Gunnar Henderson’s first four at-bats Saturday ended in frustration, the kind that is much too familiar in 2026 and occasionally leads to thrown equipment and loud shouting that’s aimed at himself.

He struck out in the first and third innings, grounded into a force to end the fifth and grounded out in the eighth with Chadwick Tromp on second base. But Henderson kept the Orioles alive in the 10th with a two-out single on a line drive into left field that moved Taylor Ward to second base. They loaded the bases and lost 4-3.

Henderson began yesterday hitting .223/.294/.414 in 83 games. His 16 home runs ranked second to Pete Alonso’s 18.

He came within a hair yesterday of a run-scoring extra-base hit down the left field line. The Orioles challenged the foul call, it was confirmed, and he grounded out while going 0-for-4. The average is down to .221 and on-base percentage to .291.

Alonso, meanwhile, belted his 19th homer.

The Orioles need Henderson to get hot and stay hot. They need him, quite simply, to be Gunnar Henderson again.

Asked yesterday about his confidence in Henderson, assistant hitting coach Brady North didn’t paint a gray area.

“I remain confident,” he said immediately.

“All the work he’s done, he works hard, he’s doing the right things. And when Gunnar makes the right decisions and he’s swinging the bat on the balls in the zone, we see the results lining up. He’s showing us Gunnar Henderson. Making some bad decisions, but he’s working through it and he’s gonna be fine.”

Henderson went into yesterday with a .219 average against fastballs, compared to .305 in 2025. The number dropped to .132 with a .263 slugging percentage against four-seamers, the lowest of his career.

Chase rate also is an issue, with Henderson swinging 32.3 percent of the time on pitches outside the zone.

“Yeah, that’s when you look at them in total, right?” North said of the fastball numbers. “So those are the ones that include outside the zone. The ones in the zone, he’s doing what he’s supposed to do with them. It’s just more of those ones that aren’t in his wheelhouse.”

The pressure to produce, especially with the Orioles under .500 again and uncertain whether they’re going to buy or sell at the deadline, weighs heavily on the former top prospect and 2024 All-Star.

“Yeah, I think that’s a fair way to say it,” North said. “He’s great, right? Like, he’s a really good player and they expect a lot out of themselves. And so, sure, I can see Gunnar wanting to be Gunnar fast, so trying to do a lot in a very short amount of time.”

Henderson agreed to a media scrum at his locker after yesterday’s loss, as usual, but his level of enthusiasm equaled an appointment for a root canal. He’s pretty much out of answers.

“I’ve been trying to do any and everything that I can to help the team win, because it really doesn’t feel like I’m doing that, offensively at least,” he said. “Yeah, it just sucks, man.”

Opposing pitchers are feeding him more off-speed stuff, but he isn’t using it as an excuse.

“I’ve hit off-speed very well in my career before, so it’s not like I can’t hit it,” he said. “Just don’t really know what to tell you. I mean, I put in the work every day. It’s just, I guess, a matter of time at this point. I don’t know.”

Getting healthy

The Orioles are down to only eight players on their injured list, the lowest total since April 4.

Chris Bassitt, 15-day, lower back discomfort
Félix Bautista, 60-day, right shoulder surgery
Zach Eflin, 60-day, elbow reconstructive surgery
Yaramil Hiraldo, 60-day, right shoulder inflammation
Dean Kremer, 60-day, right quadriceps strain
Ryan Mountcastle, 60-day, fractured left foot
Colin Selby, 60-day, right shoulder inflammation
Jordan Westburg, 60-day, elbow reconstructive surgery

Kremer is the closest to a return. He’s on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Norfolk but might return to the rotation Wednesday, a spot that’s marked as TBA.

Bassitt had surgery to remove a bone spur in his back, which makes his return date vague.

“We’re feeling pretty good about things right there,” said president of baseball operations Mike Elias, “and I think there’s still a very strong possibility we get him back and we get him back in better condition before the end of the season.”

Hiraldo is ready to begin a rehab assignment, which puts him second to Kremer on the possible return chart. Bautista threw a bullpen session and might rejoin the club late in the second half.

Eflin and Westburg are done for the season. Westburg never got on the field.

Selby isn’t making any progress from his shoulder injury. Mountcastle just started to run and is a long way from playing.