SARASOTA, FLA. — Mark Hendrickson knows he's a long shot to pitch in the major leagues again. He's 40 years old and hasn't pitched in the majors since 2011. He just became a grandfather three months ago.
The journey that landed the well-traveled Hendrickson — his carry-on bag in tow as he entered the clubhouse at the Ed Smith Stadium complex — at Orioles minicamp Monday for a tryout with the team might be based partly on blind faith and partly on his quirky delivery.
Hendrickson pitched 10 seasons in the major leagues after he played parts of four seasons in the NBA. Orioles manager Buck Showalter believes Hendrickson has the tools — knowledge of the game, experience and personality — that will eventually make him a tremendous pitching coach.
But the long, lanky left-hander insists that he's not done pitching yet. And he's coming to the Orioles and Showalter — the man who first told him that lowering his arm slot could inject hope into his career — looking for one more chance to show that he can do it.
Hendrickson's out of place here at Orioles minicamp, and not just because he's 6 feet 9. Most of the pitchers with whom he's sharing the field are more than a decade younger than him.
"This is me taking my career by the horns, so to speak, and doing what I need to do," Hendrickson said. "Because, realistically, the biggest hurdle for me is getting past the age factor and getting people who are front-office people to not look at age and say, 'Well, forget him.'
"It's about relationships that I have, reaching out to Buck. He's a straight-shooter. He's not doing a charity case. If he doesn't think I can help, then I'm not going to be here. So for me, it's just taking that initiative and saying, 'Look, I don't want to waste your time. You don't want to waste my time. Let's give this a shot.'"
Two winters ago, Hendrickson approached Showalter and asked for a tryout. He took Showalter up on the manager's suggestion at the end of the 2011 season with the Orioles that Hendrickson should lower his arm slot.
Showalter is fond of tinkering with arm slots and the deception they create, and Hendrickson's combination of height and wingspan coming from the left side was enticing.
Hendrickson showed enough to earn an invitation to spring training in 2013, but his transition was still in its infancy. He spent the year at Triple-A Norfolk, then pitched in the independent Atlantic League for his hometown York Revolution, refining his delivery and pitching as a closer for the first time in his career.
"I'm as motivated now as I've ever been," Hendrickson said. "Things are a little different. I'm not 22. But the passion's still there. You need that. … Most of it is just unfinished business because it was a challenge that was offered. If I hadn't seen the progression between year one and year two, I wouldn't be doing this. I wouldn't be wasting my time.
"I wouldn't be away from my family, because they all have to commit to this as well. But the progression has been so good that I'm excited about that. That's why I'm excited to get back here and get the opportunity. Obviously I feel obligated to the Orioles because I want them to benefit, because Buck was man enough to tell me, 'This ain't working anymore, and I think you should do this.'"
Hendrickson now throws the ball sidearm, considerably lower than the last time the Orioles took a chance on him.
Showalter, who watched Hendrickson throw a bullpen session Monday before rain interrupted the workout, still would like him to get lower. Hendrickson said pitching coach Dave Wallace and bullpen coach Dom Chiti told him his delivery looks more fluid than last year.
"I'm probably more comfortable with it being side," Hendrickson said. "I'm trying to stay a little more upright this year, and as a result, I think I can tinker with my slot. It just feels more comfortable all around, and it just looks better. … Each year, even a scout for the Red Sox last year, when he watched me, said it was a lot different than the first year I was doing. It's just a work in progress. Like I said, trying to get better at it and a better feel for it."
Showalter said he admires Hendrickson's moxie and his desire to hold on, but he said he'd like to see Hendrickson embrace more of a submarine style.
"Either you're [down low] or get back up here," Showalter said, raising his arm over his head. "When you get in here [straight sidearm], everything flattens out. The ball is going this way, staying on a plane. When you get down here, you can change planes.
"I don't even know if we'll bring him to camp or not. We'll see. I'll sit down with Dom and Dave when it's over and see what they think and also see what our roster invite [list] looks like."
Hendrickson realizes that he doesn't necessarily have much time to impress Showalter, Wallace and Chiti, the men who will decide whether he receive a spring training invitation. They're here to evaluate the organization's young pitchers for the upcoming season.
He threw Monday and is set to throw again Wednesday before the Orioles make a decision.
"Normally I wouldn't get on the mound until Feb. 1," Hendrickson said. "Obviously I have to come down here with a different mindset to just get on the mound. I'm going to still stay with my workouts, my routines because this is the timetable and stick to it. I think for the most part, they're going to see what they need to see. A lot of it for me, the reason I'm tinkering with it this offseason is just to create more deception, create more whippy-ness in my arm, so to speak.
"That's just something that's always going to evolve as a pitcher, and that's what I'm trying to maximize is what's going to be the most difficult thing for hitters."
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