Earlier this year, Chicago White Sox closer Liam Hendriks was diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
The baseball world rallied around him and he finally returned to the mound in May after beating the disease.
Although he is currently on the disabled list, his story has inspired millions across the sports world.
Hendriks’ life has been full of baseball, dating back even to his teeball days in his native Australia.
On Monday, the veteran closer stopped by MLB Network to share a moving story about his teeball days, while also speaking about what the World Baseball Classic meant to the people of his home country.
It’s International Week on MLB Network!@white sock closer Liam Hendriks tells us about his tee ball days and the impact he had @WBCBaseball has had in baseball in Australia 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/bzLnzb2y58
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) June 27, 2023
Hendriks opened up about how he became interested in baseball, revealing that he started playing tee-ball when he was just six years old.
At the time, the main sports in Australia were cricket and tee-ball.
Hendriks says that most of the boys were inclined towards cricket as it was the more popular sport between the two.
However, Hendriks fell in love with baseball and found his calling when he started playing tee-ball.
This year in the World Baseball Classic, Australia competed and advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time in their history.
Hendriks says the WBC was a good thing for Australia and has helped get more people inside the country interested in baseball.
The veteran closer expressed his excitement that more young players are emerging from the country as the game expands its reach around the world.
The right-hander expects more big leagues to come out of Australia in the future.
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