Cleveland Guardians Dump Long-Time Pitcher After ALCS Loss

Cleveland Guardians relief pitcher Carlos Hernández has elected free agency, joining fellow right-hander Connor Brogdon in the move announced this week after the club’s season ended, via the MiLB transaction log.

The decision is largely procedural for players who finished the year in the minors and holds the right to test the open market once their team’s campaign concludes.

Hernández, a 6-foot-4, 255-pound right-hander from Ciudad Guayana, Venezuela, has been in the majors since his September 1, 2020, debut with the Kansas City Royals.

He spent the bulk of his early career with Kansas City (2020–24), appearing in 150 games with 25 starts and posting a 4.95 ERA across 256 1/3 innings.

After the Royals, he bounced among the Philadelphia Phillies, Detroit Tigers, and Guardians in 2025.

With Cleveland late that season, he logged a 3.86 ERA in five appearances covering seven innings before electing free agency and returning on a minor-league contract in November 2025.

His 2026 season was defined by a serious car accident in Venezuela in January. Hernández was texting while driving when the vehicle crashed; he suffered a broken right femur, a broken left arm, a sprained ankle, and a deep laceration. The injuries sidelined him for months and raised questions about whether he would pitch again.

He began a rehab assignment in early July, worked his way back to Triple-A Columbus, and was selected to the major-league roster on September 1 when active rosters expanded.

In two relief outings, he allowed two runs over three innings (6.00 ERA) with four strikeouts before the Guardians designated him for assignment on September 4. He cleared waivers and was outrighted to Columbus.

Across seven major-league seasons, Hernández has made 193 appearances (25 starts), posting an 8-19 record, 5.14 ERA, and 269 strikeouts in 302 2/3 innings.

He has long been one of the harder throwers in the game, with a four-seam fastball that has averaged near or above 98 mph, complemented by a splitter and slider.

Command has been the persistent challenge—career walk rates hover around 11 percent—and he has not consistently generated the swing-and-miss expected from that velocity.

At age 29 (he turns 30 in March), Hernández will likely seek a minor-league deal with a spring-training invitation.

Teams still value the raw arm strength, and his recovery from a near career-ending injury underscores both the resilience and the uncertainty that define the later stages of many relievers’ careers.

Whether he sticks in the majors again will depend on finding a club willing to bet on the stuff once more.