Liam Hendriks, MLB Closer announces that he is cancer free

By Bella Lee Staff writer

The sports world is known for having its ups and downs, its victories and its heartbreaks.

This time, it’s the MLB that is seeing a major victory, with Chicago White Sox pitcher Liam Hendriks officially being cancer-free.

A native of Australia, Hendriks has been a part of the MLB since 2011, when he debuted with the Minnesota Twins. Since then, he has played for the Toronto Blue Jays, Kansas City Royals, and Oakland Athletics, and has been a member of the White Sox since 2021.

Through the 2022 season, Hendriks has recorded an impressive 724 strikeouts and 115 saves.

These past few months, however, have been difficult for Hendriks. On Jan. 8, he announced that he had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma and immediately began treatment.

Fortunately, his battle was short, as he announced on social media on April 5 that he was to complete his last round of chemotherapy and was officially cancer-free on April 20.

“REMISSION,” Hendriks wrote in an Instagram post that had videos and pictures of him going through his treatment.

“It’s official. I’m cancer free. You never think you will be the one who hears ‘you have cancer’ but there I was...in shock and fear not knowing what comes next. I started treatment after SO many life altering appointments on January 9th, 2023. Every 28 days, I would have another round. Every 28 days, I got closer to the PET scan that would dictate how many more rounds there would be. Every 28 days, I got closer to this moment. These past 5 months have been both the quickest and slowest of my life. Being able to ring this victory bell has been one of the most emotional things I’ve ever done. I cannot thank my team of doctors and nurses enough for coming up with the best medical plan for me. No words can express the gratitude I have for them saving my life.”

While the White Sox are having a weak season right now, being 8-21 as of this writing, the

By Christina Judy Staff writer

Mercyhurst men’s baseball conquered California University of Pennsylvania on Friday, April 21 to kick-start their weekend series of games. In this 3-1 feat, junior John Susnik had a walk-off home run to secure the Laker win. However, the story of game one would not have predicted this happy ending for the Lakers. The Vulcans came out strong in the first two innings as they were able to put three runners on during this time. They really had the fans believing that they were going to score the first run of the game in the top of the second. That thought did not stay in the air for long though as Luke Jackson, an Erie native stopped the runner at the plate with a fantastic throw.

Continuing this momentum, freshman Zachary Kourous earned his spot on the team with a home run-his second of the season-in the bottom of the second inning. The ball went soaring over the right field wall to put the Lakers on the scoreboard. Kourous sought to keep making his team proud but this time on the defensive end. The build up the Lakers solid defensive unit, he made a heads-up play which blocked Cal from getting on the scoreboard. When the Vulcans bunted, Kourous fielded it and drew the Vulcan runner at third base far enough off the bag by faking a throw to first. This allowed his teammate Matt Christopher to position himself properly to lock in the out.

Cal U could not get on the board until the top of the sixth when they got their run off an RBI to tie the game at 1-1. Susnik did not let this tiny scare phase him when he stepped up to the plate, and he successfully hit a home run to increase the score to 3-1.

Each team was given little time to rest as they prepared for their second game of the day against each other. The Vulcans strong start gave them something to prove for return of Hendriks is sure to give them an edge.

Much to the delight of the team and the fans, Hendriks was able to return to training on April 29.

Hendriks has made the trip to each of the three last All-Star Games.

Since the start of the 2019 season, he’s pitched to a 2.26 ERA while striking out 13.5 batters per nine innings and posting a 0.88 WHIP.

Congratulations for Hendriks came from both players and veterans of MLB alike. “That’s it mate!” said Ryan Burr, Tampa Bay Rays pitcher. James McCann, Baltimore Orioles catcher, shared a pair of praying hand emojis. Billy Hamilton, White Sox center fielder, posted a set of strong arm emojis. Julio Rodríguez, Seattle Mariners outfielder, wrote, “Incredi - ble,” with a set of praising hand emojis. it this time around and they gained the lead at 1-0 at the top of the third. With a team effort, the Lakers changed their fate in the game. Christopher allowed his teammate Joe Trivisonno to run it home after he doubled it into the right-center field gap. Moments later, outfielder Chris Juchno gave Mercyhurst the advantage of the Vulcans with his hit that flew over the right field wall in the sixth inning. With the pressure on, the Vulcans were not ready to settle for losing another game, so they tied the score at 2-2 at the top of the seventh.

It will certainly be great that Hendriks will be coming back to baseball and assisting his team in winning more games. Congratulations, Liam Hendriks!

Anticipation grew but the weather worsened, and the game was called at the bottom of the 12th inning. The game was picked up the following Sunday and the Lakers pulled off the win with a 3-1 score.

Jarrett Heilman put up another wonderful performance on the mound giving up only one run in five innings. This was his first run giving up in the entire month of April, which ended his 26-inning scoreless streak. Overall, the Lakers saw a successful weekend and went 3-1 in their series against California University of Pennsylvania.