New beginning for new-look Hernandez
02/22/2006
KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Prior to the start of Spring Training, Carlos Hernandez was considered a candidate to make the Houston Astros' rotation. After five days of workouts, he's already making quite an impression on those who will decide his future.
Baseball life has been anything but easy for Hernandez since he made his Major League debut in 2001. Once considered the cream of the crop of pitching prospects, Hernandez hit a roadblock three years ago when he had surgery to repair a tear in the rotator cuff in his left shoulder.
Since then, he's worked to return to the Major Leagues, and more importantly, remain there. That alone is a big challenge, but Hernandez has an added burden because he's had to become an entirely different pitcher than the one he was when the Astros drafted him as a teenager in 1997.
Now approaching a still young age of 26, Hernandez has reinvented himself, having been forced to shed the flamethrower label he once wore. He used to live by his blazing fastball; now he's a finesse pitcher, relying heavily on a changeup while learning to make a slower fastball work in his favor.
"Back then, I used to be a hard thrower," Hernandez said. "Right now, I'm just trying to get guys out, hit spots, change speeds.
"I had to learn that, it was tough. It's still tough sometimes. You don't have the velocity like you used to. At the same time, my velocity's coming back. Maybe it's not going to be 94, 95 [mph], but it can be 91, 92."
Hernandez will pitch for his native Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic, which will likely be a blessing. He'll be in a competitive setting, playing games that matter to this proud Venezuelan, who described wearing his country's name on the front of his jersey as one of his childhood dreams.
The Astros will send a representative to watch Hernandez as he travels with the Venezuelan club, but they already have an idea of what to expect this spring. Al Pedrique, a top assistant to general manager Tim Purpura, managed Hernandez in winter ball. All reports were favorable -- his velocity is up, his curveball has new life and the changeup that worked for him toward the end of his Triple-A season last year is so good that he's turning to that pitch as he did with his fastball.
"He was making progress at the end of last year, too, so it's not like all of a sudden he's just back," Purpura said. "He's made a steady progression, he's worked very hard, and he's back at a point where he could be a legitimate contender for these spots [in the rotation]."
Manager Phil Garner now has a firsthand view of how far Hernandez has progressed in the last year, and so far, he likes what he sees.
"He has a much better arm angle," Garner said. "I see he's substantially throwing the ball properly with arm action now as opposed to slinging it. In past years, he's been slinging it. He's been very low in his delivery, which makes everything flat.
"Now, the ball's coming out of his hand good. They're crisp, they're sharper. There's finish on them. We're talking about early in the spring here. I'm encouraged by what I see so far."
Garner emphasized that for a left-hander, velocity isn't as important as command. He's not concerned with what Hernandez registers on the radar gun as much as where the ball lands.
"Velocity for left-handers is overrated," Garner said. "It's hard for right-handers to be successful being below average with velocity. Left-handers can do it."
Hernandez is expected to contend for a spot in the rotation with last year's rookies, Ezequiel Astacio and Wandy Rodriguez. A trio of rookies -- Taylor Buchholz, Jason Hirsh and Fernando Nieve -- will also compete for jobs.
Hernandez isn't worried about his role, whether it's the bullpen or the rotation. He just wants another chance to prove he can pitch successfully on the highest level, and it appears the Astros believe he still has the talent to be a contributor.
"This is something new, a new beginning for me," Hernandez said. "We'll see what happens. If you wish for something so bad, you just go for it. That's what I've been doing the last three years."
The Astros took Hernandez off the 40-man roster last October, and he could have signed elsewhere over the winter. But he has a comfort level with the team that drafted, developed and promoted him to the big leagues as a 21-year-old in 2001. So he decided to sign as a Minor League free agent and spring invitee.
Hernandez has pitched in parts of three seasons for the Astros -- 2001, '02 and '04. He feels that experience will help him to reach his goal this time around.
"I think that's one thing that's helping me to get through all this stuff -- I've pitched in the big leagues already," he said. "I'm not a guy that had the surgery before I even made it to the big leagues. That's a huge step for me, because I've been there already."
Source: http://houston.astros.mlb.com/
KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Prior to the start of Spring Training, Carlos Hernandez was considered a candidate to make the Houston Astros' rotation. After five days of workouts, he's already making quite an impression on those who will decide his future.
Baseball life has been anything but easy for Hernandez since he made his Major League debut in 2001. Once considered the cream of the crop of pitching prospects, Hernandez hit a roadblock three years ago when he had surgery to repair a tear in the rotator cuff in his left shoulder.
Since then, he's worked to return to the Major Leagues, and more importantly, remain there. That alone is a big challenge, but Hernandez has an added burden because he's had to become an entirely different pitcher than the one he was when the Astros drafted him as a teenager in 1997.
Now approaching a still young age of 26, Hernandez has reinvented himself, having been forced to shed the flamethrower label he once wore. He used to live by his blazing fastball; now he's a finesse pitcher, relying heavily on a changeup while learning to make a slower fastball work in his favor.
"Back then, I used to be a hard thrower," Hernandez said. "Right now, I'm just trying to get guys out, hit spots, change speeds.
"I had to learn that, it was tough. It's still tough sometimes. You don't have the velocity like you used to. At the same time, my velocity's coming back. Maybe it's not going to be 94, 95 [mph], but it can be 91, 92."
Hernandez will pitch for his native Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic, which will likely be a blessing. He'll be in a competitive setting, playing games that matter to this proud Venezuelan, who described wearing his country's name on the front of his jersey as one of his childhood dreams.
The Astros will send a representative to watch Hernandez as he travels with the Venezuelan club, but they already have an idea of what to expect this spring. Al Pedrique, a top assistant to general manager Tim Purpura, managed Hernandez in winter ball. All reports were favorable -- his velocity is up, his curveball has new life and the changeup that worked for him toward the end of his Triple-A season last year is so good that he's turning to that pitch as he did with his fastball.
"He was making progress at the end of last year, too, so it's not like all of a sudden he's just back," Purpura said. "He's made a steady progression, he's worked very hard, and he's back at a point where he could be a legitimate contender for these spots [in the rotation]."
Manager Phil Garner now has a firsthand view of how far Hernandez has progressed in the last year, and so far, he likes what he sees.
"He has a much better arm angle," Garner said. "I see he's substantially throwing the ball properly with arm action now as opposed to slinging it. In past years, he's been slinging it. He's been very low in his delivery, which makes everything flat.
"Now, the ball's coming out of his hand good. They're crisp, they're sharper. There's finish on them. We're talking about early in the spring here. I'm encouraged by what I see so far."
Garner emphasized that for a left-hander, velocity isn't as important as command. He's not concerned with what Hernandez registers on the radar gun as much as where the ball lands.
"Velocity for left-handers is overrated," Garner said. "It's hard for right-handers to be successful being below average with velocity. Left-handers can do it."
Hernandez is expected to contend for a spot in the rotation with last year's rookies, Ezequiel Astacio and Wandy Rodriguez. A trio of rookies -- Taylor Buchholz, Jason Hirsh and Fernando Nieve -- will also compete for jobs.
Hernandez isn't worried about his role, whether it's the bullpen or the rotation. He just wants another chance to prove he can pitch successfully on the highest level, and it appears the Astros believe he still has the talent to be a contributor.
"This is something new, a new beginning for me," Hernandez said. "We'll see what happens. If you wish for something so bad, you just go for it. That's what I've been doing the last three years."
The Astros took Hernandez off the 40-man roster last October, and he could have signed elsewhere over the winter. But he has a comfort level with the team that drafted, developed and promoted him to the big leagues as a 21-year-old in 2001. So he decided to sign as a Minor League free agent and spring invitee.
Hernandez has pitched in parts of three seasons for the Astros -- 2001, '02 and '04. He feels that experience will help him to reach his goal this time around.
"I think that's one thing that's helping me to get through all this stuff -- I've pitched in the big leagues already," he said. "I'm not a guy that had the surgery before I even made it to the big leagues. That's a huge step for me, because I've been there already."
Source: http://houston.astros.mlb.com/
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