good support staff around me, good group of guys around me,” said Holland. “My family kept spirits high, but I always saw the light at the end of the tunnel and still do, so that kind of keeps me motivated to keep going every day.”
Toby Gardenhire and Shawn Schlechter also appreciate having him back. Holland is one of several super utility players the Saints have had over the last couple of seasons who they can plug in at any position they need him.
“He came up to us kind of out of necessity more than anything else,” said Gardenhire. “But he’s been great. Will’s really athletic, the great thing about him is he’s a plus defender, you can put him anywhere on the field.”
“[Holland is] just a really good athlete, and he taps into that athleticism on the field and with his swing,” added Schlechter. “I’m really happy for him and to see that his battles through injuries haven’t changed that. He’s feeling really confident and comfortable right now.”
“I take pride in telling Toby I can play anywhere on the field, so it’s like I can play everywhere on the field, but it’s also like at that position. It’s not just that I want to be thrown at a position, I want to go to a position and make an impact for the team.”
Since returning to the team, Holland has been on the field every day except Friday. It was a scheduled day off because St. Paul had Jose Miranda return from the IL. But Holland discussed how important it is to keep his body in the best shape possible so he can be with the Saints the rest of the way.
“I am just continuing to keep working hard and take care of my body,” said Holland. “Just making sure I’m ready to go every day and continuing to build on my swing. I worked on a few things a couple of off-seasons ago that I really liked, and I think if I can just be consistent with my swing decisions and take care of my swings off the field.”
If Holland stayed healthy for all of 2024 and kept performing as he had been all season, there could have been a chance Minnesota’s fifth-round pick from the 2019 draft could have made his MLB debut in the same time frame as DaShawn Keirsey Jr. and Michael Helman.
The ultimate goal is still within the realm of possibility for him this season, and he knows what he must do to accomplish it before the year ends.
“Just knowing everything I’m doing has a purpose,” said Holland. “So all the extra reps and all the stuff I’m doing in the weight room, all the eating and stuff I do off the field. It’s all for a purpose, for a reason, and that purpose is to be successful on the field.”
