MILWAUKEE — Years ago, as Daysbel Hernandez completed a slew of tryouts in Miami, he caught the Braves’ eye. They signed him.
Fast forward to 2021, when the Braves invited Hernandez to major-league spring training.
“I told everybody, ‘He’ll be here this year,’” said current Braves coach Eddie Perez, who had seen Hernandez pitch at one point. “And he got hurt. And it hurt me because I thought he was going to be here.”
Hernandez underwent Tommy John surgery in February 2022. He missed that entire season. But he put himself on the radar again this season. He’s been a strikeout machine.
On Saturday night, Triple-A manager Matt Tuiasosopo called Hernandez and asked: “Didn’t you know there was a meeting at the stadium?”
“No, I already left,” Hernandez said, as he recalled through interpreter Franco García.
Then Tuiasosopo broke the news: The Braves were calling up Hernandez, a 26-year-old righty from Cuba.
Years ago, he came to the United States and eventually did tryouts in Miami. On Sunday, he reported to American Family Field.
In his MLB debut on Sunday, Hernandez struck out three batters to work around a single in a scoreless seventh inning. His fastball touched 97.3 mph and his slider looked nasty. He threw 20 pitches. On 11 swings, the Brewers whiffed four times.
“Awesome,” manager Brian Snitker said of Hernandez’s composure. “It’s nice to have guys with stuff in the bullpen. It looks like he’s got a feel for the strike zone, too.”
As The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Saturday night, the Braves optioned right-hander Allan Winans, who started on Saturday, to Triple-A Gwinnett. The Braves needed extra pitching for Sunday’s game, just in case. Had their bullpen been fresh, they wouldn’t have optioned Winans, who allowed two runs over 4⅓ innings against the Brewers.
To make room on the 40-man roster for Hernandez, the Braves transferred Jesse Chavez to the 60-day injured list. On Saturday, manager Brian Snitker indicated Chavez was not particularly close to returning from the left shin contusion he suffered in the middle of June. He won’t be eligible to return until at least the middle of August.
Across three minor-league levels this season, Hernandez has 32 strikeouts in 22 innings pitched. In 2⅔ innings with Triple-A Gwinnett before the Braves called him up, Hernandez struck out seven of the nine batters he faced. Over his last five outings between Double-A and Triple-A he struck out 17 of 23 batters he faced. He has a 2.05 ERA.
His main pitches are a four-seam fastball and a slider. In his last outing for Gwinnett, his fastball touched 97 mph and averaged 96 mph. His slider generated six whiffs on nine swings.
This is the same slider that was almost nonexistent when he signed with the Braves. He threw one, but it wasn’t consistent enough to be a factor. “When I was in Double-A, I started throwing more sliders than fastballs, and I feel like that’s what helped me develop it and get it to where it is now,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez first pitched in the Braves’ system in 2018. Between the 2021 and 2022 seasons, Hernandez pitched in winter ball. At some point after that, he said, “I was getting up from sitting down on a chair and I felt something happen to my arm.” Undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2022 made him appreciate baseball much more.
“It was something that was definitely very difficult and hard for me when I was rehabbing and recovering,” Hernandez said. “I think it also gave me the opportunity to prepare myself and to just also appreciate the game and what I have, and not take it for granted.”
A year and change after Tommy John surgery, Hernandez walked into a big-league clubhouse. No one knows what his role might be, but he’s here, and that’s enough for now.
“This is an opportunity that I’ve been hoping for since I was able to leave Cuba,” Hernandez said.
TUESDAY’S GAME
Braves at Red Sox, 7:10 p.m., BSSO, 680, 93.7
