Has Henderson’s defense cost the Orioles this year? | MAILBAG

Question: There probably isn’t a stat for this, but I’m wondering how many games Gunnar Henderson’s errors have cost the team. It seems like he always has them at the most costly time. If you take away his one big hitting game per month or so, his batting stats would really be bad. From: Eric from Denver

Answer: Eric, there is a stat that’s relevant, and that’s Defensive WAR, which is short for Wins Above Replacement. Entering Monday’s game, Henderson had a .5 Defensive War. While you might think Henderson’s defensive play has cost the Orioles greatly this year, the stat indicates that he’s a net positive for his position.

In 2023, when Henderson had his best season, his Defensive WAR was 1.9, so while his defense has regressed, it’s still considered better than average.

Question: The Orioles won 101 games in 2023. Then they moved the left-field fence in to help Ryan Mountcastle and recruit Tyler O’Neill. Mountcastle has been a non-factor since, O’Neill has been a total disaster, and after an impressive first half in 2024, the Orioles have played under .500 baseball ever since. Any possibility there’s a connection? From: Doc_Shared 

Answer: Daniel, I think the problem is more that the Orioles have loaded up on left-handed hitters. Gunnar Henderson, Colton Cowser, Jackson Holliday, Samuel Basallo and Heston Kjerstad while not being able to find as many suitable right-handed hitters.

It seems that the left-handed hitters are trying for home runs while the best right-handed hitters, Blaze Alexander and Pete Alonso, hit to all fields. Perhaps better right-handed hitters would make a difference.

Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. If you’d like to submit a question, send it to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com. Questions may be edited for clarity, length and style.