Gunnar Henderson, at a Hundred

The Count

Gunnar Henderson hit his 100th career home run on June 12, 2026. He had been in the major leagues since August 31, 2022, and every game of his career has come in a Baltimore Orioles uniform. Five seasons, and the number was already there.

The Field

Before Baltimore there was Selma, Alabama, and a horse pasture behind the family home. Allen Henderson converted it into a baseball field with outfield fences, so his older son Jackson's team would have a place to practice. Gunnar was four years old, turning double plays with a cousin on that field, competing against older kids on the family RockHounds travel squad that practiced on the same property.

He went on to star in baseball, basketball, and football at John T. Morgan Academy. As a senior he hit .559 with 11 home runs and was named Alabama's Mr. Baseball, and he earned AISA basketball player of the year honors as well. The Orioles drafted him 42nd overall in the second round in 2019 and signed him for an over-slot $2.3 million bonus, drawing him away from a commitment to Auburn.

The climb from there was short. He reached the majors in August 2022, won the Jackie Robinson AL Rookie of the Year and a Silver Slugger in 2023, and made the All-Star team in 2024. Through 620 games he has 617 hits, 122 doubles, 26 triples, 71 stolen bases, and an .804 OPS. This season he has 20 home runs through 123 games.

He still goes back to Selma. In the offseason he trains in a batting cage he had built on the family property and hunts with his father and his brothers, Jackson and Cade.

He is 25 years old. He plays shortstop for Baltimore, and the career home run total now stands at 106.

Reporting: PressBox, MLB.com, Baseball-Reference, Wikipedia, The Baltimore Banner. Career and biographical data: MLB StatsAPI, via the Fever engine.