Free agent right-hander Kyle Hendricks and the Angels are reportedly in agreement on a one-year deal that will pay him $2.5MM. The Angels have a full 40-man roster and will need to make a corresponding move whenever this deal with the Wasserman client becomes official.
Hendricks, 35 in December, will be suiting up for a team other than the Cubs for the first time if the deal gets finalized. Though he was drafted by the Rangers in 2011, he was traded to the Cubs prior to his major league debut, as part of the July 2012 trade that sent Ryan Dempster to Texas.
He was able to get to the big leagues by 2014 and quickly established himself as a solid rotation piece. He didn’t have overpowering stuff but showed a knack for limiting damage, earning the nickname “The Professor”. He made 13 starts and logged 81 1/3 innings in his debut, allowing just 2.46 earned runs per nine innings despite a low strikeout rate of 14.6%.
From there, he found a few more punchouts but his success was generally built around weak contact. From 2014 to 2020, he tossed over a thousand innings for the Cubs with a 3.12 ERA, 20.8% strikeout rate, 5.3% walk rate and 47.5% ground ball rate. He was a pillar of the Cubs in that time, helping them become a perennial contender and break their World Series curse in 2016.
The last few years have been a bit more rocky, however. In 2021, his strikeout rate dipped to 16.7% and his ERA climbed to 4.77. In 2022, a capsular tear in his right shoulder limited him to 16 starts with a 4.80 ERA. He didn’t require surgery but was out of action until May of 2023.
He managed something of a rebound when he got back on the hill. Last year, he posted a 3.74 ERA over 24 starts after recovering from that shoulder injury. His 16.1% strikeout rate was still low but he only walked 4.7% of batters faced and prevented batters from producing big exit velocity.
The Cubs were encouraged enough to trigger a $16.5MM club option to bring him back for 2024, part of the extension the two sides agreed to ahead of the 2019 season. But that’s a move they likely regret, as Hendricks couldn’t keep his bounceback going in 2024. He struggled out of the gate and got bumped to the bullpen. Though he eventually retook a rotation role, he finished the year with a 5.92 ERA.
There might be a bit of bad luck in there, as Hendricks was only able to strand 64.2% of baserunners this year, well below the 72.1% league average. His 4.98 FIP and 4.83 SIERA on the season suggest he deserved better than his ERA would suggest, but still aren’t outstanding numbers.
Putting those recent ups and downs together, Hendricks has a 4.80 ERA since the start of 2021. His 43.3% ground ball rate in that time is around league average and his 6% walk rate quite strong, but his 16.5% strikeout rate well below par.
Perhaps the Angels see a way to get him back on track or simply want some affordable veteran innings on what may have been a hometown discount. Veteran innings eaters can often secure deals close to eight figures, even without strong overall results. 43-year-old Rich Hill got $8MM from the Pirates going into 2023 on the heels of a season in which he posted a 4.27 ERA. Jon Lester got $5MM from the Nationals for his age-37 after posting a 5.16 ERA. Corey Kluber got $10MM from the Red Sox after putting up a 4.34 ERA in his age-36 season.
Hendricks is younger than those guys but signing for less, very early in the offseason of his very first trip to free agency. Since he grew up in Orange County, perhaps he wanted to be close to home and quickly got a deal done with the Halos, though that’s totally speculative.
Signing Hendricks would fit with the club’s longstanding aversion to spending on the rotation. As shown on MLBTR’s Contract Tracker, the most they’ve spent on a starting pitcher in the past decade was three years and $39MM for Tyler Anderson. Apart from that and a two-year arbitration deal for Shohei Ohtani, they haven’t given any starting pitcher a multi-year deal in that time frame.
That tendency along with struggles to develop pitching internally have led to ongoing starting pitching deficiencies in Anaheim. The club has a 4.54 rotation ERA over the past decade, 24th in baseball for that stretch, mostly ahead of clubs that underwent yearslong rebuilds. 2024 was no exception as the Angels starters had a collective 4.97 ERA this year, which was better than only the Marlins and Rockies. One of their more talented starters is going to be on the shelf for a while, as Patrick Sandoval had UCL surgery in June.
Going into 2025, the rotation mix has plenty of uncertainty. Anderson, José Soriano, Jack Kochanowicz, Reid Detmers, Caden Dana, Sam Aldegheri and Chase Silseth are some of the options, though there are question marks with each. Anderson had a 3.81 ERA but outperformed his peripherals and had a 5.43 ERA the year before. Soriano seemingly had a breakout campaign this year but didn’t pitch much in the 2020-2023 period thanks to two Tommy John surgeries. Detmers has shown promise at times but had a 6.70 ERA in the majors this year and wasn’t much better in Triple-A. Silseth spent most of 2024 battling an elbow injury. Kochanowicz only has 11 MLB starts while Dana and Aldegheri each have just three.
For a club that hopes to compete in 2025, adding to that rotation is a sensible path. There are more exciting options than Hendricks out there but his track record of reliability is quite strong. His modest earning power lined up with the club’s track record when it comes to not spending much on the rotation, so the stars have aligned to have Hendricks be close to home this year. For the Cubs, they no longer have any connection to their curse-breaking team on the roster, as Hendricks was the final holdout from that club.
Bruce Levine of 670 The Score (X link) first relayed that the two sides were nearing a one-year deal. Jon Heyman of The New York Post (X link) pegged the value around $3MM. Joel Sherman of The New York Post (X link) first reported the $2.5MM number.
drprofsps
Rangers fans say thank you for this pick up!!!
dannycore
Mariners and Rangers have unity on this one topic!
Unclemike1525
Thank God somebody signed him right away so Hoyer didn’t have time to reminisce and sign him. Thanks for the memories but glad you found a deal. All good things come to an end.
Acoss1331
UncleMike,
I bet Hoyer had to will himself to not at least talk numbers with Kyle.
Logjammer D"Baggagecling
Tbf Jed already got his ace pitcher. Rob Zastryzny claimed off waivers. The cubs still have 1 player left from the world series team. Zastryzny wasn’t on any of the rosters in the playoffs but he played for the Cubs in 2016 so he got a ring.
Holee Cow!
Best of luck to him
neurogame
10 starts and 65 innings.
As a Ranger fan, what’s your over/under on Jacob DeGrom and the above numbers?
He’ a talented but walking accident.
C4Luke
easiest 12 era season
Champ world champion Texas Rangers
Scary
Acoss1331
If Kyle’s signing with the Angels, then thank you for all the great memories with the Cubs, good luck and hopefully he has a great season for them!
Troy Percival's iPad
I always thought, given recent off seasons, it was better to be signed before Christmas, even Thanksgiving if you could swing it. Curious to see how many follow after Hendricks
gold masters
Soler, Hendricks, so far very good
mlb1225
Next up, Anthony Rizzo and Jason Heyward. Time to get the 2016 band back together!
Champ world champion Texas Rangers
I do like Soler he can hit a Random 40 homers any year.
Logjammer D"Baggagecling
When was Soler traded to Anaheim? I didn’t even see that article on here
neurogame
It happened the day after the WS. The Braves and Angels swapped Soler and Canning.
georgebell 2
On brand for an Angels SP sigining.
Manfred Rob's Earth Band
Good for Kyle. I hope he does great for the Angels!
rememberthecoop
Well, that was quick.
Old York
What? Kyle wasn’t a top 50 FA? Not even a top 68, according to MLBTR.
Atlanta Jack
White Sox should have signed him. Sox payroll must be about half of 2024 payroll. Let’s try to be a little respectful in 2025. How about 65 wins next year.
Atlanta Jack
We missed that one for sure!!m
westcasey
good match. both sides reclamation projects. Hope Hendriks does well and is durable.
neurogame
Except the Angels coaching staff isn’t known for renovating pitchers, unfortunately.
kellin
Angels have a new pitching coach in Barry Enright (wasn’t great in his career), who has convinced Arte to finally invest in improving the training facilities. This hasn’t manifested in any improvements yet (see Detmers), but we’ll see what the long term holds in all this
Blackpink in the area
First Soler and now Hendricks yuck.
davidk1979
Lmao
Rexhudler86
I’m arguing that they need a pitching just feel like they could’ve waited out the market, and gotten someone better. They replaced canning with a equal comp.
kellin
I came here to basically say this. They got rid of Canning to sign… Someone with similar stats to.. Canning? Unless they get one more better pitcher I see zero reason to be hopeful about next year, now.
Omarj
Really? Another back of the rotation guy. Might ad well gone for Lorenzen. Cheap move shows not too serious about pitching. They need front end starters not back end
YankeesBleacherCreature
Par for the course signing for the Angels. Wish Hendricks success in Anaheim!
EHenderson
Trout must be loving Ohtani’s 2 for 19 World Series ‘performance’ to go along with his caught stealing and abysmal performance in the NLDS.
neurogame
He’s a World Series Champion with the first 50-50 season in MLB history. He’s 1 for 1 in championships when appearing in the post season.
Why the hate when the Angels didn’t come close to achieving in six years with him that the Dodgers did with one?
EHenderson
Ohtani’s “50 SB” are a sham because of the rule changes. Ohtani does not have legitimate 50+ SB type of speed, not at all, and most definitely not at anywhere close to a 90% success rate. Look at his SB numbers before the rule changes, if you need any more proof. He never would have stolen more than around 30 bases in a season at around a 75% success rate without the rule changes. I am a fan of stolen bases but the stat has basically been ruined by the rule changes, with individuals like Ohtani benefitting with his sham stats.
FemboySportsFan!
coping hard are we?
@Ehend
EHenderson
Just facts. Ohtani is fast but not even very fast, let alone elite speed. He only averaged 14 SB per year at only a 70% success rate (not even average, below average) prior to this year. The SB statistic has basically been ruined, and nobody is a better example of why it has been ruined than Ohtani with his “59” SB at a “95%” success rate. Laughable for someone at his much less than elite level of speed and for someone with his very mediocre SB numbers and success rate prior to this year.
Oldhalo
It’s still early in the off season but this signing isn’t a reflection of a team out to build a playoff contender. Hopefully he plays well enough to trade at the deadline for some decent prospects.
Rexhudler86
@oldhalo I’m hoping it’s a cheap one year deal, and trade bait. I would’ve preferred lorenzen since he normally fades after the deadline but has a strong first half, and probably around the same price
frankf
Good luck to a franchise icon that we never saw coming.
Ignorant Son-of-a-b
Shoot for the stars Arte !!!! You can do it !!! Aim high Minasian !!! Angels nation is counting on you !!
Psychguy
Gotta lock down those long relievers while they are available.
mike127
Good for him—-I’m going guess he still may have family in the area since he grew up close by.
In pure class Kyle Hendricks, probably a comfort move more than a money grab.
Setzer
Typical Angels move. This guy fits right in with Angels mantra of mediocrity.
halo2afault
Mediocrity? Oh, how I long for mediocrity…
johnnyangel
His FIP was lower than Canning’s, so….is this an improvement??
Rexhudler86
@johnnyangel. If it’s a one deal for 5 million, and we got soler fine. I was hoping to wait out the market, because I have a feeling it’s going be like last year again.
Scott Kliesen
Dear Arte,
This ain’t the answer!
Angels fans
halo2afault
Dear Fans,
I don’t give a f$&k about you.
Arte
holecamels35
When a player of this magnitude becomes a free agent, you have to act quickly!
James Midway
Kinda what I expected
Bauer? But I Hardly Know Her!
2.5MM to soak up innings. I’m fine with that.
Saint Nick
Angels love them some mid pitchers
Jump 84
Thanks to the Professor forever a cub and WS.champ,ice in his vains. Don’t underestimate Hendricks he knows how to pitch.
Bluesman99026
Good for you. When Kyle was at his peak, he was very good. Lowest league ERA one year. Lately, many folks were sitting back waiting on a not very fast fastball. Thank you brother for the memories, best to you
Blackpink in the area
Well for 2.5 million that’s not bad. Worth the risk.
Jesse Chavez enthusiast
I hope Kyle does well, I always root for the outliers in MLB. Kyle was the guy who succeeded despite throwing 86mph fastballs, Darren O’Day turning into a fantastic reliever and regularly posting 10+ k per 9. Mookie, the short king who can play almost any position with 30 hr pop. Etc
whyhayzee
Kochanowicz, Aldegheri and Silseth are not baseball names. Maybe a law firm or a CPA firm, but not baseball names.
halo2afault
Funeral home, maybe…??
Omarj
$2.5M for starting pitching?! Perry, this is what you meant by “aggressive”. Queue Angels memes and audience laughter.
OfficerCarlWinslow
The only thing the Angels franchise does better than signing free agents to atrocious contracts is bringing in past their prime pitchers prior to their inevitable retirement.
– Carl Winslow
HalosHeavenJJ
This doesn’t love the needle. But when the needle is so far in the negative, nothing will.