Orioles’ Henderson wants to play every day–just like Cal did

It was a rare day off for shortstop Gunnar Henderson, who wants to play every day, just like Cal Ripken Jr. did. Henderson sat out Wednesday’s game in San Diego, his first true day off since he returned from the injured list after missing the first seven games of this season because of a strained intercostal muscle.

“It seems like forever whenever you play about 60, 70 games in a row and to think about how many years it was that he played in a row is pretty incredible,” Henderson said last week.

Henderson is in a long line of durable Oriole shortstops, headlined by Ripken, who will be honored by the Orioles on Saturday on the 30^th anniversary of his breaking Lou Gehrig’s consecutive games streak at 2,131.

“It’s a testament to how well he took care of his body, stuff of that nature to set himself up to play and have the longevity to play that many games in a row,” Henderson said.

Henderson played 159 games last season, and it wasn’t enough for the 24-year-old.

“I’d love to play 162. I feel like I’m set up to do that,” Henderson said. “I didn’t get the start to the year that would allow me to.”

Interim manager Tony Mansolino finds it hard to believe what Ripken did.

“It’s really incredible what Cal did, and the history of that. We have a hard time now playing guys 14 games in a row,” Mansolino said.

“What Cal did was historic. It’s remarkable. It’s worthy of a 30^th celebration and so much more. As a kid growing up, that was the gold standard, Cal Ripken and the guy that played every day, and it should be for this generation of players.”

Teammates of Ripken always admired how he prepared for playing day after day.

“Nowadays, guys will take batting practice, sometimes in the cage. They don’t take infield anymore,” San Francisco Giants manager Bob Melvin said.

Melvin played with Ripken for three years and learned much from him and his father, Cal Sr., who was in his second iteration as a coach for the team when Melvin played there from 1989-1991.

“He took batting and infield every single game, not only played the game, but took batting practice and infield every single game,” Melvin said.

“That’s what stood out to me, not only did he have the workload as far as games at a premier position where he moved around a lot. He also did a lot of pregame stuff, and he was durable as anybody ever was.”

Orioles broadcaster Ben McDonald pitched for the team from 1989-1995 with Ripken and found him invaluable as a teammate.

“It was awesome. It was different,” McDonald said. “In that one year, ’92, he called every pitch I threw, so he was more than just a teammate. He was a pitching coach. He was a security blanket for a lot of us. I used to mess with him about taking a day off. ‘You can take a day off when you want to. That’s your business, but don’t you take it when I’m on the mound,’” McDonald joked.

“Junior was a quiet leader in a lot of ways. Of course, led by example, what he did … When it was time to speak up in a team meeting, he was the first one to stand up and speak up, but he led by example. He was a great guy and a wonderful teammate.

“For whatever reason, early in my career, he took a liking to me, and I’m so thankful for that and helped my maturing process.”

Ripken has done the same with Henderson, whose desire to play 162 is admirable.

“I’m setting myself up to,” Henderson said. “It’s just a matter of staying healthy at the beginning of the year that would allow yourself to get that first game.”

Ripken has shown the 6-foot-3 Henderson ways to improve at shortstop. Ripken paved the way for bigger players at the shortstop position.

“One of the big things on the defensive side is communication,” Henderson said. “Shortstop, you’re captain of the infield. Making sure everybody’s on the same page, and I feel like that takes a little bit of the pressure when you’re in a high-pressure situation off from everybody. Making sure you’re on the same page with them and making sure you know also what to do when the ball’s hit to you.”

Thirty years later, McDonald thinks back on that special day.

“I try to reflect back on 2131 in a lot of ways. You knew it was special at the time, but now looking back on it, you realize how special,” he said.

“We didn’t talk about it. We knew going into the ’95 season what was going to happen if he stayed healthy, but nobody talked about it because baseball’s a very superstitious game.

“We never mentioned it, almost like it was a superstitious thing. We didn’t want to jinx him. It was never, ever talked about even when Junior wasn’t around, we didn’t talk about it because I think everybody felt like it.”

Henderson’s build is similar to the 6-4 Ripken, and they identify with each other.

“He said he knew I could be a shortstop like he was because he was a big guy. I’m sure he had the same questions when he was coming up, Was he going to be able to play shortstop? I know he really loves me playing that position because he was in that same position.”

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