ORLANDO, Fla. — Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson will represent another team this March: The United States in the World Baseball Classic.
Henderson joined the growing list of players to commit to Team USA, which will be managed by longtime major leaguer Mark DeRosa. Henderson joins a stacked group that includes Aaron Judge, Bobby Witt Jr., Cal Raleigh, Kyle Schwarber and Paul Skenes.
Henderson is coming off what he considers a down year, finishing with a .787 on-base-plus-slugging percentage. He earned American League Rookie of the Year honors in 2023 and was an All-Star in 2024 when he posted a career-best .893 OPS.
The World Baseball Classic, which allows players from around the globe to represent their country in a tournament, begins March 5. The timing, occurring during spring training, will force some players away from their major league clubs during the duration of the tournament. The championship will be held March 17 at loanDepot park in Miami.
The U.S. will begin group play against Brazil on March 6 in Houston for its opening game.
In 2023, Japan won the World Baseball Classic, beating the U.S. in the finals. The U.S. hasn’t won the World Baseball Classic since 2017 (the 2020 version was canceled).