It felt like it was only a matter of time before this Baltimore Orioles record was broken based on how prolific Gunnar Henderson has been at the plate this season.
And heading into Wednesday’s finale against the Chicago White Sox, there was chance for history to be made.
Henderson came into the game sitting on 34 home runs, tying him with Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. and Miguel Tejada for the most homers in a single-season by a shortstop in franchise history.
Penciled into the lineup as the leadoff man, it only took Henderson five pitches before he blasted one 402 feet over the right center field wall to take over sole possession of first.
The 2023 Rookie of the Year has quickly emerged as one of the game’s great, young players, building upon his performance last season to earn his first All-Star Game selection and participate in the Home Run Derby.
He had been on a tear during the first half of the year, going into the break with 28 homers that made it only a matter of when, not if, the superstar was going to smash this record.
However, Henderson got out of the gate slowly when the Orioles returned to action, coming into this contest with just six long balls and a slugging percentage .170 below where he was at before the Midsummer Classic.
But, like all great players do, he’s been able to make adjustments at the plate and start to heat up again, hitting his second home run in four games during the month of September.
It will be interesting to see how many Henderson finishes with when the season is over as this could be a figure that stands for a long time.
