Former White Sox Reliever Liam Hendriks To Make Long-Awaited Return
It's been a long road back to an MLB mound for former White Sox pitcher Liam Hendriks, but that day is coming very soon.
The Red Sox announced Saturday they activated Hendriks from the 15-day injured list and optioned pitcher Hunter Dobbins to Triple-A Worcester following Friday's game. Saturday's matchup is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. ET at Fenway Park in Boston.
Hendriks last pitched in an MLB game on June 9, 2023 for the White Sox. It was just his fifth inning of the season after returning from treatment for Stage 4 non-Hodgkin lymphoma. But that day, Hendriks suffered an elbow injury that required season-ending Tommy John surgery.
He signed a two-year contract with the Red Sox going into the 2024 season, but he had elbow inflammation during spring training. Hendriks was limited to five innings in the minor leagues during the 2024 season, and he has pitched three minor-league innings this season prior to joining the Red Sox.
Hendriks, 36, is a three-time All-Star, doing so in 2019 with the Oakland Athletics and 2021 and 2022 with the White Sox. He also won the Mariano Rivera AL reliever of the year award in 2020 and 2021, and he was named 2023 AL comeback player of the year after returning from cancer.
Across 133.2 innings in three seasons with the White Sox, Hendriks had a 2.76 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP with 76 saves, 201 strikeouts and 24 walks.
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Jack Ankony is the beat writer for “Chicago White Sox on SI.” He has been with the Sports Illustrated network since 2022. He graduated from Indiana University's Media School with a degree in journalism in 2022. Follow Jack on Twitter @ankony_jack