Orioles' Gunnar Henderson finally finding form at the plate
Henderson named American League Player of the Week
Henderson named American League Player of the Week
When the season began, Gunnar Henderson was gaining a lot of attention for being the No. 1 prospect in baseball and one of the favorites for the Rookie of the Year Award. The attention and pressure to live up to expectations may have been a burden for him early on, as he struggled through the first two months, seeing his batting average fall to a paltry .170 in mid-May.
Since then, he has been one of the best hitters on the team, with a .394 average in his past 10 games. He has started to show flashes of his power with four home runs over that same span, including a record-breaking 462-foot bomb that landed on Eutaw Street inside Orioles Park at Camden Yards.
MLB announced on Monday that Henderson was named the American League Player of the Week after hitting .526 with three home runs.
Henderson seems to be breaking out of his early season woes and is becoming the player that everyone thought he could be at the beginning of the season. He still has a way to go to get back into the Rookie of the Year conversation, but if he continues his current progress, it may not be out of reach.
Patience rewarded
During the first couple of months, Henderson was seeing the ball well and taking walks but could not make good contact for some reason. Despite batting under .200 for most of the early season, his on-base percentage stayed over .350, so he was getting on base 35% of the time. He was able to work through this slump and may not be walking as much but is getting more hits lately.
In only five games this past week, he has 10 hits, 6 RBIs, 3 home runs and 2 stolen bases while batting .526. Manager Brandon Hyde has been using him as a lead-off hitter, and he has filled in for the injured Cedric Mullins well, and that may be his new position in the lineup until Mullins returns.
"You can tell he is a lot more aggressive at the plate early on in the count and getting in on pitches he can handle," Hyde said. "(He's) definitely more confident right now, you can tell he is feeling a lot more comfortable at the plate this past week to ten days. Yeah, and he can go 462 (feet) on his pull side."
Back to shortstop?
Henderson has been playing at third base for the majority of the season, but with Ramón Urías back from injury and Jorge Mateo struggling from the plate lately, he may see some more games at shortstop. He played more games at shortstop during his minor league career and has 11 starts this season. He may not have as much range as Mateo, but the drop-off is not significant.
Mateo has lost his touch at the plate after starting out the season as the Orioles' best hitter (.347 hitting in May). He may need to become a bench player if his struggles continue. That move would help get some more productive at-bats for players such as Ryan O'Hearn and newcomer Josh Lester. Luckily for the Orioles, Henderson has a great track record at shortstop and will provide the team with some much need versatility.
Rookie of the Year
Henderson has a long way to catch up to some of the rookies ahead of him. His struggles early on have put him behind some of the current favorites. Boston Red Sox outfielder Masataka Yoshida has had the best season among rookies batting .319, top five in the majors. Texas Rangers Josh Jung is also having a good rookie season and just had a 14-game hitting streak, so the competition will be tough.
It will take a historic performance for the rest of the season for Henderson to be considered for the award. One thing he may have over some of the other contenders is that the Orioles are in contention. If they stay in the hunt and the other teams don't, then it may be enough to give him an edge over players with better stats.
