Baltimore Orioles All-Star shortstop Gunnar Henderson recorded home run No. 37 of the 2024 campaign Saturday in a 4-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers, inching closer to making franchise and MLB history.
Eight Baltimore players have posted 40-plus homer seasons, with Anthony Santander being the most recent this year, standing at 41. If Henderson can notch three more long balls, they’ll be the first pair of Orioles to accomplish the feat in a single season.
Considering Henderson’s out-put as of late, there’s a strong chance he’ll reach the number. Following Saturday’s 2-for-3 outing, he’s batting .375/.446/.729 with four homers and nine RBI in September alone.
Per Stathead, only 32 teams in baseball history have had two or more teammates record at least 40 home runs in a single season. The Orioles would become the 33rd, making Henderson and Santander the ninth duo over the last 20 years to do it.
Should Henderson and Santander join the record books, there’s a possibility they could make even rarer history in the seasons ahead. At 23 and 29 years old, topping the 40-home run mark in the same season again wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility.
Just six pairs of teammates have had multiple 40-homer seasons together. That list includes David Ortiz/Manny Ramirez (2005, 2004), Alex Rodriguez/Rafael Palmeiro (2002, 2001), Ken Griffey Jr./Rodriguez (1999, 1998), Griffey/Jay Buhner (1997, 1996), Andres Galarraga/Vinny Castilla (1997, 1996) and Lou Gehrig/Babe Ruth (1931, 1930, 1927).
For now, Henderson and Co. have their sights set on clinching a playoff berth. Following Saturday’s win, the Orioles improved to 84-65, trailing the New York Yankees (86-63) by 2.0 games in the American League East race while holding a 3.0 game advantage over the Kansas City Royals (82-67) for the top AL wild-card spot.
