Cesar Hernandez was a point of agony for Phillies fans in recent years
For years, Cesar Hernandez was an average baseball player for the Phillies. There were times he was terrible, times he was great, and other times where he just did his job and filled a role.
Signed by the Phillies out of Venezuela in 2006, Hernandez came up through the organization’s minor league system to be one of their more accomplished international prospects in recent memory. He took over for the greatest second baseman in team history, Chase Utley, and was versatile enough to move across the diamond when needed.
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Hernandez put up back to back seasons hitting .294 in 2016-17 and led the league with 11 triples in 2016. His batting average dipped and his power went up, but he was a decent leadoff man with some speed and pop atop the lineup.
By the end of 2019, it was clear that Scott Kingery was set to take over the second base spot. Unable to trade Hernandez, the Phillies let him walk by non-tendering him in the offseason.
Twenty-seven days after becoming a free agent, Hernandez signed with the Cleveland Indians to be their starting second baseman.
Through his first 21 games, Hernandez is doing much of the same with the Indians, hitting .268 but with no triples or home runs this year. His 0.5 WAR is Cleveland’s second-best among hitters so far and he’s committed only two errors thus far.
Among starting second basemen in Phillies history, Hernandez is in the top-five in nearly every offensive category behind Utley, Juan Samuel, and Mickey Morandini.