It had been 681 days since the last time Liam Hendriks pitched in an MLB game, but the right-handed reliever ended the drought and made his long-awaited Boston Red Sox debut Sunday afternoon against the Chicago White Sox.
Hendriks was called upon to pitch out of the bullpen in the eighth inning of Boston’s 8-4 loss to Chicago — and it wasn’t pretty. The 36-year-old knew it himself and owned it, all while acknowledging the most important component of his appearance: The fact that Hendriks finally got the monkey off his back and debuted in a Red Sox uniform, nearly two years after signing with the club as a free agent.
“There was some good things to take from it. There was some not-so-good things to take from it,” Hendriks told reporters, per NESN. “Now I can say I’ve gone out there. Now I can say I’ve pitched for the Boston Red Sox, even though it was yellow, and now we go. Now there’s no sentimental value or anything like that.”
The White Sox tagged Hendriks for two earned runs off three hits. Chicago’s Andrew Vaughn rained all over Hendriks’ return party by crushing a two-run home run off the two-time All-Star, which increased the White Sox’s lead to three runs. Hendriks rolled with the punches and recorded the final two outs with no issues, striking out Lenyn Sosa while catcher Blake Sabol picked off Joshua Palacios to end the inning.
Hendricks, to no surprise, was filled with emotions leading to the moment he’s long awaited.
Story continues below advertisement
“(I was) definitely antsy,” Hendriks admitted. “Antsy both yesterday and today. Before getting the call, and then once the call came, it was just trying to get ready and trying to get locked in and do all that sort of stuff.”
Now with the first appearance out of his hair, Hendriks is redirecting his focus to the bigger picture as a member of Boston’s bullpen.
“I gotta go out there. I gotta perform. I gotta do my job and now I gotta show these guys that they can feel confident going to me in any situation,” Hendriks said.
When healthy, Hendriks has proven himself as one of the most effective relief pitchers in baseball. He was named the American League Reliever of the Year twice and pitched to a 2.81 ERA during his last full season — in 2022 — with the White Sox. Hendriks spent all of last season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, targeting an earlier-than-expected return date that fell short.
Story continues below advertisement
“He’s out there and that’s great,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters, per NESN. “We’ll go from there. We needed to pitch him today, kind of. He hasn’t pitched (in a while), so it’s good to get his feet wet. Obviously, he doesn’t like the outing, but the fact that he fought and he put himself in this position, you gotta tip your hat, too.”
Hendricks demonstrated his competitive fire during spring training when he made it known that he’d compete for the closer’s role. If he can translate that same firepower and demeanor for the rest of the season, while healthy, the Red Sox could have another reliable arm to turn to in the later innings down the line.
