Red Sox 3-Time All-Star Takes Critical Step Toward Long-Awaited Injury Return

The Boston Red Sox bullpen could soon be whole for the first time all season.

Coming into 2025, the bullpen was one of Boston's biggest question marks. After an implosion in the second half contributed to the team's fall out of the playoff race, the Red Sox watched two of their big guns, Kenley Jansen and Chris Martin, depart in free agency.

Rather than spending big on a closer over the winter, the Red Sox held an open competition for the ninth-inning role, and at the start of the spring, many believed three-time All-Star Liam Hendriks was the favorite. Hendriks hadn't pitched in the majors since 2023 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Unfortunately, Hendriks got rocked in his spring training outings and lost the job comfortably to newcomer Aroldis Chapman. Worse, he wound up with elbow inflammation that placed him on the 15-day injured list just as the season began. Finally, some good news is coming his way.

According to MassLive's Chris Cotillo, Hendriks will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Thursday. He won't likely return at the first possible opportunity (he was placed on the 15-day IL on Mar. 27), but he is at least trending in the right direction.

The 36-year-old Hendriks became a national fan-favorite from 2019 to 2022 as he won two American League Reliever of the Year Awards and showcased his fiery competitive persona on the mound, wearing his emotions on his sleeve.

He's had a rough go of things since 2022, fighting off a Non-Hodgkin lymphoma diagnosis that winter, returning to make four appearances for the Chicago White Sox in 2023 before suffering the torn UCL that has kept him out of action since.

Last season, Hendriks made six rehab appearances, allowing one earned run in five innings between Double-A and Triple-A. He gave up seven earned runs on 14 hits during 7 1/3 innings of spring training action.

Soon, Hendriks will get his long-awaited chance to make an impact on the Red Sox, more than halfway through his two-year contract. But can he be a difference-maker for a group that has had a decent, but not excellent start to the season?