Just part of his charm
Hendriks’ boisterous personality one reason for his effectiveness as closer
OAKLAND, Calif — If you need one sequence of events to convey A’s closer Liam Hendriks’ style and personality — loud, lively, abundantly quirky — start with theway he punctuated Oakland’s wild- card-series victory Thursday over the White Sox.
Hendriks completed an eventful, two-day, 68-pitch journey by striking out three consecutive batters, featuring howling fastballs reaching 99 mph. Then he screamed and exulted on the mound, animatedly hugged catcher Sean Murphy and eagerly retreated to the clubhouse to celebrate with his teammates.
There, he tried to make a putt on the A’s makeshift practice green … while naked.
Most closers blend bravado and quirkiness in some form, given the tense, high-stakes nature of the job. Hendriks, a fun-loving 31-year- old born and raised in Perth, Australia, simply takes it to another entertaining level.
“He’s the quintessential Australian in that things roll off his back,” Kristi Hendriks, Liam’s wife, said Friday. “He makes funny jokes and laughs at himself all the time — he’s self-deprecating, which I love about him. He keeps me on my toes because I never knowwhat’s going to come out of his mouth next.”
Kristi Hendriks described her husband as a completely different person when he trots to the mound. She called it “white-line fever,” in which he morphs into an intense, demonstrative, cursing, glove-slapping maniac.
Also worth noting: Liam Hendriks becomes studious and analytical when he returns home after pitching. He watches replays of his outing on both telecasts (the A’s and their opponent), seeking nuggets of information.
“He says, ‘You never know, they might see something I need to know,’ ” Kristi Hendriks said. “It’s not like, ‘Oh, what are they saying about me?’ He wants to hear it because it might make him better.”
Hendriks was at his heat-firing best Thursday, the day after he threw49 pitches while struggling to protect a 5-0, eighth-inning lead in Game 2. That marked the most pitches he had thrown in an outing since Oct. 20, 2015, when he threw 59 for Toronto in 41⁄ in
3 nings in Game 4 of the American League Championship Series
against Kansas City.
Still, an inspection of Hendriks’ record the past two years as A’s closer suggests his arm is capable of handling a heavy workload at times. He threw 62 pitches on consecutive days in April 2019; then 66 on consecutive days in May 2019 — though he allowed two runs in the second appearance — and he pitched on three consecutive days three
times last season and twice more this year.
Thursday’s challenge was magnified by his team’s torturous postseason history — the A’s were trying to win a playoff series for the first time since 2006. Hendriks made it happen, allowing a soft single to James McCann before overpowering Yoan Moncada, Luis Robert and Nomar Mazara.
Hendriks collected eight outs during the Chicago series, all on strikeouts.
“I’m just happy I was able to rein it in a little bit and make my pitches,” he said. “I’ve been known to get too excited and kind of go a little off-kilter. But I really focused on making sure I was steady, got on top of the ball and had that life on my fastball.”
A’s pitching coach Scott Emerson traced Hendriks’ transformation — from journeyman to AllStar closer — to June 2018, when the A’s designated himfor assignment. They ultimately demoted him to Triple-A Nashville, where Hendriks became more committed to his diet and training program, according to Emerson.
Now, Hendriks is “relentless” in his preparation, Emerson said. And that no doubt helped him bounce back after Wednesday’s long and frustrating outing, when he allowed two runs and four hits in 1 2⁄3 innings.
Emerson didn’t mind that Hendriks took the mound with extra adrenaline Thursday.
“I like him excited, that’s fun,” Emerson said. “He had a little better command (Thursday) and hewas throwing harder. He’s that guy who can thrive off adrenaline.”
So when Hendriks finally finished off the White Sox, freezing Mazara on a 98-mph fastball, he reverted to his good-natured demeanor. The A’s had a mini basketball hoop in the clubhouse last year, and now they’ve made the practice green a postgame hub.
Hendriks’ putting apparently needs some work, but that was only part of the story.
“That’s the second time I’ve done the putt completely in the nude,” he said afterward. “I made the first one but missed today, unfortunately. So I’m 1for-2.”