Liam Hendriks: Everything you need to know

The Twins granted Hendriks his release on Friday, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports. The 37-year-old joined Minnesota in February on a minor-league deal, which included an opt out before the start of the season. Hendriks was limited to 14 appearances last year due to elbow and hip injuries, and he struggled to a 6.59 ERA when available.

Hendriks threw a scoreless inning in Tuesday's Grapefruit loss to Philadelphia with two strikeouts. He reached 93.6 mph with his fastball. "You can't take away the been there, done that," manager Derek Shelton told Jayson Stark of The Athletic. "There are guys who can't do it. And he's done it at a really high level." Shelton last week said he has no idea who his closer will be, so it's somewhat notable he's praised Hendriks. The veteran reliever has looked healthy this spring but his velocity is down from a 94.9-mph average fastball in 2025 and 95.4 mph in 2023. Still, given the weak competition in Minnesota's bullpen, he could make the Opening Day roster and figure into the save mix. Hendriks has a 3.00 ERA with a 4:3 K:BB in six innings this spring.

Hendriks (elbow) threw a scoreless inning with a strikeout Thursday and has a 2.25 ERA and 2:2 K:BB ratio in four innings this spring. He averaged 93.6 mph on the six fastballs he threw during the outing. Hendriks has looked healthy this spring but his velocity is down from a 94.9 mph average fastball in 2025 and 95.4 mph in 2023. It's not clear if Hendriks will even make the Opening Day roster at this point, but he's still potentially in the closer mix. Still, the signs for Hendriks are encouraging after undergoing right elbow ulnar nerve transposition with posterior interosseous nerve release surgery in September.