Liam Hendriks was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer in December 2022 while playing for the Chicago White Sox. But the right-hander didn’t let non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma decide the end of his baseball career and fought his way back to the mound in 2023. That comeback became one of the defining parts of his career.
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Then, after one season with the Boston Red Sox and another minor league stint with the Chicago Cubs in 2026, the 37-year-old is finally hanging up his cleats.
“Liam Hendriks has announced his retirement,” MLB confirmed the news on X. “Congratulations on a remarkable career, Liam.”
Hendriks signed with the Minnesota Twins as an undrafted free agent from Australia in February 2007. He made his MLB debut in 2011 as a starting pitcher. After spending three years with the Twins, he jumped around between the Toronto Blue Jays and Kansas City Royals before settling in with the Athletics in 2016.
While his performance improved significantly, Hendriks was mostly serving as a relief pitcher.
During his time in Toronto, he experienced immense success as a high-leverage reliever with a 2.92 ERA in 58 appearances in 2015. After that, he was traded to the Athletics.
After 5 seasons with the A’s, the longest in his career, he signed a 3-year, $54 million deal with the White Sox. But it was with the A’s that he became the best version of himself.
He became a closer in 2019, and recorded a 1.80 ERA and 124 strikeouts in 85 innings. Before moving to the White Sox in 2021, the reliever led the American League in saves and finished eighth in AL Cy Young Award voting, the highest finish of his career.
Liam had a moderate ERA in the first two years with the White Sox before cancer disrupted his rhythm. Even in 2022, he made his 3rd and final All-Star appearance for the White Sox before announcing in 2023 that he had been undergoing chemotherapy to treat Stage 4 non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Hendriks made a comeback in May 2023 for 5 games, but chemotherapy was having a physical toll.
His fastball averaged 97.6 in 2022, which dropped to 95.4 in the following year. The impact on his mechanics was apparent, as it affected his stride length and pitch ferocity. Things got even worse from there.
The pitcher suffered an elbow inflammation and had to hit the IL. In August 2023, he underwent Tommy John surgery and missed the remainder of the season and the entire 2024 season.
The Red Sox signed a 2-year deal with him ahead of 2024, and he returned to the mound in 2025. Hendriks made 14 appearances with Boston before signing a minor league deal with the Chicago Cubs in 2026.
He finally announced his retirement on Tuesday after finishing his career with 490 appearances, 663 2/3 innings pitched, and 116 saves.
“The comeback from cancer was more impressive than the stats tbh,” a fan commented on MLB’s post.
Surviving Stage 4 cancer is impressive enough on its own. But returning to a baseball career, that too in the major leagues, earns him the respect of the entire community. And his career is as decorated as any.
Liam Hendriks earned 3 MLB All-Star selections and 2 Mariano Rivera AL Reliever of the Year awards. He also won the AL Comeback Player of the Year and the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance (ESPYS) in 2023. The veteran has a 3.88 career ERA with 739 strikeouts and 40 holds over 490 appearances.
Becoming an established closer and coming back to the mound after cancer and a TJ are the two most defining parts of his career. And the righty made a long post to offer his gratitude to everyone who made his journey worthwhile.
Hendriks’ retirement message brings out his humorous side
He started his Instagram post saying, “To the cities that adopted me, the fans that cheered for me, my family, and every umpire who definitely missed a strike call on the corner.”
“My arm has told me in no uncertain terms that it has exactly zero fastballs left in it, and my elbow has made it clear that throwing anything harder than a light breeze now requires a three-day recovery window.”
Hendriks is known for his sharp wit and unfiltered hot mic moments. His banter with the catcher during the 2023 All-Star Game, where he frequently hurled expletives and expressed frustration after bad pitches, not only went viral, but is still trending.
That witty and hilarious side is apparent in his retirement post.
“To the hitters who let me strike them out: Thank you for the memories (and the stats). To the hitters who launched my pitches into orbit: Thank you for helping me practice my “stare blankly at the sky while turning around on the mound” face.”
While his blank stare will always stay fresh with us, his raw emotions won’t make it far either.
Five years ago, in a game against the Detroit Tigers, Liam was pitching during heavy rain. In the ninth inning, he threw off the ball to the side in frustration, yelled at the umpire, and got the game delayed. Even the White Sox dugout wasn’t happy with how things unraveled.
But that’s all in the past now.
Hendriks thanked his agent for doing miracles for him. He also showed gratitude for his wife Kristi, with whom he probably has hundreds of images on social media. He thanked them for believing in him throughout the years. The former Chicago White Sox closer also hinted at his next chapter in life:
“My immediate retirement plans include testing whether my elbow can survive holding onto the leash when my dog sees a rabbit, and choosing a new hobby where being single-handedly responsible for losing a game doesn’t lead to ESPN SportsCenter breaking down my psychological collapse in slow motion for the next 24 hours.”
The baseball community will remember Liam Hendriks for the impressive journey and incredible comeback. But they will miss his perseverance and humorous character the most. His “STRUCKOUT CANCER.” t-shirt will always remain our favorite.