Chicago Cubs World Series Champion Announces Retirement

Kyle Hendricks announced his retirement from Major League Baseball this afternoon, according to Maddie Lee. The veteran right-hander had spent 11 seasons with the Chicago Cubs before spending one year in Los Angeles with the Angels.

The 35-year-old had hinted toward the end of the regular season that 2025 would be his final year in MLB. He caps his career with a legacy in Chicago as a Cub that includes a place in the top 10 in multiple pitching categories, an ERA title, and a World Series championship.

Kyle Hendricks Retires After 12 Seasons in MLB

Hendricks officially retired from MLB on Monday afternoon. Maddie Lee reported that the 35-year-old veteran right-hander is calling it a career after 12 seasons, 11 in Chicago with the Cubs and one in Los Angeles with the Angels. Hendricks’ retirement was widely suspected, but not official until today.

Hendricks’ career was highlighted by his 2016 campaign with the Chicago Cubs, where he won the NL ERA title and a World Series championship. The crafty right-hander started the team’s series-clinching game in the NLCS against the Los Angeles Dodgers and the championship-clinching game in the World Series against the Cleveland Indians.

Hendricks finished his career with 307 regular season appearances, 301 of which were starts across 12 MLB seasons. He went 105-91 with a 3.79 ERA and 1.19 WHIP in 1745 innings of work. In the postseason, Hendricks made 12 appearances in four different campaigns and went 2-4 with a 3.12 ERA and 1.20 WHIP in 57.2 innings of work.

Legacy With the Chicago Cubs

Hendricks will be best known for his time with the Chicago Cubs. After debuting toward the end of the 2014 season, it was unclear if Hendricks would be a part of the starting rotation in 2015. The then-25-year-old battled with Adam Warren for a slot in the rotation.

Hendricks ultimately prevailed and rewarded the Cubs for making that decision with a decade of consistent production. 2015 was a building block for Hendricks and the Chicago Cubs as a whole. It was 2016 when everything came together for both of them, culminating in Hendricks starting Game 7 and the Cubs winning the World Series.

Over the next eight years, Hendricks was a mark of stability and class in an era of upheaval for the Chicago Cubs as the World Series team disbanded. When Hendricks left the mound at Wrigley Field for the final time, he was the last remaining member of the 2016 team, capping off an era of great fondness for the Chicago Cubs.