Hendricks’ perfect start quickly falls apart as slugging Braves beat Cubs 8-0

Facing the most powerful lineup in the majors at Wrigley Field on Friday, Kyle Hendricks was absolutely perfect for three innings.

Atlanta’s batters were utterly perplexed by the right-hander’s mix of 88-89 mph fastballs and sinkers, and 80-mph change-ups.

With Atlanta’s Max Fried also retiring the first nine Cubs, it looked like an epic pitching duel was in the works.

Instead, we saw an epic collapse by Hendricks in the fourth inning as the Braves erupted for 7 runs on 8 hits en route to an easy 8-0 victory. Six hits went for extra bases, including Sean Murphy’s 2-run homer that made it 4-0 and Marcell Ozuna’s 437-foot bomb to Waveland Avenue that made it 5-0 one pitch later.

In less than 15 minutes, the 36,225 on hand saw quite clearly why the Braves own the best record in baseball at 70-37.

“It’s line to line with this group,” manager David Ross said of Atlanta’s hitters. “Some hard contact and bats are in the zone a long time. Big, strong gentlemen. That’s the kind of lineup they’ve got.

“They can put a big number on you really fast.”

It’s no secret why as the Braves lead the league with a whopping 209 home runs. The next closest teams are the Dodgers and Angels with 174 and 167, respectively, heading into Friday’s night games.

Every player in Atlanta’s lineup had at least 11 HRs, and five guys have cranked 20 or more. Matt Olson leads the way with 37.

After watching the Braves take most of his first pitches in the opening three innings, Hendricks (4-6) and catcher Miguel Amaya knew they’d see a more aggressive approach going forward.

And sure enough, Hendricks’ nightmare began with Ronald Acuna Jr. ripping a first-pitch single to center field to lead off the fourth. The home runs by Murphy and Ozuna also came on first-pitch offerings, as did Acuna’s triple in his second at-bat of the inning.

“We tried to do a couple different things there,” said Hendricks, whose ERA went from 3.49 to 4.09. “Some pitches off the plate they still got to. You’ve got to tip your cap sometimes. Really good hitters, really good team over there.”

This was the most runs allowed by Hendricks since he gave up 7 to the Diamondbacks on May 20, 2022. The veteran stayed positive afterward, knowing full well not every game can go the Cubs’ way.

“Just one of those days,” he said. “Still felt good. Made a lot of good pitches. … They put some good swings on some balls. Maybe made two mistakes there.

“Not trying to give in; just trying to keep our team in the game there. And, yeah, it just blew up on me. One of those days, kind of flush it (and) move on.”

Fried, who missed three months with a strained left forearm, allowed 3 hits in 6 innings while striking out eight. He improved to 3-1 and lowered his ERA to 1.69.

Cubs catcher Tucker Barnhart, throwing 34-42 mph eephus pitches, allowed just 1 hit in the ninth inning. It was Barnhart’s fourth pitching appearance of his career, with all of them coming in the last two seasons. He’s given up just 1 run and 7 hits in 4 innings.