Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson (2) hits a single against the Kansas City Royals during the first inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on May 3. Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Baltimore Orioles Star Listed as Possibility to Land $600 Million Contract in Future

Originally posted on Fastball on SI | By Brady Farkas | Last updated May 6, 2025 3:24 PM ET

This past offseason, Juan Soto shattered the baseball contract world by agreeing to a record-setting 15-year, $765 million contract with the New York Mets. Though it's certainly possible that someone comes along and beats that, it seems like Soto's deal will stand alone for a while.

That didn't stop MLB executives and Jeff Passan of ESPN from discussing just how big the numbers could get for the current stars of the game, and people concluded that Gunnar Henderson of the Baltimore Orioles will be the next big, big domino to fall.

Per Passan:

Henderson was the one player mentioned by every executive as the best bet to beat Soto. And even then, executives said, it's a long shot. Henderson debuted at 21 and will reach free agency after the 2028 season at 27. He plays a far more important position than Soto's right field, and even if Henderson does eventually move to third base, the positional advantage still will be true.

Free at ESPN: The nine-figure club remains the benchmark for baseball excellence. A look at the entire league and the players likeliest to get megadeals, from $100 million all the way to the contenders to dethrone Juan Soto as MLB's highest-paid player: https://t.co/SXJcgobKYZ
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) May 6, 2025

Even with that praise, Passan argues that Henderson will need to remain excellent for multiple more seasons to reach even the $600 million plateau.

Henderson, 23, is in the fourth year of his career with the Orioles. A .267 career hitter, he's a Rookie of the Year winner, a Silver Slugger and an All-Star. He began the year on the injured list this season, but he's hitting .260 in 104 at-bats with three homers. He hit 37 last year while driving in 92 as the O's got back to the playoffs.

Baltimore will be in action on Tuesday night against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field.

First pitch is 7:40 p.m. ET.

This article first appeared on Fastball on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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