Gunnar Henderson Diagnosed with Rib Injury, Orioles 'Hopeful' He'll Play Opening Day

Baltimore Orioles manager Brandon Hyde acknowledged on Monday while speaking with reporters that star shortstop Gunnar Henderson may not be ready for Opening Day due to a mild right intercostal strain.

"I'm very, very hopeful," he said about Henderson's chances of being ready for the start of the regular season. "But we're going to not push a strain there, and we want to make sure that he gets it taken care of. It's one of those sensitive areas where we don't want anything to reoccur."

Henderson suffered the injury on Thursday while making a jump catch on a line drive at shortstop.

"It was just like the whole act of what he did," Hyde told reporters. "Not sure if it's how he caught it—it's more probably how he landed and just kind of crunched his side a little bit."

The 23-year-old was the American League Rookie of the Year winner in 2023 and took another step toward superstardom in 2024, hitting .281 with 37 homers, 92 RBI, 118 runs, 21 stolen bases and a .893 OPS, all career highs. That earned him All-Star Game honors and he finished fourth in AL MVP voting.

That makes any injury to Henderson a concern, though the Orioles are optimistic his current issue isn't too serious in the long run.

"It's kind of a day-to-day thing. He is improving," Hyde said. "I saw him before I left, he feels good. He's feeling better. It's just how much better on a daily basis. But we're not going to push him out there unless we know that this thing is cleared up."

Opening Day is Thursday, March 27, with the Orioles traveling to Toronto to face the Blue Jays. The regular season will technically begin on March 18 in Tokyo, however, with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs playing a two-game series.