A tough season so far for Chicago Cubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks just got a new twist when the team decided to demote the World Series champion to the bullpen. The last straw it seems with regard to Hendricks was his brutal start in a 9-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates last Friday when he gave up a total of seven earned runs on 11 hits (including a home run) in just 4.2 innings of work on the mound.
“Just bizarre. So many soft hits, falling in front,” Hendricks told reporters following that game, per the Associated Press (h/t ESPN). “So just got to stick with the process, stick with down in the zone, stick with executing, and hopefully that's got to switch.”
Days later, Hendricks was removed by the Cubs from their starting rotation and sent to the bullpen. The door may still be open for Hendricks to return to the rotation, but that is going to depend a lot on how he performs in the innings he'd get as a reliever.
Cubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks react to bullpen demotion
For what it's worth, Hendricks seemed open-minded about the move. After all, he doesn't have much leverage, considering how bad his season is going on the mound.
“We all know what’s been going on,” Hendricks said about the Cubs' decision to send him to the bullpen (h/t Patrick Mooney of The Athletic)”.
“It’s just trying to give the team the best chance to win. I’m honestly excited for the opportunity and the challenge. It’s a big opportunity to try and turn things around.”
With Hendricks off the rotation, the Cubs rotation currently has four regulars, led by Shota Imanaga, Justin Steele, Jameson Taillon, and Javier Assad. They will have to find a fifth starter soon but for now, the plan is for them to have a bullpen day for Thursday's game against the Atlanta Braves (the second of a three-game series) at Wrigley Field.
So far in the 2024 MLB regular season, Hendricks has gone winless in seven starts against four losses and owns a dizzyingly high 10.57 ERA to go along with a 1.989 WHIP. Hitters have been putting balls in play and launching home runs at a high rate against Hendricks this season, as underscored by his .385 BABIP and 6.6 percent home run rate.
Hendricks has struggled with consistency over the last few years. Since the 2020 MLB season when he had a 6-5 record and a 2.88 ERA, Hendricks has gone 24-25 with a 4.86 ERA, a 4.68 FIP, and 88 ERA+. Excluding his poor 2024 numbers, Hendricks' stats after the 2020 season feature a 4.43 ERA and 4.51 FIP to go with a 97 ERA+.
It remains to be seen how much better could the Cubs' bullpen get with the Hendricks' addition. Chicago entered Wednesday just 19th in the big leagues overall with a bullpen ERA of 4.06.
Hendricks' atrocious season coincides with his contract year with the Cubs. He is playing on a one-year, $16.5 million deal that was picked up by the Cubs back in 2023. It is difficult to make a case for why Chicago should want Hendricks for at least one more season, given his horrible numbers in 2024 thus far. There is, of course, a sentimental factor with the 34-year-old Hendricks, as he led the big leagues in 2016 in ERA (2.13) — the same year the Cubs ended the curse with a World Series win.
