Back in the spring, CBS Sports ranked Baltimore Orioles infielder Gunnar Henderson as baseball's best prospect. Lately, he's showing why. Henderson entered Sunday having hit .421/.450/.895 with three home runs, four runs batted in, and two stolen bases in his first six games of June. He added to those marks on Sunday in an 11-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals (box score).
Henderson played a big part in the proceedings, going 3 for 5 with a home run, a double, and three runs batted in. There are different kinds of home runs: some just scrape the fence, others are moonshots. Henderson's was the latter.
According to Statcast, Henderson's blast left the bat with a 113.8 mph exit velocity and carried 462 feet. That makes it the longest home run to ever reach Eutaw Street, which is located outside of right field at Camden Yards. Observe:
HE'S GUNNA VISIT EUTAW STREET pic.twitter.com/WQmjeYBmAb
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) June 11, 2023
Henderson now has four home runs and seven runs batted in over seven June games. He had five home runs and 14 runs batted in in his first 50 games this season spread over the first two months.
Henderson wasn't the only Orioles batter to have a big game on Sunday. Third baseman Ramón Urías notched four hits (two of them doubles) and right fielder/first baseman Ryan O'Hearn had three hits (including a home run) and two walks. New York Yankees castoff Aaron Hicks, by the way, continued his hot start since joining the Orioles by scoring a pair of hits of his own.
The Orioles are now 41-24 on the season, and 6-3 in June. They'll have Monday off before hosting the Toronto Blue Jays for a three-game set in a matchup between the second- and fourth-place teams in the American League East.