The Royals have made a second roster move with Carlos Hernandez recovered from his injury. They reinstated Hernandez from the injured list and designated Tyler Duffey for assignment. Hernandez had an up-and-down season last year where he pitched to the tune of a 5.27 ERA with 77 strikeouts in 70 innings pitched out of the bullpen. He compiled a 7.45 ERA over 9.2 innings pitched while striking out 15 in his rehab assignment in Omaha (AAA).
Tyler Duffey signed a minor league contract out of spring training and was called up on April 22nd. He had mostly filled in as an innings eater for the Royals and pitched in lower-leverage situations. He compiled a 5.00 ERA over nine innings. It was always a rocky outing when Duffey was out there, as he allowed many men on base. He had walked eight batters in those nine innings.
Hernandez will bring his high-octane fastball, which he has hit 100 mph before with, into a bullpen that doesn’t have many of those guys. It should give the Royals a new look out of the pen. The question will be whether or not he can keep the walks and home runs in check. If so, the Royals could have another legit weapon down in the pen.
