Good morning, Camden Chatters.
Friends, if you haven’t been following the World Baseball Classic, you have been missing out. This year’s tournament has been as thrilling as always, and the drama has ratcheted up this week. From Team Venezuela knocking out defending champion Japan, to Team USA eking out a nail-biter over the Dominican on a controversial game-ending called strike, we’ve seen plenty of exciting baseball even before the MLB regular season begins.
Last night, Venezuela punched its ticket
to the championship for the first time, riding a late-inning comeback to overtake Italy, the previously undefeated Cinderella team of the tournament. That sets the stage for the WBC finale tonight between the U.S. and Venezuela. And here in Birdland, there’s one question we’re particularly invested in: will Gunnar Henderson be in the starting lineup?
Gunnar’s playing time hasn’t been easy to come by amid a stacked USA roster. With Bobby Witt Jr. at shortstop and Alex Bregman at third, Henderson has started just three games. But he’s certainly made the most of his opportunities. He’s gone 6-for-14 and crushed two home runs, tied for the most on the club, including his mammoth, game-tying dinger in the win over Team D.R. on Sunday.
Coming off a somewhat down year (for him) in 2025, Gunnar is playing like a guy with something to prove. Starting 2026 by being thrown into a high-octane, pressure-packed tournament like the WBC is certainly a different vibe than playing meaningless spring training games, and Henderson has risen to the occasion. With any luck, he’ll bring that kind of intensity back with him to the Orioles as they prepare to start their season next week. Meanwhile, his O’s teammates have been watching Gunnar’s sterling performance and are hoping he’ll be starting tonight.
Listen up, Mark DeRosa: do the right thing. Put Gunnar Henderson in the lineup.
Links
After back-to-back rainouts, the Orioles are scrambling to get enough innings for their pitchers before Opening Day. Any chance Team USA needs some extra arms tonight?
2026 Positional Power Rankings: Catcher – FanGraphs
I’m pleasantly surprised that the Orioles rank fourth. FanGraphs is projecting both a modest bounceback by Adley Rutschman and a solid rookie season for Samuel Basallo. I’d take that in a heartbeat.
Melewski takes a look at the Orioles’ best non-Basallo international prospects. A 22-year-old lefty throwing high-90s heat? Yes, I will jump aboard the Luis De Leon bandwagon, thank you very much.
This spring the O’s have tended to take a conservative approach with their ABS challenges, preferring to save them for important late-inning at-bats. That game-ending strikeout for the Dominican WBC team is a good example of why.
Will Tyler O’Neill be in Orioles’ Opening Day lineup? | MAILBAG – BaltimoreBaseball.com
He’d darn well better be. All this guy does is hit dingers on Opening Day! Bench him for the next 161 games for all I care, but you can’t have an Opening Day lineup without O’Neill.
Orioles birthdays and history
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! And happy 36th birthday to current Orioles reliever Andrew Kittredge, although it’s probably not that happy, considering he’s out with shoulder inflammation and will miss the start of the season. And happy birthday as well to newly minted Orioles Hall of Famer Chris Davis, who turns 40 today. Other former Orioles with St. Patrick’s Day birthdays are right-hander César Valdez (41) and catcher Raúl Chávez (53).
In the entire 72-year history of the Orioles, they’ve made only one roster move on March 17. That was in 1955, their second year of existence, when they acquired right-hander Erv Palica from the then-Brooklyn Dodgers for first baseman Frank Kellert. Palica, who had debuted in the majors at age 17, spent two years with the Orioles as a swing man, going 9-22 with a 4.28 ERA. What’s your favorite Erv Palica memory, O’s fans?
