Kyle Hendricks, yes.
Yu Darvish, no.
Cubs manager David Ross named Hendricks the team’s starter for Opening Day on July 24 against the Brewers at Wrigley Field.
Ross says Hendricks is the closest thing the team has among its conceivable Opening Day candidates to being fully stretched out. He did throw 70 pitches in his last scrimmage appearance, a locked-in six-plus innings Tuesday in which he looked like his best self. He also outpitched Darvish, who threw 60 pitches and at times looked uncomfortable.
But the Cubs signed Darvish heading into 2018 to take the ball in situations like this, especially once Jon Lester lost his standing as the team’s ace, which is the case now.
Everything is skewed as the Cubs and 29 other teams rush back to readiness for a season that starts next week, so it would be unfair to look at this as a failing on Darvish’s part or a lack of confidence in him by the Cubs.
But it’s Hendricks who was ready to seize the moment — as he often has been in his Cubs career. He outpitched Dodgers superstar Clayton Kershaw in the decisive Game 6 of the 2016 NLCS, led the Cubs in Game 7 of the World Series against the Indians and has, all told, established himself as the Cubs’ most consistent pitcher.
“It doesn’t matter whether it’s a scrimmage for us or Game 7, I’ve seen the same guy every time he’s out there on the bump,” Ross said.
Hendricks’ reaction to the news was typical.
“You know him,” Ross said. “He’s nonchalant. No big deal. It may have been a bigger deal to me to tell him than it was for him to hear the news.”
And it might be as Darvish wanted it. As he said earlier in the week: “Well, you know, we’ve got Lester and Hendricks still. I’m going to stay behind those guys.”
