Hendriks hoping to play with Kimbrel again in 2022 originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
If it were up to Chicago White Sox closer Liam Hendriks, Craig Kimbrel would be on the roster come 2022.
"For me personally, I hope Craig's back because he's such a good person to be able to lean on," Hendriks told the media after winning his second consecutive AL Reliever of the Year award.
The White Sox made a splash at MLB's trade deadline, landing Cubs closer Craig Kimbrel. at the time, Kimbrel was one of the best relievers in the game with 0.49 ERA in his 39 appearances prior to the deadline.
However, Kimbrel struggled and notched a 5.90 ERA with the White Sox in final months of the season. The White Sox picked up Kimbrel's option for the 2022 season but there are reports the White Sox could deal Kimbrel in the offseason.
Hendriks noted that he believed his struggles were overblown, noting all season have ups and downs but Kimbrel's low points came during his two months with the White Sox.
Looking at the season as a whole, Kimbrel finished with a 2.26 ERA.
But Hendriks also noted his desire to see the team add players with World Series experience to help the White Sox get over the hump and into a World Series run. Kimbrel fits that bill, winning a World Series in 2018 with the Boston Red Sox.
"It's just a privilege to be able to work with him day in and day out and talk baseball and talk off field stuff and just kind of pick his brain about everything he can," Hendriks added. "It's definitely a big bonus being able to have a guy like that.
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"But yeah, obviously for him, I'm glad he got picked up and hopefully we're able to keep him and we can turn this into a bit of a thing with our bullpen going into next season."
