Inside The Phillies

Phillies Bolster Bullpen With Last-Minute Addition of Veteran Flamethrower

The Philadelphia Phillies added a promising arm to their bullpen just days before Opening Day.

Tyler Maher

Sep 2, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Carlos Hernandez (43) pitches during the eighth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Kauffman Stadium.
Sep 2, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Carlos Hernandez (43) pitches during the eighth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Kauffman Stadium. / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
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Opening Day is just days away, but the Philadelphia Phillies are still tinkering with their roster.

The Phillies added some last-minute bullpen depth on Sunday, claiming right-handed reliever Carlos Hernandez off waivers from the Kansas City Royals.

The Royals waiving Hernandez was surprising given how effective he was last year. In 30 innings over 27 appearances, he posted the best ERA (3.30) and FIP (3.50) of his career. He struggled during spring training, however, with a 6.97 ERA in eight appearances.

Kansas City apparently did not have room on its 40-man roster for the 28-year-old, who had spent his entire five-year MLB career with the Royals. They also waived Nick Pratto and Nelson Velazquez, both of whom cleared waivers and will report to Triple-A Omaha according to MLB.com's Anne Rogers.

Hernandez has been inconsistent, going 7-19 with a 4.95 ERA, a 1.45 WHIP and a 4.45 FIP in 256 1/3 innings. He bounced back in 2024 after back-to-back disappointing seasons, so Philadelphia was willing to take a flier on him to see if he can provide similar production in 2025.

A team can never have too much pitching, and Hernandez has the potential to be a solid pick-up for the Phillies if he performs at or near his 2024 levels. If not, they can easily move on from him and replace him with someone else.

The hard-throwing righty has some upside based on his velocity, which averaged 97.9 mph on his fastball last season. His command can be spotty (career 4.4 BB/9) and he doesn't miss a ton of bats (career 7.9 K/9), however, so his control could still use some polish.

That said, he pitched well for Kansas City down the stretch last year as the Royals battled the Detroit Tigers for a playoff spot. In 10 relief appearances in September, he notched a 2.38 ERA and held opponents to a .180/.304/.333 batting line.

Philadelphia doesn't know which version of Hernandez it's getting, but hopefully he can build off last year and potentially contribute in high-leverage situations.

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Tyler Maher
TYLER MAHER

Tyler is a writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies. He grew up in Massachusetts and is a huge Boston sports fan, especially the Red Sox. He went to Tufts University and played club baseball for the Jumbos. Since graduating, he has worked for MLB.com, The Game Day, FanDuel and Forbes. When he's not writing about baseball, he enjoys running, traveling, and playing fetch with his golden retriever.

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