Could a discount deal keep Kyle Hendricks with the Cubs in 2025?

For a while there, it seemed like Kyle Hendricks' time with the Cubs was approaching an abrupt end. A prime DFA candidate for much of the first half, the 34-year-old right-hander has been much better since the start of June, more or less pitching like the back-of-the-rotation presence the team expected when it picked up his option for 2024.

Since June 1, Hendricks has made 10 starts and a trio of relief appearances, working to a 4.05 ERA and 4.37 FIP - again, serviceable numbers for your fifth or sixth starter in the rotation. Those numbers are inflated by two disastrous starts: a June 30 outing in Milwaukee in which he allowed seven earned in just 3 2/3 and a July 26 clunker in which the Royals pushed across six against him in five innings of work.

After his latest start, allowing one earned in five innings against the Blue Jays on Friday at Wrigley, I wonder if this might not be the end of the road for Hendricks and the Cubs. Will he pocket $16.5 million like he is this year? Absolutely not. He's been worth a fraction of that - but depth is important and, despite numerous young arms vying for spots in the rotation next year, several come with injury concerns.

Kyle Hendricks could be a rotation insurance policy for the Cubs

Top prospect Cade Horton is done for the year and hasn't seen game action since Memorial Day. Ben Brown has been shut down again as he continues to battle a lingering neck injury. Jordan Wicks is expected to make a couple more rehab assignments before re-joining the team. Javier Assad has already blown past his career-high innings total and his effectiveness has waned as the season has gone on.

All this to say having someone like Hendricks in your back pocket as a sixth starter or swing-man on a team-friendly deal might not be the worst idea Jed Hoyer has ever had. He's spent his entire big league career with the Cubs and, in an era where players rarely start and finish their playing days with one club, Hendricks could be the exception.

His knowledge and experience is valuable to the team's young arms and he's been a staple in the Cubs clubhouse for more than a decade now. If he's open to a team-friendly deal with some incentives cooked in, it wouldn't surprise me at all to see him back with Chicago next spring when the team reports to Mesa.