Gunnar Henderson Fantasy Stats

ESPN's Buster Olney, who was appearing on Just Baseball, said that Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson, who is represented by super agent Scott Boras, "in all likelihood isn't going to sign there long-term." It comes after the Orioles traded away the former first overall pick, switch-hitting All-Star catcher Adley Rutschman, to the division-rival Boston Red Sox on Monday for a giant prospect haul. The 25-year-old Henderson has two years of team control remaining, but after that, Olney thinks he will bolt for the open market. The former second-rounder in 2019 broke out with 37 home runs, 92 RBI, and 21 stolen bases in his second full MLB season with Baltimore in 2024, and although he had a career-high 30 steals the following season, he hit just 17 home runs in 2025. Henderson has continued to decline in 2026, as he's currently slashing .218/.297/.393 with a career-low .690 OPS, 18 home runs, 47 RBI, 65 runs scored, and only eight steals in 114 games and 518 plate appearances. His batted-ball metrics do not point to a turnaround anytime soon.

Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson looked like the next superstar in 2024 when he hit 37 home runs, drove in 92 runs, and stole 21 bases in 159 regular-season games on his way to his first All-Star appearance. However, he could not run it back last year, finishing with just 17 home runs, 68 RBI, and 30 stolen bases in 154 games played. The 25-year-old left-handed slugger is already up to 16 long balls in 87 games in 2026 in his fifth year in the league, but his numbers everywhere else have come up well short again. Through 399 plate appearances, he's slashing .227/.298/.416 with a career-low .714 OPS, 39 RBI, six steals, and 49 runs scored in a league-high 361 at-bats. Under the hood, his xBA of .235 and xwOBA of .307 don't scream buy low in fantasy leagues. Henderson also ranks in the 63rd percentile in hard-hit rate, the 41st percentile in strikeout rate, the 45th percentile in barrel rate, and the 34th percentile in chase rate. The power has obviously been nice, but fantasy managers shouldn't be buying with the expectation that he'll return to his 2024 form in the second half of 2026.

Slowly but surely, Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson has started to look more like himself in May. The 24-year-old left-handed-hitting shortstop went 2-for-4 at the plate with two home runs, three RBI, and a strikeout in the team's 11-2 rout over the division-rival Tampa Bay Rays at Camden Yards on Wednesday to raise his season average to .222 and his OPS to .714. The strong performance was his first multi-homer game of the 2026 campaign. It definitely has not been the season that Henderson's fantasy managers were hoping for, but the buy-low window is closing quickly. Although Henderson is hitting only .222 with the end of May quickly approaching, he has 13 home runs and has gone 14-for-33 (.424) with three long balls in his last 10 games. Henderson has added 29 RBI, 30 runs scored, and six stolen bases across his 252 plate appearances on the year.

Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson has been off to a slow start to the season, but appears to be coming around with the bat. The overall numbers aren't pretty with Henderson slashing .213/.287/.492 with 41 strikeouts through the first 29 games of the season. The good news is that the slugger has been turning the corner lately. Over the last week, Henderson is slashing .333/.368/.722 with two homers and three RBI. The young slugger has collected five hits over his last four games, which should give fantasy managers hope that he's starting to come around at the plate. Henderson should remain rostered and started in all fantasy formats despite a slow start.

Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson has gotten off to a fast start to the season, with four homers in his first 12 games. Henderson is hitting .245 (12-for-49) with three doubles, four homers, six walks, and a stolen base for a .394 wOBA and .306 ISO. Last year, his ISO was just .165 in 154 games with a .339 wOBA. The 24-year-old is clearly healthy and settled into the middle of the Orioles lineup and will continue to be one of the top shortstops in fantasy baseball. Henderson's hard-hit rate is actually a little lower than last year in the early going this season, but his barrel rate is up, which is resulting in the increased power production. Continue to start him in all formats.

The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal said on Foul Territory on Tuesday that the odds of shortstop Gunnar Henderson signing a long-term contract extension with the Baltimore Orioles are likely "extremely low." Henderson is represented by super-agent Scott Boras, which means he's unlikely to agree to an under-market deal for the sake of long-term stability. As Rosenthal notes, Boras prefers to see his clients reach the open market so that they can sell their services to the highest bidder. If the 24-year-old reaches the open market, he'll be one of the top players available in free agency. Henderson was a first-time All-Star in 2024 and had a monster season, slashing .281/.364/.529 with an .893 OPS, 37 home runs, 92 RBI, 118 runs scored, and 21 stolen bases in 719 plate appearances over 159 regular-season games. He came back down to Earth in 2025 with a .274/.349/.438 slash line, 17 homers, 68 RBI, and 30 stolen bases in 154 games, but he's still one of the premier shortstops in the league in his prime. We wouldn't be surprised if Henderson posts his first 30-30 season in 2026 if he stays healthy.

After back-to-back top-10 finishes in the American League MVP voting in 2023 and 2024, Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson battled through a down year in 2025. Across 651 plate appearances, the 24-year-old hit .274/.349/.438 with 17 home runs, 68 RBI, 85 runs scored, and 30 stolen bases. Henderson's barrel rate dropped from 11.2% to 8.5% in 2025, and his hard-hit rate fell from 53.9% to 49%. As a result, his slugging percentage dipped from .529 to .438. However, injury may have played a role in Henderson's power decline. He suffered an intercostal strain in 2025 Spring Training that did not cause him to miss much time, but still may have impacted his performance at the plate. Entering 2026, Henderson is fully healthy and has more help around him in the Baltimore lineup following the Orioles acquisition of first baseman Pete Alonso over the winter. Henderson remains an elite fantasy shortstop with the potential for high-level five-category production in 2026.

Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson worked at Tinsley Performance in the offseason to try to increase his speed going into the 2026 season, according to Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner. Henderson has increased his stolen base totals in each of his four seasons in the big leagues, culminating with a career-high 30 thefts in 154 games in 2025. Even though he stole 30 bags, he ranked only in the 79th percentile in sprint speed, so he worked to get faster. At the plate last year, Henderson regressed, slashing .274/.349/.438 with a career-low .787 OPS, only 17 home runs, 68 RBI, and 85 runs scored in 651 plate appearances, although he battled through a shoulder impingement for a good chunk of the season. The 24-year-old's current ADP suggests he won't come at much of a discount, with many fantasy managers expecting a bounce-back year with better health. RotoBaller has him ranked as the No. 4 fantasy shortstop.

Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson (shoulder) wasn't 100 percent healthy during the 2025 campaign. According to Matt Weyrich, Henderson was playing through a shoulder impingement and inflammation last season. This injury could be part of the reason why Henderson's stats regressed last season. His slash line took a hit; most notably, his OPS went from .893 in 2024 to .787 last season. Henderson saw his home run numbers go from 37 during the 2024 campaign to 17 long balls last season. The good news is that Henderson is now fully healthy heading into Spring Training. Fantasy managers should expect a bounce-back campaign from Henderson in 2026.

Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson (shoulder) said on WBAL Radio on Thursday night that he had a shoulder impingement "pretty much for three-quarters of the year," according to Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports. Henderson dropped off in the home run department from 37 in 2024 to 17 last year, and also in RBI from 92 to 68. His slugging percentage fell from .529 to .438, and his OPS dropped from .893 to .787. "I just wasn't able to hold the plane, and my body was adjusting to it, not feeling great, so that didn't really set me up in the right spot to leverage the ball like I normally do," Henderson said. "So getting over that and ready to roll this season." An intercostal strain suffered in spring training also got the 24-year-old off to a late start in early April. Fantasy managers might be able to get a slight discount on a player who should be in a great spot to bounce back as one of the best all-around position players in baseball.