In the 2008 MLB Draft, Kyle Hendricks was selected by the Los Angeles Angels in the 39th round out of high school, but did not sign with the organization. Three years later, he was selected in the eighth round by the Texas Rangersan organization he would spend a year with before being traded to the franchise he would call home for 11 seasons, the Chicago Cubs.

Hendricks has been a reliable starter for the Cubs since his debut for the club on July 10, 2014, with a 3.68 ERA in 1,580 1/3 innings with 1,259 strikeouts and a 113 ERA+ in 276 games. (270 starts) from 2014 to 2024. The best year of his career came in 2016, when the veteran pitched to an MLB-best 2.13 ERA in 190 innings with 170 strikeouts and an ERA of 196+, also the best in the MLB, in 31 games (30 starts), although he would only finish third in the National League Cy Young voting.

Hendricks entered free agency for the first time in his career this offseason, and seven days later the first team to sign him, the Angels, would sign the veteran to a one-year contract worth $2.5 million dollars.

A recent report from ESPN’s Buster Olney indicates that the signing of Hendricks, along with the follow-up signing of wide receiver Travis d’Arnaud, was part of a plan to surround their young team with veteran leaders.

Both Hendricks and d’Arnaud are highly respected veterans throughout the league and can help the team’s young core develop into formidable major league players.

Hendricks, who turns 35 on Dec. 7, is coming off the worst season of his career thus far. Chicago toyed with the idea of ​​moving the veteran out of the bullpen for a while, before eventually putting him back in the rotation. Hendricks would finish the year with a 5.92 ERA in 130 2/3 innings with 87 strikeouts and a 67 ERA+ in 29 games (24 starts).

Interestingly enough, the veteran performed much better in the relief role. Coming out of the bullpen, Hendricks’ ERA was 3.14 in 14 1/3 innings, while he had a 6.27 ERA in 116 1/3 innings initially.

While Hendricks was much better as a reliever in 2024, Los Angeles will most likely utilize his talents as a starter who can eat up innings. As it stands, the club doesn’t have many viable options to get through a 162-game season, and Hendricks has proven to be a reliable option who can suit up every five days.