Ivy League Cubs

By: Jacob Zanolla

Kyle Hendricks is scheduled to start on Sunday, but is that the best move for Craig Counsell and the Chicago Cubs if they plan on winning a division. 

The question Cubs fans are asking is “What do we do with Kyle Hendricks?” Let’s discuss what will happen, and what would happen if I was running the team. 

So far this season, Hendricks has appeared in four games, all of them as a starter. His opponents have been the Rangers, Dodgers, Padres, and Diamondbacks. Some people would argue that he has faced top offenses, which is factually true. However, I don’t like that excuse because you will have to face good teams to win a division, or even the pennant. Steele and Taillon bring out (although Taillon returns Friday) have been a burden on this team, so I understand keeping Hendricks in the rotation while they were gone. Now that Taillon is back, Ben Brown needs to stay in the rotation over Kyle Hendricks. Let’s look at their stats, and how different they have been. 

Kyle Hendricks has been awful, there’s no way around it. He does usually start the season off slow, but a 12.71 ERA and 2.24 WHIP is one of the worst stat lines in baseball. His walk rate is higher then ever, averaging 3.71 walks per nine innings. Hitters have an expected average of .329 when facing him, which is bottom 5% of the league. Looking at his Baseball Savant page, almost everything is bottom of the league, aside from the average exit velocity. There have been a few innings where he was unlucky, giving up hits off of weak contact. Defensively, the Cubs have been very up and down so far. They started off very poor, but have seemed to pick it up as of late. His FIP is 8.67, showing that the fielding isn’t playing much of a role in his poor performance. Aside from the stats, how does he look from the viewers eye? He’s always been a weird pitcher to watch due to his low pitch speeds, which make the viewer think that he’s easy to hit. However, he hasn’t been in the past. His control is normally on point, and he’s able to dot the zone and excel against major league hitters. The decline was inevitable, and somewhat apparently the last few seasons. Sadly, I’m afraid it’s finally here. 

Ben Brown was acquired in 2022 for David Robertson, who helped the Phillies reach the World Series that year. Brown had a fantastic spring training, as I mentioned in an earlier article on North Side Baseball regarding his promotion. He helped in relief against the Rangers, and didn’t do well at all. I’m going to ignore that outing for now, and focus on the three games he has started. So far in 3 games, he’s appeared in 14 2/3 innings, striking out 14 batters. He has only walked three hitters, and struck out four. The best part of this all is that Brown has only allowed seven hits, and two earned runs. This is exactly what you want from a starter, and he has been outstanding in this role. His knuckle curve is nasty, with a 43.9% whiff rate.

Brown will be in this rotation for good soon, but I see no reason to keep him there now. He has the stuff, and has done well against top tier teams. So far he’s started against the Rockies (not top tier to be fair), Padres, and Diamondbacks. Brown is staying with the team, most likely being a bullpen option when innings are needed.

I miss the old Kyle Hendricks, and I get that people don’t want to let him go. However, this isn’t 2016 anymore, and we don’t have a prime Kyle Hendricks on our team. It’s time to move on, as much as it hurts. Whether this means a phantom IL stint or moving him to the bullpen, something needs to be done. The games in April count the same as those in September, so we can’t give away games early in the season. Hendricks is scheduled to pitch on Sunday at Wrigley against the Marlins, and I have a feeling this is a do-or-die game for his Cubs career.