LAS VEGAS — Kyle Hendricks, the longtime Chicago Cubs right-hander who captured an ERA title and helped deliver a World Series championship during a 12-year big-league career, is retiring, his agent confirmed.
Hendricks, 35, spent last season with the Los Angeles Angels, going 8-10 with a 4.76 ERA. He spent the first 11 years of his career in Chicago, winning 97 games with a changeup-and-sinker approach that routinely frustrated hitters. Over his time with the Cubs he posted a 3.68 ERA and earned the American League title for lowest ERA in 2016 — the same season the Cubs broke their long title drought.
Originally drafted by the Texas Rangers in 2011, Hendricks was acquired by Chicago the following year and made his major-league debut in 2014. He quickly established himself in the rotation, posting a 2.46 ERA across 13 starts that season.
The 2016 campaign was the pinnacle of his career statistically: Hendricks went 16-8 with a 2.13 ERA, the lowest in baseball. In the postseason he delivered one of his signature performances in Game 6 of the NL Championship Series, holding the Los Angeles Dodgers and ace Clayton Kershaw to nothing over 7 1/3 shutout innings to help send the Cubs
