![\"Liam](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/MLB-New-York-Mets-at-Boston-Red-Sox-26247405-scaled-e1770865742942.jpg\")
Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCredit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Minnesota Twins pitchers and catchers officially report for Spring Training Thursday, though all of them are already there. On February 20, they\u2019ll play their annual exhibition<\/a> game vs the Minnesota Gophers, before they kick off Grapefruit League action one day later vs Boston.<\/p>\n The starting rotation remains new manager Derek Shelton\u2019s<\/a> biggest strength, though the lineup still needs work and the bullpen enters<\/a> spring in disarray<\/a>. On Wednesday night, however, we may have gotten our first needle-moving transaction within Minnesota\u2019s reliever core.<\/p>\n Liam Hendriks lands minor league deal with MN Twins<\/p>\n Liam Hendriks became an MLB star when he moved to the bullpen later on in his big league career. But before that, he was a struggling starter in the Minnesota Twins organization, after they signed him out of high school in 2007.<\/p>\n Now, according to reports, the 37-year-old<\/a> is returning to where it all began on a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training. Some say there\u2019s no such thing as a bad minor league deal, but the Twins hope landing Hendriks winds up being much more than that.<\/p>\n Hendriks gets minors deal with MLB camp invite https:\/\/t.co\/VgAnJu6YMu<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) February 12, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n Over the course of his brief but impactful MLB career, Liam has posted<\/a> a 3.88 ERA while collecting 116 total saves. After his move to the bullpen, Hendriks\u2019 career ERA drops from 5.80 as a starter to 3.16 as a reliever, while his strikeouts per nine innings rose from 5.5 to 11.7.<\/p>\n Hendriks has overcome so much more than most realize. In 2023 he underwent treatment<\/a> for Stage 4 non-Hodgkin\u2019s Lymphoma. He was diagnosed cancer-free later that year. Not long after, he underwent Tommy John surgery, then dealt with elbow soreness much of last season.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s hope Hendriks have something left in the tank<\/p>\n After not pitching in 2024 and throwing just five innings in 2023, Liam Hendriks managed just 13 2\/3 innings with the Boston Red Sox last season, posting a 6.59 ERA with stuff that was not what the league had become accustomed to seeing from the one-time flamethrowing closer.<\/p>\n However, Hendriks has serious All-Star cred and played in the mid-summer classic as recently as 2022. In fact, he earned Cy Young votes in 2020 and 2021, as a reliever.<\/p>\n Fired up Liam Hendriks is my jam. pic.twitter.com\/53Wt7ur1is<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 24, 2025<\/a> <\/p>\n Liam Hendriks is a fierce competitor who\u2019s not shy about showing emotion on the mound, but he hasn\u2019t pitched productively for three seasons.<\/p>\n Nonetheless, it would be a cool full-circle moment if he has enough in the tank help power the Minnesota Twins to a surprise success story in 2026.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMentioned in this article: Liam Hendriks<\/a> <\/p>\n More About:Minnesota Twins<\/a><\/p>\n Add MinnesotaSportsFan as a preferred source on Google. \t\t\t![\"Add](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/google_preferred_source_badge.png\"){kind=icon}
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