Gunnar Henderson and Colton Cowser’s rivalry is incredibly wholesome

With the Baltimore Orioles having so many talented young guys coming up, it is only natural for friendly rivalries and competition to be born. So many of these players dealt with the grind of the minor leagues together and are now figuring the big leagues out on the fly in tandem. It would, frankly, be weird if there weren't some fun, close relationships that developed between at least some of these guys.

One such friendly rivalry has developed between Gunnar Henderson and Colton Cowser. Obviously both of these guys are among the most talented young players in the game, but they have also formed a bond over their very competitive natures that extend way beyond baseball. Before 2022 spring training, the two decided to start a challenge where they would buy identical, huge Lego kits, with the first to complete the Lego build winning bragging rights.

With the score from the last two years tied up at one a piece, this year's Orioles Lego build-off has high stakes.

Henderson and Cowser's Lego rivalry is everything right about baseball (and 2024 Orioles)

It may seem like a small thing, but these very human touches in a clubhouse can make a huge difference. The Atlanta Braves are a classic example of this. Between Atlanta's wine club, the constant ongoing bits and poses on the field, and Ronald Acuna Jr. constantly terrorizing Ozzie Albies, the Braves have created a fun culture where the team's closeness has yielded great results for them.

As for the details of Henderson and Cowser's competition, we don't know the exact specifics yet as to what the Lego kit will be this year. However, we can make some educated guesses based on previous years.

The inaugural competition in 2022 was won by Cowser, when he completed the 7.541 piece Millenium Falcon Lego set. Last year, Henderson emerged victorious when he built another Star Wars ship model, the Razor Crest, first. Both competitions had some controversy, as Henderson was promoted to the big leagues during the 2022 competition and Cowser was forced to move his model multiple times last year as he blasted his way through the minors. The smart bet is either a Star Destroyer kit or even the Death Star being the choice this year.

However this turns out, it is just good, clean fun between two guys that the Orioles are going to need a lot from in the coming years. The only real question is what they are going to do when they run out of big Star Wars Lego models to build.

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