Kyle Hendricks gives Angels fans reason to believe despite loss to Blue Jays

Going into the series against the Toronto Blue Jays, Angels fans were not optimistic. They were once again .500, a mark they have not been able to get over in months. They would not see either of their aces in Yusei Kikuchi or Jose Soriano pitch against the AL East leading Blue Jays. And to get them over the .500 hump, the divisive Kyle Hendricks would be taking the mound on Friday night against the Blue Jays’ Eric Lauer. Despite his lack of name recognition, Lauer has been nothing short of an ace for Toronto, owning a 2.60 ERA heading into the Independence Day matchup. 

And against one of the best offenses in the MLB as of late, Kyle Hendricks finally broke free of his “washed” label. The veteran was perfect through the first three innings, striking out two Blue Jays as he was pitching efficiently, with 33 of his 43 pitches being strikes. And while Hendricks was perfect, Lauer had yet to allow a hit as well. A real pitcher’s duel was in action. 

For most of the season, Hendricks’ ERA had him in the conversation as one of the worst starters in the American League. Fair or unfair as that label was, Hendricks very rarely pitched so poorly the Angels’ offense didn’t stand a chance. Unlike rotation-mate Jack Kochanowicz (who may be pitching for his life Saturday night), Hendricks never had true blow up starts this season. He’d all a few runs and get through five or six innings on a usual basis. Not great, but ultimately did not take the Angels’ out of the game and - more importantly - did not overly exhaust the Angels’ bullpen. 

The fourth inning might have given Halo fans flashbacks, as George Springer ripped a single off Hendricks. Nevertheless, Hendricks settled in and got the next two batters out relatively easily, only needing 14 pitches in the inning despite Springer’s hit. 

The fifth innings was more of the same, as Hendricks was truly turning back the clock. A groundout followed by two fly outs, and Hendricks was through five innings practically perfect while only throwing 67 pitches. After a Braves series where the bullpen was used a lot and in the middle of a 13 day stretch of 13 games, and kind of long start by an Angels’ starter does wonders for the rest, especially coming off a night game followed by travel. 

The 0-0 pitcher’s duel continued into the bottom of the sixth, an inning Hendricks has dominated this season with a 2.16 ERA during it. Unfortunately, the Blue Jays eventually got to the veteran, scoring a run off of him before interim manager Ray Montgomery pulled him with a rather quick hook. The bullpen took over, and the Angels went on to lose 4-3 in extra innings.

Overall, though, Hendricks was able to continue his exceptional stretch of pitching for the Angels. In his past five starts now, Hendricks boasts a 2.63 ERA. With Soriano and Kikuchi being the bonafide aces, and Tyler Anderson bouncing back earlier this week, Hendricks gives the Angels a formidable four-man rotation. If Kochanowicz can figure it out (or the Angels trade for a replacement), the Angels have a strong rotation heading into the home stretch of 2025 as they continue pushing for the playoffs. 

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