Gunnar Henderson said during the Orioles Hot Stove Show on WBAL Radio in Baltimore that he battled a shoulder impingement for “pretty much for three-quarters of the year” in 2025.
Henderson elaborated, “I could never get to the spot that I wanted to get to with my swing... 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 up me in the right spot to leverage the ball like I normally do... Looking forward to being healthy this year and getting back to my normal self.” It’s strange that nothing about the shoulder issue came out at all from the Orioles during the 2025 campaign, but it could help to explain the 24-year-old superstar’s significant falloff at the plate, especially in the power department — falling from 37 long balls to just 17. Assuming full health, look for Henderson to bounce back in a big way in 2026.