Gunnar Henderson Makes Baltimore Orioles History With Home Run vs. Los Angeles Angels
Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson crushed a solo shot Wednesday against the Los Angeles Angels, giving the 22-year-old eight home runs on the season.
Gunnar Henderson led off Wednesday afternoon's game between the Baltimore Orioles and Los Angeles Angels by getting plunked and taking a free pass to first.
The young shortstop made sure to return the damage four-fold the next time he stepped up to the plate.
Henderson was due up first in the top of the third, earning a rematch with Angels starter Tyler Anderson. After taking ball one high, Henderson got a hold of an outside cutter and sent it flying.
With a 98.9 mile-per-hour exit velocity and 31 degree launch angle, Henderson crushed the ball 379 feet to right-center, just clearing the outfield wall. It was the 22-year-old's eighth home run of the season so far, as well as his 18th RBI.
According to MLB.com's Sarah Langs, Henderson's eight homers are the most by a player 22 years old or younger through the first 25 games of a season in franchise history. That includes their 71 seasons as the Orioles, as well as their 52 seasons as the St. Louis Browns.
And since Wednesday's showdown is only Baltimore's 24th contest of the year, Henderson has one more game to extend his record.
The next time Henderson got an at-bat, he roped a leadoff double to left to lead off the top of the fifth. He added an RBI single in the sixth, as well as another hit-by-pitch in the eighth.
Baltimore went on to defeat Los Angeles 6-5.
Henderson is now batting .309 with a 1.022 OPS on the season. He entered Wednesday ranking second on the team with a 1.2 WAR, but he may wind up leaping third baseman Jordan Westburg by Thursday.
After opening 2023 as the consensus top prospect in all of baseball, Henderson went on to win AL Rookie of the Year, as well as a Silver Slugger. He hit .255 with 28 home runs, 82 RBI, an .814 OPS and a 6.2 WAR in 150 games.
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