The Baltimore Orioles have reached the All-Star break in sole possession of first place in the American League East with a 58-38 record and are on-pace to win 98 games.
With five All-Stars representing the Birds in Texas, the Orioles became the first team MLB history to have three players make the All-Star team with three years or less of big league experience (Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson and Jordan Westburg).
With the Orioles in a strong position to make the postseason, the All-Star break is a good time for some rest and to prepare for the stretch run.
With that being said, we are going to dive into the players who comprised The Great, The Good & The Ugly of the first half of the 2024 regular season.
The Great: Gunnar Henderson
Honestly, there is really no surprise here as to who has been “the great” for the first half.
Gunnar Henderson just keeps getting better, and his fire is one of the reasons that the Birds go as he does. The reigning AL Rookie of the Year earned his first All-Star selection with his electric defense and exciting offense.
Henderson slashed .286/.373/.584/.957, matching his home run total from last season with 28 through the first half. He also currently leads the majors in lead-off home runs with eight.
Of Henderson’s 108 total hits, 51 of them have gone for extra bases (18 doubles, five triples, 28 home runs), while he has driven in 63 runs, scored 78 runs and stolen 14 bases.
Henderson not only is sizzling at the plate, but he is sparkling in the field, where his range and arm have allowed him to make spectacular and eye-opening plays.
The 23-year-old is a big reason why the Orioles lead the majors in home runs (149) and slugging percentage (.452) this season.
The Good: Corbin Burnes
A few different players could have shown up here, but Corbin Burnes has done his fair share to earn this spot.
When the Orioles traded for Burnes, they wanted a front-line starter to help establish them as a bonafide contender. The former Milwaukee Brewer ace has delivered that and more this season for the Birds.
Through 19 games (all starts), Burnes has a 9-4 record with a 2.43 ERA and 1.04 WHIP across 118.2 innings pitched. The veteran right-hander has struck out 110 batters and walked only 25 while holding opponents to a .222 average.
One thing tracked but not discussed frequently are quality starts, when a pitcher tosses at least six innings while allowing three earned runs or less. At the All-Star break, Burnes, who made the AL All-Star team as the squad’s starter, has 15 quality starts in his 19 games pitched.
Burnes has established himself as a Cy Young candidate and the anchor of a staff that includes second-year phenom Grayson Rodriguez. Come postseason time, Burnes could be the difference maker the Orioles have been looking for.
The Ugly: The Orioles’ IL
This could have gone to a couple players, but the IL makes this list for the simple fact that it has been a revolving door that has limited the success the Orioles could be having.
Starting with the pitching staff, Tyler Wells (UCL surgery), John Means, who also started the season on IL (Tommy John surgery), Kyle Bradish, who, like Means, started the season on the IL (Tommy John surgery) and Félix Bautista (Tommy John surgery) are all out for the remainder of the 2024 season.
Bautista had surgery in October but is still in the recovery process, where as Bradish was the latest pitcher to fall to injury. Means, who is a free agent at the end of the season, and Wells were close in timeline. Fortunately for Wells, his surgery was not a full TJS.
The Orioles are also without Danny Coulombe (bone chips removed) until late August or early September, a key piece in the bullpen. Grayson Rodriguez, Dean Kremer and Cionel Pérez have all spent time on the IL this season as well.
On the offensive side of the ball, Austin Hays, Jorge Mateo and Heston Kjerstad (currently on seven-day concussion IL) have all missed significant time due to the injury bug.
Manager Brandon Hyde and GM Mike Elias have managed the squad well through the injuries and have kept the Birds clinging to first place. While a couple or more trades are more than likely to happen, the O’s have depth and managed to not be hurt overly much from the list that holds key pieces expected to help this season.
Be sure to tune-in for our next edition of The Great, The Good & The Ugly next week, as we will be back to our normal week-based rankings.
Which players stood out to you the most from the first half of the season? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter (X) and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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