Chicago Cubs and veteran reliever Liam Hendriks agree to minor-league deal - and Phil Maton is on a roll

ATLANTA - The Chicago Cubs are giving veteran reliever Liam Hendriks a chance to get back to the majors.

The Cubs have agreed to a minor-league deal with the 37-year-old right-hander, pending a physical, manager Craig Counsell confirmed Wednesday. Hendriks will report to the team’s complex in Mesa, Ariz., to ramp up. He hasn’t appeared in a big-league game since May 27 after struggling in a brief stint with the Boston Red Sox last year, posting a 6.59 ERA in 14 appearances.

Once Hendriks gets built up to a point he’s ready to compete, he likely will head to Triple-A Iowa and continue to progress from there.

“It’s essentially just depth right now and taking a shot at somebody who’s had a lot of success and see what happens,” Counsell said before the Cubs faced the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. “But he’s going to have a ways to build up. … This is a released player right now at this point in his career, and he was ready to sign and had some interest, and he’s going to get a shot.”

Hendriks hasn’t thrown quality big-league innings since an All-Star performance with the White Sox in 2022, when he had a 2.81 ERA in 58 games. He appeared in only five games for the Sox the following year, initially missing time while undergoing treatment for non-Hodgkin lymphoma. After returning in late May 2023, he suffered a UCL tear less than two weeks later and underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery that sidelined him all of 2024. A right hip issue kept him out most of ’25 with the Red Sox.

Hendriks signed a minor-league deal with the Minnesota Twins in February and was released at the end of spring training.

In a groove

Phil Maton is cautious to ever declare that his delivery has fully come together.

That, he surmises, is a good way for the baseball gods to humble you. But Maton has been happy with how in sync he feels on the mound. The numbers have backed that up. Entering Wednesday, Maton hadn’t allowed a run in his last five appearances (4 1/3 innings) while allowing just one hit, one walk and striking out six of the 17 batters he faced.

“I feel like I have the ability to get in my legs and kind of drive the ball down the slope that being on time with the delivery has really helped,” Maton told the Tribune on Wednesday. “I feel like I’ve been in the zone a lot more. The mistakes haven’t been as bad, a lot more competitive pitches, and I think that’s led to a little bit more success.”

Being healthy certainly has helped too. Going on the injured list to allow the tendinitis in his right knee to heal has eliminated any wondering on a day-to-day basis on how he might feel. Maton has developed a pre- and postgame routine with the training staff to make sure his knee stays strong.

“I don’t have to worry about getting my legs to throw,” Maton said. “It feels about the same every day so I can actually focus on my delivery, getting guys out and it makes my job a little bit easier - it just frees everything up to where I can focus more on competing instead of just pain management.”

Early in the season, Counsell explained the importance of finding ways to get Maton more game action, that he’s the kind of reliever who benefits from throwing more frequently. Without having to manage his knee pain, Maton’s usage has been paying off.

“The injury obviously played a played a factor here, too, but now that we’ve got him into kind of more regular use, I think you’re seeing the performance go up,” Counsell said Wednesday.

Injury updates

Left-hander Caleb Thielbar took another positive step Wednesday in his return from a hamstring strain.

Thielbar threw live batting practice before Wednesday’s game without issue, setting him up to begin a rehab assignment this week. It has not yet been decided how many rehab outings Thielbar will need before he is ready to come off the injured list.

Although he wasn’t in the lineup Wednesday, Miguel Amaya’s back is good to go, Counsell said, after he got through batting practice feeling fine Tuesday and subsequently participated in Thielbar’s live BP.

Left-hander Jordan Wicks (left elbow inflammation) is scheduled to make another rehab start with Iowa on Friday. Wicks has made five rehab starts and is coming off four shutout innings in which he allowed two hits and worked around four walks.

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This story was originally published May 13, 2026 at 7:31 PM.