Al Holland played in the Valley Baseball League with the Charlottesville Hornets.
Holland played at North Carolina A&T and as a freshman he led the nation with 143 strikeouts and was second in the country with a 0.54 ERA. He threw a no-hitter against N.C. Central, striking out 25 and allowing only one ball- an infield fly – to be hit in fair territory. For the next three seasons, Holland threw a no-hitter each season and never had an ERA above 1.03.
Holland was drafted by the Texas Rangers in Round 30 of the 1974 June amateur draft and the Padres selected Holland in Round 4 of the 1975 MLB January Draft secondary phase. Each time he chose not to sign. He signed a free agent deal with the Pirates in 1975.
He played in the Major Leagues from 1977-1987 with the Pittsburgh Pirates, San Francisco Giants, Philadelphia Phillies, California Angels, and New York Yankees.
Holland finished seventh in the NL Rookie of the Year voting in 1980.
He had his best season in 1983 with the Phillies when he won the Rolaids Relief Man of the Year Award and The Sporting News Fireman of the Year Award when he finished the season with 25 saves. He finished in the Top 10 that season in both the Cy Young and MVP voting.
Holland saved Game 1 of the NL Championship Series and then struck out three batters in two innings to finish Game 4, clinching the pennant for the Philles. He also saved Game 1 of the 1983 World Series, but the Phillies went on to lose in five games to the Orioles.
Holland was selected to the 1984 All-State Game but did not play in the contest. He finished the 1984 season with 29 saves.
For his MLB career, Holland was 34-30 with a 2.98 ERA in 384 games. He finished with 78 saves and 513 strikeouts in 646 innings pitched.
In 1994, Holland was inducted into the North Carolina A&T University Hall of Fame. In 2020, the University retired Holland’s No. 17. Holland was inducted into the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015.