Guardians announce signing of right-hander Carlos Hernandez Accepted a minor league deal and an invitation to major league training camp. Ahead of the official announcement, Aram Leighton of Just Baseball reported that the two sides had agreed to a deal.
Hernandez, who turns 29 in March, has already spent a brief spell with the Guards. Cleveland asked the Tigers to waive him in late July. He was removed from the roster outright a few weeks later and finished the season in Columbus. He has the option to become a free agent in October.
The right-hander has long had tantalizing qualities but struggled to convert them into results. His fastball sits in the upper 90s, and he can also throw a splitter, slider and knuckleball curveball. Despite having an intriguing arsenal, his career numbers aren’t great. In 299 2/3 innings, he allowed 5.14 runs per nine. His 20% strikeout rate, 11.1% walk rate and 35.7% ground ball rate were all below average.
Because of these struggles, he was often sent to the minors. He exhausted his options on his final year with the Royals in 2024, but plenty of teams are still interested in the stuff. This allows him to emerge in the league in 2025. He claimed off waivers from the Phillies, Tigers and Guardians but was ultimately defeated.
There’s an old saying that there’s no such thing as a bad minor league deal. The Guardians have a reputation for helping pitchers maximize their abilities. They got a closer look at Hernandez at the end of the year. While they didn’t keep him on the roster, they were apparently willing to give him another try in a non-roster capacity. If he ends up on the roster, he has no choice but to remain through arbitration beyond 2026.
Photos courtesy of Ken Blaze, Imagn Images
