Liam Hendriks returned to baseball in 2023 from a cancer diagnosis just to be sidelined five games into his return because of Tommy John surgery.
On Saturday, the Boston Red Sox activated Hendriks from the injured list, and he’s joined the big league roster. His next appearance will be his first since June 9, 2023.
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Hendriks, 36, is a three-time All-Star who made All-Star teams as the closer for the Chicago White Sox in 2021 and 2022. In January 2023, Hendriks announced he had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma and was undergoing treatment ahead of the MLB season.
Liam Hendriks is slated for his first MLB appearance since 2023. (Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
(Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox via Getty Images)
He underwent his last chemotherapy treatment that April and announced his cancer was in remission. Less than five months after he announced his diagnosis, Hendriks, remarkably, returned to MLB in a May 29 relief appearance for the White Sox. He was met with a rousing ovation from the home crowd in Chicago.
But his return to baseball was brief. Hendriks struggled in five appearances through June 9 as the velocity on his fastball dropped by 2.2 mph from 2022. He was placed on the injured list with elbow inflammation on June 12. In August 2023, the White Sox announced Hendriks had undergone Tommy John surgery.
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Hendriks has not played in the major leagues since.
He signed a two-year, $10 million contact with the Red Sox in 2024 with a stated desire to return to the field by last season’s trade deadline. But he did not play in 2024. Now he’s been cleared and will wear his former White Sox No. 31 in Boston.
“It’s been a long and arduous journey to get here, but now I’m here,” Hendriks said, per MLB.com “I can perform and go out there and do what these guys pay me to do.”
Hendriks pitched for the Red Sox in spring training and has made three rehab appearances since between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester.
In 13 MLB seasons spent primarily in relief, Hendriks has a 3.82 ERA and 1.195 WHIP with 727 strikeouts and 159 walks in 650 innings pitched. He’ll now look to contribute to an 11-10 Red Sox team seeking its first playoff appearance since 2021.
