BOSTON — The Red Sox haven’t been able to utilize relief pitcher Liam Hendriks since signing the right-hander to a two-year deal in the offseason.
Hendriks, who’s in the process of recovering from Tommy John surgery, threw 20 pitches (all fastballs) on Friday, two days after a 15-pitch bullpen session. The 35-year-old remains determined to pitch before the 2024 season concludes, and all signs pointed toward Hendriks reaching that goal.
“He played catch a few days ago, felt good,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said before Sunday’s series finale against the Padres at Fenway Park. “He’s been on point and he’s a very strong individual. Obviously pushing the medical staff but we gotta be smart about it, and he knows it. I do believe he’s gonna be part of this at some point in the season.”
Between the 2019 and 2023 seasons, Hendriks notched three American League All-Star nods with a 2.32 ERA, pitching for the Athletics and White Sox. He logged a league-leading — and career-best — 38 saves in 2021, followed by 37 saves recorded in 2022 before undergoing treatment for Stage 4 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and making just five appearances in 2023.
The road to recovery has been anything but normal for Hendriks amid what’s been a challenging campaign for the Red Sox as a whole, but the 13-year veteran isn’t backing down from fighting for a return.
“Obviously there’s a program, right? And a protocol,” Cora added. “He says, ‘This is for guys that throw 90 (mph). I throw 100. Obviously, we don’t wanna cut corners in rehab but at the same time, the way they always talk about it, if he’s progressing — and not only him — we do feel like he’s taking all the right steps and it’s been good. Sometimes they push him a little bit more and I do believe that that’s gonna be the case here.”
Boston’s pitching staff has held down the fort despite its early-season injury struggles, ranking eighth with a 3.67 ERA among all MLB teams. Having Hendriks added to the mix would certainly provide a helping hand, especially as the third-place Red Sox hunt a sneaky postseason push in the AL East before the end of the regular season.
