Gunnar Henderson Played Through Wrist Issue This Season

Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson had a down season at the plate compared to his usual standards. In just over 700 plate appearances, he’s batted .226/.311/.404 and checked in just 2% better than average by wRC+. Henderson’s serviceable defense at a premium position brought him up to 3.7 wins above replacement according to FanGraphs, but the offensive output is well below his 154 wRC+ from 2024, when he finished fourth in AL MVP voting, or even last year’s 120 wRC+.

It seems that Henderson may not have been fully healthy, as the 25-year-old told reporters, including Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner and others, that he dealt with a right wrist injury for about half the season. It’s unclear how severe the injury was, though he clarified to Kostka that he won’t require surgery in the offseason. For his part, Henderson does not believe the wrist contributed to his downturn and instead pinned it on trying to do too much at the plate. “Some of it was probably a little bit of doing too much in certain situations, just not allowing myself to take over. And then, me trying to force stuff to happen,” Henderson told MLB.com’s Jake Rill and others.

Henderson did not go on the injured list this season. Since debuting in 2022, he has only once been on the major league IL: a near-minimum stint for a right intercostal strain early in 2025. His 621 games played since the start of 2023 rank fourth in the Majors behind the Braves’ Matt Olson, current teammate Pete Alonso, and the Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber.

The last two seasons have seen Henderson deal with nagging injuries rather than serious ailments. Back in January, he admitted to spending about “three-quarters of the year” in 2025 dealing with a shoulder impingement. The Orioles felt it wasn’t serious enough to warrant an IL stint, so Henderson remained active for the whole season even as the club fell out of contention. The club evidently felt the same way about Henderson’s wrist this year.

In any case, the O’s are hoping Henderson can put the wrist and shoulder woes behind him and return to form in 2027. Part of that will come from better luck on batted balls. He hit just .263 on balls in play this year, well below the league average of .290 and his .320 career BABIP through 2025. Henderson’s 89.2 mph average exit velocity and 43.3% hard-hit rate were both career lows, but the former is just under league average as opposed to outrageously low. The hard-hit rate still ranks in the 66th percentile of the league.

Even amidst the downturn, Henderson was still worth +9 Batting Run Value, according to Statcast. Between his youth and solid power (.178 isolated slugging and 24 homers this year), there’s a good chance he rebounds to his typical levels in 2027. Henderson earned $8.5MM in 2026 and will top eight figures for the first time in 2027. He’ll be the top earner in Baltimore’s arbitration class, which also includes Félix Bautista, Jordan Westburg, Colton Cowser, and others, as noted in MLBTR’s Payroll Tracker.