Kyle Hendricks BandWGN

[DiamondMind]

Oh, his change up definitely helps more than his intellect. Was only saying that critical thinking affects starting pitchers more than anyone else in the game, and it can be a really beneficial trait at times.

[Aaron_Kennelly]

I certainly think having a strong "baseball intellect" can help. But, it's not something special about Hendricks. Max Scherzer also has a good baseball intellect and knows how to pitch to guys, but you never hear about that because he is good at everything that relates to pitching. It's like the dreaded game manager label for QBs. The fact is: Without knowing how to sequence pitches, where to locate pitches, etc., Hendricks never would have made it this far. But, that can be said about most pitchers. So, yes, it helps. But, who gives a [expletive]?

[Sammy Sofa]

I really like you.

[ScrubMD]

Randy Wells, Rich Hill.

 

You realize those two pitchers are nothing alike, right?

[A New Era]

Randy Wells, Rich Hill.

 

You realize those two pitchers are nothing alike, right?

 

They both looked great at first then sucked. So not totally unlike.

[DiamondMind]

I've had more than a few friends call him Randy Wells 2.0

 

And even more than the intellect stuff - I think Bosio is an amazing pitching coach. If you count out Edwin.

[ScrubMD]

Randy Wells, Rich Hill.

 

You realize those two pitchers are nothing alike, right?

 

They both looked great at first then sucked. So not totally unlike.

 

Hill was awful his first 2 months.

[seanimal]

Randy Wells, Rich Hill.

 

You realize those two pitchers are nothing alike, right?

 

They both looked great at first then sucked. So not totally unlike.

 

Hill was awful his first 2 months.

 

till rothschild had him read everybody poops or w/e

[Guest]

i always thought that Hill got fucked in the ass by stupid Hendry

 

i mean why in the [expletive] would you do that to a guy after 19 innings coming off a 3+ WAR season?

[Guest]

i always thought that Hill got [expletive] in the ass by stupid Hendry

 

i mean why in the [expletive] would you do that to a guy after 19 innings coming off a 3+ WAR season?

 

You mean Piniella?

[Guest]

i always thought that Hill got [expletive] in the ass by stupid Hendry

 

i mean why in the [expletive] would you do that to a guy after 19 innings coming off a 3+ WAR season?

 

You mean Piniella?

 

Piniella is a manager, he is supposed to be a meatball.

[Productive Outs]

i always thought that Hill got [expletive] in the ass by stupid Hendry

 

i mean why in the [expletive] would you do that to a guy after 19 innings coming off a 3+ WAR season?

 

You mean Piniella?

 

Piniella is a manager, he is supposed to be a meatball.

 

if hiring piniella meant we could get a copy of the 08 offense, i'd do it in a heartbeat

[Guest]

i always thought that Hill got [expletive] in the ass by stupid Hendry

 

i mean why in the [expletive] would you do that to a guy after 19 innings coming off a 3+ WAR season?

 

You mean Piniella?

 

Piniella is a manager, he is supposed to be a meatball.

 

if hiring piniella meant we could get a copy of the 08 offense, i'd do it in a heartbeat

Good thing it doesn't. Soon they will have a 2008 offense with the benefit of not having to have a manager who checked out before the season.

[Guest]

i'd prefer it if all my managers checked out for the season

[Guest]

i'd prefer it if all my managers checked out for the season

Right.

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

I've had more than a few friends call him Randy Wells 2.0

 

And even more than the intellect stuff - I think Bosio is an amazing pitching coach. If you count out Edwin.

 

Maybe Edwin is just a [expletive] that doesn't listen to Bosio. He could be the opposite of the intellectual Hendricks and is the idiot of pitching.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

Maybe Edwin is just a [expletive] that doesn't listen to Bosio.

I am so picturing you saying that with your southern accent and a nearby spittoon.

[Sammy Sofa]

The silly censor system (ALLITERATION!) makes that read a LOT more racist than it actually is.

[UK1679666180]

Hendricks is very deceptive and gets many late swings despite the velo. Between that and his offspeed pitch

he gets more swings and misses.

 

Wells only had a slider and nothing else. Hill had a better TH and secondary pitch just much worse control and command.

 

Neither are close.

[A New Era]

FYI, I only said Hill and Wells to temper my excitement for Hendricks. I got a little too excited about their early success.

 

It will be interesting to see how Hendricks adjusts back after the league knows him better. They've said he spends a lot of time studying video and reports of the team he's facing, almost as if he's preparing for a test. I wonder if all that extra work is what makes him get the most out of his ability.

[Guest]

Hendricks is very deceptive and gets many late swings despite the velo. Between that and his offspeed pitch

he gets more swings and misses.

 

Wells only had a slider and nothing else. Hill had a better TH and secondary pitch just much worse control and command.

 

Neither are close.

You're alive!!!

[Ding Dong Johnson]

Or Bruno has his [expletive]. I'm not convinced yet.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

Hendricks is very deceptive and gets many late swings despite the velo. Between that and his offspeed pitch

he gets more swings and misses.

 

Wells only had a slider and nothing else. Hill had a better TH and secondary pitch just much worse control and command.

 

Neither are close.

[Guest]

http://www.gammonsdaily.com/kyle-hendricks-sinker-is-the-real-deal/

 

This is actually almost a week old but I don't recall seeing it posted.

 

Though a 55-70 record would normally indicate otherwise, the Chicago Cubs have a lot to be happy about these days. Anthony Rizzo is contending for a home run title, Starlin Castro has reestablished himself at the plate, Javier Baez‘s bat speed is all sorts of ridiculous and Kris Bryant, Jorge Soler, Albert Almora, Addison Russell and Kyle Schwarber (among others) comprise possibly the best farm system baseball has ever seen from a positional vantage point.

 

Fortunately for Chicago, Kyle Hendricks has stepped forward to help balance out one of baseball’s most uneven rotations. Acquired in the deal that sent Ryan Dempster to Texas two summers ago, Hendricks has over seven starts (48 IP) this summer pitched to a 1.48 ERA and 0.95 WHIP, which rank fourth and twelfth-best among qualifying starters since his July 10 debut. That’s some pretty fantastic production for a guy who authored an underwhelming 3.59 ERA and 1.18 WHIP in 17 starts in the Pacific Coast League prior to his call-up.

How has Hendricks accomplished this level of productivity? His sinker has been lethal in several respects.

 

http://www.gammonsdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/strike-zone.png

http://www.gammonsdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/hendricks-sinker-ranks.png

 

Going to his sinker more than any other offering (it makes up 39.2% of his entire arsenal) since his promotion early last month, Hendricks’ sinker has been elite with respect to inducing weakly hit balls in play. In fact, the .533 soft-hit average the offering has produced bests any other qualifying pitcher since July 10, and is significantly higher than the major-league average of .351 this season. Both right-handed batters (.548 SHAV) and left-handed batters (.500 SHAV) have struggled to place quality contact on the offering.

Additionally, opponents have shown a tendency to expand the zone against it, posting a chase rate of 31.7% that ranks better than approximately 80% of the league this season. Right-handed batters have been particularly susceptible in this respect, offering at 39.2% of his sinkers when located out of the zone (compared to lefties’ 21.1%). Consequently, opponents have slugged just .267 against it (nearly .200 points lower than average) and are just 3-for-22 against it in pitchers counts.

Hendricks has never been known to collect copious strikeout totals as a starter in the minors, as we’ve seen that translate to his first seven starts at the big league level, maintaining a K-BB% of just 9.6% (league average is 12.5%). Thus, fielder-independent pitching isn’t a huge fan of his overall production (his current FIP is 3.55, nearly two runs above his season ERA). But so far, Hendricks has been able to get by through effective use of his sinker, which has expanded zones and induced elite amounts of soft contact.

Question is, how much longer will that pitch-to-contact success last?

[Tyrant]

I wouldn't call a 3.59 ERA and 1.18 WHIP in the pcl "underwhelming."