The Baltimore Orioles beat the New York Yankees on Monday night 2-0, kicking off a big series with their division rivals in a positive way.
Baltimore, who is trying to repeat as American League East champions, is now 18-10 on the year. The Yankees are now 19-11 as they look to unseat the O's.
The Orioles got an excellent pitching performance from Grayson Rodriguez and three relievers in the victory, and offensively the story was once again Gunnar Henderson.
The reigning American League Rookie of the Year hit a leadoff homer in the bottom of the first inning to provide an early cushion that would never be relinquished. It was his 10th homer of the year as he continues to rewrite the franchise record books.
Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com:
Gunnar Henderson’s 10 HR are 3 more than any other player age 22 or younger in the team’s first 28 games in Orioles/Browns franchise history
Henderson is hitting .289 thus far with a .984 OPS. Coming into the season, fans were excited about the idea of having top prospect Jackson Holliday in the O's lineup, but Henderson has reminded people just how good he is.
He won the Rookie of the Year last year after hitting 28 home runs and bringing in 82.
In addition to his big blast, the O's also got hits from Adley Rutschman, Ryan O'Hearn and Jordan Westburg.
The O's and Yankees will play again on Tuesday night with the first pitch coming at 6:35 p.m. ET.
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