The Baltimore Orioles have promoted top infield prospect Gunnar Henderson to the majors as they continue their push for a postseason spot.
The Orioles selected Henderson’s contract Wednesday from Triple-A Norfolk amid a series of moves before their game against the Cleveland Guardians. Baltimore also signed Jesus Aguilar to a minor league deal and added the veteran first baseman to the taxi squad.
Henderson, 21, will be eligible to play in the postseason. He will become the youngest Orioles player to make his major league debut since Manny Machado in 2012.
A second-round draft selection in 2019, Henderson recently was ranked as baseball’s No. 2 overall prospect by ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel. He batted .297 in 112 games this season between Norfolk and Double-A Bowie with 19 home runs, 76 RBIs and 22 stolen bases.
The 6-foot-2 Henderson has played both third base and shortstop in the minors over the past two seasons but figures to play more often at third base for the Orioles, who have defensive standout Jorge Mateo at shortstop.
Aguilar, 32, was designated for assignment by the Marlins last week after playing in 113 games for Miami this season. The former All-Star was batting .236 with 15 homers and 49 RBIs.
The Orioles also announced that they had optioned infielder Tyler Nevin to Norfolk and designated right-hander Denyi Reyes for assignment.
The Orioles (67-61), seeking their first postseason appearance since 2016, enter play Wednesday three games behind the Toronto Blue Jays (70-58) for the last wild-card spot in the American League. A year after losing 110 games, the Orioles have been ahead of schedule in their rebuild, thanks in part to another top prospect, catcher Adley Rutschman.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.