Rockies sign HS player Ethan Holliday to record $9M bonus

Ethan Holliday signed with the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday for a $9 million bonus, according to MLB.com. The amount is a record for a high school player.

Holliday, the No. 4 overall pick in this year's draft from Stillwater (Okla.) High, surpassed the record $8.2 million bonus that fellow prep shortstop and first overall pick Eli Willits received from the Washington Nationals on Saturday.

Willits surpassed the $8.19 million that Jackson Holliday -- older brother of Ethan -- received when selected No. 1 overall by the Baltimore Orioles in 2022.

All three players are products of the state of Oklahoma.

Ethan Holliday's bonus is the second-highest given out by the Rockies. Colorado signed last season's No. 3 overall pick, college player Charlie Condon of Georgia, for $9.25 million, tied with right-hander Chase Burns (No. 2 overall, 2024) of the Cincinnati Reds for the largest bonus.

Ethan Holliday was Baseball America's 2025 High School Player of the Year. He recorded a .611 batting average with 19 home runs and 64 RBIs in 33 games.

Overall, Holliday's bonus ties for fourth-highest with outfielder Dylan Crews, the No. 2 pick in 2023 by the Nationals.

Pittsburgh Pirates ace right-hander Paul Skenes ($9.2 million) received the third-highest bonus. He was the No. 1 overall pick out of LSU in 2023.

The two Hollidays are the sons of former Rockies star Matt Holliday.