Even after another rough outing, Hendricks not willing to throw in towel
This game seemed to be defined by two legendary pitchers, one on his way up and one on his way out.
Pittsburgh rookie Paul Skenes was beyond dominant in his second pro start. He struck out 11 in 6 innings and the Cubs never came close to getting a hit against him. They got some runs late against the bullpen, but the Pirates hung on for a 9-3 victory at Wrigley Field on Friday.
Skenes unleashed a lethal mix of a 100 mph fastball with a sharp breaking splitter/sinker. He struck out the first seven Cubs batters and allowed just one walk overall.
On the other side, Kyle Hendricks was tagged with 7 earned runs in 4⅔ innings, raising his season ERA to 10.57. After the game, though, he insisted the end is not near, despite the poor results.
“To be honest, I thought I made two bad pitches, which is crazy to look at that start and say that,” Hendricks said. “But I thought the (Jared Triolo) homer and then the (Nick) Gonzalez double were two bad changeups. Other than that, I thought I was even better down in the zone, thought I executed maybe better than my last start.”
There was evidence to support Hendricks' assessment. He was very good during the first three innings, coaxing a high number of weak groundballs. Triolo jumped on one pitch, though, putting Pittsburgh ahead 2-0 with a 2-run homer.
In the fourth and fifth innings, however, the Pirates strung hits together, collecting 7 singles after the Gonzalez double with one out in the fourth. Five of those were relatively soft hits, with exit velocities below 80 mph.
“So bizarre, so many soft hits,” Hendricks said. “Lot of bad contact, lot of stuff off the end of the bat. It's kind of crazy, that much soft contact for that many hits.”
One of the Pirates' runs was unearned, but the Cubs trailed 8-0 when Hendricks left the mound. Manager Craig Counsell did not have good things to say about the start.
“We certainly need better,” Counsell said. “That's not going to work, that's not going to be good enough. We're in a tough stretch right now. We've got eight pitchers on the injured list. We've got to keep doing our best to help Kyle turn the corner. In the stretch we're in, we're going to need innings.”
Hendricks, 34, began the season with five poor starts, went on the injured list with a sore back and had three rehab outings in the minor leagues. His return to the Cubs was his best effort, allowing 1 run in 5 innings last Sunday in Pittsburgh.
During his postgame session, Hendricks made it clear he's not ready to pack it in. He's still confident he can turn things around with his next start.
“I would say some of my stuff even like four years ago was worse than what it is now,” he said. “I felt like it ticked up last year, felt like it's still there this year. My velo's a little higher. Curveball shapes, changeup shapes, everything's looking good.
“There's definitely honest discourse back and forth between us. ‘Couns’ has been great being honest with me and I've given him the positive thoughts on what I've had. These last two, I've felt more like myself, down in the zone, executing.”
At the moment, it would be tough to make any sort of roster move, since so many Cubs relievers are on the injured list. But they'll eventually get Jordan Wicks back from a forearm strain, while Hayden Wesneski and Ben Brown have performed well as starters. Even if he is the last player on the roster from the World Series winners, there's no point sticking with Hendricks if he can't deliver vintage results.
“If you're not getting the results in this game, they're going to pick another option,” Hendricks said. “You're going to get passed on. That is the reality of the situation, but my thoughts definitely aren't there.
“I'm so lucky, so grateful for the time I've had here. It's been absolutely unbelievable, amazing, the fans have been everything. But my focus is just on what I'm doing right now, my process and pitching.”
While Skenes departed after throwing 100 pitches, the Cubs didn't collect their first hit until Christopher Morel lifted a soft single to right with two outs in the seventh. The Cubs finally scored in the eighth when Miguel Amaya homered and Morel added a 2-run double. Ian Happ extended his on-base streak against the Pirates to 64 games with a walk in the eighth.
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