Positive Update Regarding Liam Hendriks’ Health

It’s been a difficult offseason for Liam Hendriks. Today, however, the White Sox gave a positive update regarding the All-Star closer’s health status. Hendriks announced early in January that he had been diagnosed with and been receiving treatment for non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Prior to tomorrow’s opening day against the Astros, White Sox GM Rick Hahn had some good news about his closer.

Hahn met with the media and informed them that Liam Hendriks would not be placed on the 60-Day Injured List to start the season. That means the White Sox could reasonably hope to see him at some point before the end of May.

All baseball factors aside, this is incredible news to hear for Hendriks. He has been a fantastic teammate on the South Side, but also a charitable figure in the Chicago community.

Lance Lynn Spoke About Liam Hendriks Last Week

While there were no official updates on whether or not Hendriks was cancer free, the announcement from Rick Hahn clearly indicates that things are progressing positively. This roster decision from the White Sox comes just over a week after Sox starter Lance Lynn spoke about Hendriks on A.J. Pierzynski’s ‘Foul Territory‘ podcast.

Lynn said, “We hope to get him back by June if everything is perfect. In his mind, he’ll be back in May. I was like, ‘we’ll see, we’ll see’…he goes ‘Oh, I’ll be ready as soon as they give me the go.’

Hendriks has been seen throwing several times throughout White Sox Spring Training. That will likely ramp up as the season gets underway.

So while Hendriks might not be totally 100% out of the woods yet, this is some pretty amazing news and all signs point toward a full recovery. Hopefully one day soon I’ll be able to write the post titled “Liam Hendriks Is Cancer Free” but for now, this news will do just fine.