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White Sox’ Liam Hendriks needed to get angry after Triple-A standing ovation

Liam Hendriks needed to get angry after Triple-A standing ovation originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

On Friday, Liam Hendriks debuted his rehab stint in the minor leagues, pitching a relief inning for the Triple-A Charlotte Knights.

It didn’t start exactly how Hendriks had hoped it would, except that it did with a warm welcome for his return to the mound since being diagnosed with cancer in January.

“I threw my warm-up pitches then they made a PA announcement,” Hendriks started. “Both teams got out and started clapping, which, don’t get me wrong, is really, really nice and I very much appreciated it. It made me very emotional.

“But I’m a guy who pitches on anger. And it’s really hard to get angry when you know the other team is full of nice people. So a little tough to get locked in. But hey, a clean inning is a clean inning .”

Hilarious.

Hendriks received a full standing ovation from the crowd present in Charlotte, his teammates and the opposing team. But it took some time for him to get comfortably angry, as he comically depicted to the media after his appearance.

The appearance went well for Hendriks in the end. He pitched one scoreless inning, striking out one batter and getting through the inning in nine pitches.

Hendriks told the media last week he was prepared for his rehab assignment but did not specify a timeline for his major league return with the White Sox.

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