Chicago White Sox reliever Liam Hendriks recorded his first win of the 2023 season Sunday, which is also recognized as National Cancer Survivors Day. Here’s what you need to know:
Liam Hendriks was activated off the IL on May 29th, five months after his first treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Today, he earned his first win since beating cancer on “National Cancer Survivors Day.” 💙❤️ pic.twitter.com/7cXrz2pUim
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) June 4, 2023
The Athletic’s instant analysis:
A special win for Hendriks
Hendriks got a text from his wife Kristi earlier in the day telling him Sunday was National Cancer Survivors Day, but it wasn’t actually at the front of his mind. Tim Anderson gave him the ball from his strikeout that ended the top of the ninth, but Hendriks half-joked that he thinks yelling at Anders2on to save the ball from his first strikeout of the season on Saturday, just spooked his teammate and friend into saving a ball from all of his outings until further notice.
“It just turned out to be a win as well,” said Hendriks. “I wasn’t planning on keeping it. It turned out pretty well.”
Hendriks’ first takeaway was that his third outing since returning from lymphoma, and his first time pitching on back-to-back days this season, was his best….
