The Dodgers announced the acquisition of the lefty reliever Jose Hernandez to Pirates for money. Los Angeles has been transferred Ryan Brasier on the 15- to 60-day injured list to make room on the 40-man roster. Pittsburgh designated Hernandez to work earlier in the week when they applied Dennis Santana off waivers.
Los Angeles took that opportunity to bring Hernandez back to his original organization. The Dodgers signed the Dominican-born southpaw as a rookie in May 2016. Hernandez spent the next six-plus seasons in the LA farm system, pitching at Double-A Tulsa. He counted a lot of punchouts in the minors but didn't always find the strike zone. The Dodgers left him off their 40-man roster at the end of the 2022 season, allowing other clubs to make a move in the Rule 5 draft.
Pittsburgh selected Hernandez with the third Rule 5 pick that December (after Thaddeus Ward and another who worked on Dodger's farm, Ryan Noda). The Bucs earned his right to a long-term contract by carrying him in the entire MLB bullpen last season. Hernandez has shown the ability to miss bats at the MLB level, striking out 27.8% of opposing batters behind a 12.5% swing rate. He walked just under 10% of the batters he faced and gave up nine homers in 50 2/3 innings, resulting in a 4.97 earned run average.
More to come.
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