Recently DFA'd Guardians pitcher set Cleveland up for success in today's doubleheader

Yesterday afternoon Carlos Hernández took the mound in the ninth inning of the Guardians’ loss to the Blue Jays, where he allowed one run in one inning while striking out two batters, marking his second appearance since getting called up earlier this week. 

Both appearances came in some of the lowest-leverage situations possible (late in games the Guardians were losing), and he also allowed a run in both appearances. Pretty forgettable appearances, all things considered. 

But Hernández’s work over the past 48 hours could end up looming large later today when the Guardians take on the Tigers in an important doubleheader at Progressive Field. 

His work in those situations meant that manager Stephen Vogt didn’t have to burn another arm ahead of today’s games. His three innings of work may not have much staying power in fan’s minds, but it was the kind of quiet contribution that can loom large across the marathon of a 162 game season. 

And his thanks for that? A DFA on Friday to make room for pitching prospect Austin Peterson. Sometimes baseball can be a cruel game. 

Carlos Hernández had a short stay with the Guardians

Even if the Guardians’ front office clearly liked what they saw out of Hernández in the minors (otherwise they wouldn’t have called him up in the first place), it’s hard to imagine they did so with the expectation that he’d cover three innings across their final two games in their series against the Blue Jays. 

Hernández opened his outing on Wednesday with a 1-2-3 seventh inning highlighted by two strikeouts before allowing a run in the eighth inning on a homer from Josh Smith. 

He set down the first two hitters he faced off against on Thursday before giving up a single to Andrés Giménez, who then came around to score on a single from Ernie Clement. 

While Hernández racked up plenty of strikeouts in the minors this season (which we saw in his brief cameo with the Guardians), he also gave up plenty of hits (which we also saw). 

That stint ended up being a short one thanks to today’s DFA which gives the Guardians another bulk option to pitch behind Logan Allen in Game 1 of Cleveland’s doubleheader against the Tigers. 

Although Peterson worked almost exclusively as a starter in the minors this season, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him be the first pitcher out of the bullpen for the Guardians in Game 1. 

The fact Hernández made it to MLB at all is a victory in itself given he was in a horrible car accident in the offseason, but his stay on the big league roster was a short one. Now we’ll have to wait and see if he clears waivers and sticks in Cleveland’s system as a depth arm.

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