Gunnar Henderson: Another Baltimore Orioles Big Man at Shortstop?

Both the Baltimore Orioles faithful and the O’s front office have been gripped in a type of baseball hysteria the past month.

Excitement from the Adley Rutschman promotion and the angst over possibly losing Grayson Rodriguez until at least September seem to consume all Baltimore Orioles conversations right now.

However, just under the prospect radar looms another future Oriole who’s making his presence known in the clubhouse and on the field. Enter Gunnar Henderson to the center stage as the next anticipated call up to the big leagues.

In case you didn’t know, Gunnar Henderson right now is the youngest player currently assigned to a AAA ball club. At the tender age of 20, Henderson and team mate Jordan Westburg were promoted to Norfolk this week, only one step away from the Show. Henderson won’t even turn 21 until later this month.

Gunnar Henderson: Another Baltimore Orioles Big Man at Shortstop?

Rest assured, folks – Gunnar Henderson isn’t being necessarily rushed to the top just to fill out the Baltimore Orioles infield.  Henderson was the Orioles second round draft pick in 2019 and only got in his first full season of professional baseball last year, finishing out with AA Bowie.

Henderson wrapped up his year in AA ball with an OPS of 1.025 which put him near the tops of the Eastern League. Combined with an OBP of .452 and 12 base steals (out of 14 attempts), Henderson quickly made a name for himself within the Orioles organization while still being overshadowed by team mates Adley Rutschman and Grayson Rodriguez.

Despite the accolades and accomplishments while finishing up in Double A,  Henderson still posted a 30.9% strikeout rate. Henderson put in extra work this past spring training and has been able to drop his strikeout rate from over 30% to a more respectable 20% so far this season.

Over 47 games this season, Henderson has posted strong offensive numbers with a .312 batting average and more walks than punch outs along with eight homers.  Henderson also bats left, which creates an interesting dynamic when thinking about him in a possible lineup down the road.

Back in 2019, Gunnar Henderson was originally drafted as a shortstop.  Being 6’2″ and 210 lbs., Henderson has been considered “big” for playing in the hole and  has alternated playing both at short and third base at Bowie.

This experiment may pay off dividends as Henderson learns both positions and can fill in where needed. With his promotion to AAA Norfolk, Henderson takes a closer step to eventually playing in the Baltimore Orioles infield and his size and offensive firepower may get him a promotion to the big league club by September.