Cubs Demote Kyle Hendricks to Bullpen After Brutal Start to Season

Hendricks has a 10.57 ERA in seven starts this season.

May 12, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks (28) delivers a pitch against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the first inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports / Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Cubs have officially demoted right-handed pitcher Kyle Hendricks.

After a terrible start to the 2024 MLB season, Hendricks has been removed from the starting rotation and placed in the bullpen. It's not a shocking decision and probably came later than it should have.

On Tuesday, Cubs manager Craig Counsell announced the decision. Hendricks has been a fixture of Chicago's rotation since 2014, so this will be a massive change for the 34-year-old, but it is warranted given what he has looked like this season. On Friday, Hendricks went 4 1/3 innings and allowed eight runs (seven earned) and 11 hits in a 9–3 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. That was apparently the last straw.

In seven starts in 2024, Hendricks is 0–4 with a 10.57 ERA and a 1.99 WHIP. In 30 2/3 innings, he has allowed 50 hits, 36 earned runs, 10 home runs, and 11 walks against 25 strikeouts.

Hendricks's StatCast page looks like a crime scene. His xETA (6.22) is in the fourth percentile, his xBA (.316) is in the second and his fastball velocity (87.8) is in the first. Meanwhile, his whiff rate (17.6) is in the seventh percentile. His WAR so far this season is -1.4, which ranks dead last among Major League Baseball's 596 players.

Hendricks was a key rotation piece during the Cubs' run to a World Series title in 2016. That season he went 16-8 with a 2.13 ERA, a 0.98 WHIP and posted 5.0 WAR. That was a long time ago. He hasn't produced a WAR over 2.0 since 2019 and his ERA top 4.70 in 2021 and 2022 before rebounding to 3.74 in 2023.

Hendricks is in the final season of a four-year, $55.5 million contract. He's making $16.5 million in 2024, so Chicago will attempt to get all it can out of him before considering releasing the veteran.