Getty Gunnar Henderson celebrating a home run hit during a July 13 game against the New York Yankees.
The Baltimore Orioles walk-off win over the New York Yankees also featured the 28th home run of the season for Gunnar Henderson. It’s his first in eight games.
Henderson sent a 87.8 mph slider from Carlos Rodon 414-feet to right centerfield to put the Orioles up 2-1 in the third inning.
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But the lead would slip away, after Craig Kimbrel gave up a three-run homer in the top of the ninth. It took a walk-off double from Cedric Mullins to seal the victory for Baltimore.
No Escapin’ Him
Henderson talked with reporters after the walk-off win over New York, which snapped a five-game losing streak the Orioles.
“We’re never out of it,” Henderson said, according to Jacob Calvin Meyer of the Baltimore Sun. “That just shows the grit we have on this team, even after losing five straight. To come back and do that in the ninth in that fashion was pretty awesome.”
According to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs, 28 home runs are the most by a shortstop in a team’s first 96 games since Ernie Banks in 1960.
Only Alex Rodriguez ever had more, with 31 in 2002.
Baltimore goes into the All-Star break with a 58-38 record, which leads the AL East. Henderson’s 28 home runs are third in MLB, behind the Yankees’ Aaron Judge (34), and Shohei Ohtani (29) of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Craig Kimbrel: ‘I Didn’t Do My Job Today’
When future Hall of Famer and closer Craig Kimbrel took the mound at the top of the ninth, the Orioles had a 3-2 lead.
He proceeded to walk his first two batters before giving up a 405-foot home run to rookie Ben Rice.
When talking with reporters postgame, Kimbrel made his disappointment with his performance known.
“I didn’t do my job today and the guys had my back and we got a W,” Kimbrel said, according to Kubatko. “It’s huge. It’s extremely lucky. I’ve blown (five saves) and our guys have been able to come back and capitalize and not making it hurt so bad. And I couldn’t be happier.”
The win over New York was Kimbrel’s first appearance since July 7. He wasn’t deployed during Baltimore’s five-game losing streak. Those games didn’t hold the leverage required to utilize Kimbrel, who has 440 career saves.
He and the Orioles both will look to leave most of the game behind them going into the All-Star break.
Brandon Hyde: ‘We’re Going to Have Our Ups and Downs’
It was a much needed win for the Orioles going into the All-Star break. They were on a five-game skid prior, including a series sweep at the hands of the Chicago Cubs.
Baltimore skipper Brandon Hyde spoke with reporters after the game about putting one more in the win column for the first half of the season.
“Been a tough week,” Hyde said according to Kubatko. “It was huge to get a win just to go into the break. These guys definitely need a break. And I thought we really battled today. For me, that’s who our team is.”
New York won the first two games of the series. So it’s still a loss for the Orioles overall, and a big one. Baltimore hadn’t lost an AL East series since April of 2023.
“It’s just the challenges of a major league baseball season and we’re going to have our ups and downs,” Hyde continued. “This one is especially tough because we just came off a good road trip and we didn’t play well against the Cubs and wanted to play well, and there was all that stuff that happened Friday, and just felt like it would be really, really nice to get a win today and have these guys get a much-deserved four days off.”
That’s a wrap on the first half of the Orioles’ 2024 season. They are on pace to win 97 games and lead MLB with 147 home runs.
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