'Rarefied air': Hendricks hits exclusive 10-year mark with Cubs

This story was excerpted from Jordan Bastian’s Cubs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Kyle Hendricks’ career has been defined by defying the odds. In the age of chasing velocity, the Cubs' pitcher has carved his path through precision and deception, growing into a revered veteran who has been trusted with the ball in some of the most important games in team history.

Hendricks’ teammates had the opportunity to celebrate him on Wednesday, when the 34-year-old righty reached 10 years of Major League service time. The Cubs recognized Hendricks in a pregame meeting, and both of the pitcher’s agents also flew to San Francisco to celebrate the milestone with him.

“It's pretty crazy, to be honest with you,” Hendricks said. “I never imagined it in my wildest dreams. Growing up as a kid, I just wanted to make it to the big leagues. I loved baseball so much that that's all I wanted to do. But to think that far in the future, to think about 10 years? It's honestly pretty cool.”

According to the MLB Players’ Association, fewer than 10% of players in baseball history have played for a decade or longer. At the moment, Hendricks is only the third player in team history to have 10-plus years in the Majors exclusively with the Cubs in the modern era (since 1900), joining Ernie Banks (1953-71) and Stan Hack (1932-47).

While the game of baseball has evolved over the decades, one unwavering source of respect within the sport is reaching a decade of service. Among players across eras, that mark carries weight. Cubs manager Craig Counsell is one of the players in that small group.

“It's rarefied air to be a Major League Baseball player,” Counsell said. “Ten years of service is even more. You do it with one team? That's even more.”

Counsell pointed to Hendricks’ performance this season as a fitting example of “what it is about, being a 10-year Major Leaguer.” The pitcher struggled to start the season, willingly accepting a role in the bullpen as his slump mounted. Hendricks sought feedback on how to adjust his routine and repertoire, and he has since returned to the rotation with a 1.27 ERA in June.

“You get knocked down, you've got to get back up,” Counsell said. “It seems like it's all glory. It's a lot of work, it's a lot of adjustments, it's a lot of adapting and it's a lot of finding a new way to do things. That's what Kyle has given us all an example of, and it's a really valuable example.”

In parts of 11 seasons with the Cubs, who acquired Hendricks as a Minor Leaguer in a trade with Texas in 2012, the righty has a 3.61 ERA in 261 games. He won the MLB ERA title (2.13) in 2016, when he finished third in National League Cy Young Award voting and started Game 7 in the Cubs’ World Series triumph over Cleveland. Hendricks recently became the sixth Cubs pitcher in the expansion era (since 1961) to reach at least 1,500 innings with the franchise.

“Obviously, he's a great pitcher, a great player, a World Series champion,” Cubs lefty Justin Steele said. “But I think the legacy Kyle Hendricks will leave behind is the teammate he was, the person he is and the friend he is to everybody that came in touch with him.”

It is unlikely that anyone has seen as many of Hendricks’ pitches as Cubs pitching coach Tommy Hottovy.

Hottovy was with the Cubs as a pitcher in Spring Training 2014 -- the season Hendricks made his MLB debut. By '15, Hottovy was a part of Chicago’s pitching group as a run-prevention coordinator, paving the way to his eventual promotion to pitching coach. He has been along for nearly the entire ride with Hendricks.

“I feel just fortunate to be able to be part of it,” Hottovy said. “It's just the rare combination of a guy who has been around a long time, has had success, has pitched in enormous games for our organization and then just continues to want to get better.”