Can Darwinzon Hernandez Fix Command Issues With the Orioles?
I won’t lie to you, a small piece of my soul feels like it has been lost. The Red Sox are giving up on Darwinzon Hernandez. The team has announced that Hernandez has been traded to the Orioles. Of course, this news comes on the heel that Boston had announced previously that they were designating the lefty reliever for assignment.
The pressure is on. Chaim Bloom’s job is on the line. He cannot afford another last place finish in 2023. Something that’s trending to be the case after the Trevor Story news. If Darwinzon turns the corner in Baltimore, the finger pointing will and should be out of control. I already think Bloom should be fired as it is.
Hernandez, 26, has electric stuff. We just don’t know where it’s going. The command issues are real. It’s a matter of if they can be solved. Hernandez had a 21.60 ERA in seven outings a year ago. The former international signee out of the Dominican Republic has a career BB per 9 mark of 7.7 in 91 total appearances. A mark that’s just not good enough.
At the same token, the stuff is too tempting to give up on. We know relievers have up and down years all the time. Hernandez can find it again and having an arm like that from the left side can prove deadly. The K per 9 rate is a staggering 14.0. You can work with that.
The fastball sits at about 94 MPH. The slider and curve have some wicked movement that create a ton of strikeouts. I’d argue having an arm like this out of the pen is worth having over a journeyman like Ryan Brasier. If Brasier bombs again this year, it will be an inexcusable mistake.
Hernandez may fail. Throwing strikes is easier said than done. It’s still the only thing he really needs to solve. It’s a great gamble by Baltimore that could potentially feature a bullpen of Felix Bautista, Dillon Tate, Cionel Perez, and Bryan Baker. Mychal Givens was added back via free agency too.
Great stuff but never knows where it’s going. Can it be fixed? We’re about to find out. These are the moves that make or break your season. The 7th inning shut down reliever matters more than ever.
