There's a good chance that Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Carlos Hernández will find himself the odd man out when the next roster shuffle happens.
The bullpen had a rather conspicuous start to the 2025 season. But now, as the relievers start to get themselves sorted out a month and a half into the campaign, Hernández is one expendable bullpen arm who the team doesn't need to worry about holding on to.
Carlos Hernández has worn out his welcome on the Phillies' roster
Claimed off waivers from the Kansas City Royals right before Opening Day, the big right-hander has shown some impressive fastball velocity. But that's about it.
His primary pitch is a 97.7 mph four-seamer, which has been recorded at over 99 mph this season. Aside from ranking in the 94th percentile in fast ball velocity, the rest of the 28-year-old's Statcast sliders are very short, very blue and very uninspiring.
Hernández has a 6.75 ERA through 16 innings over 16 appearances. The only Phillies reliever he ranks ahead of in ERA is Jordan Romano, who has turned things around and has been the team's best bullpen arm in May. Hernández has a 7.20 ERA in May, which is the worst in the bullpen. Hernández's 1.94 WHIP also ranks last among Phillies relievers.
It's not even like Hernández has been unlucky. With an 8.26 xERA, it looks more like he has been lucky to have just a 6.75 ERA so far.
Despite his big fastball, he doesn't get whiffs or strikeouts. He has only 14 strikeouts, with an underwhelming 9.5 percent swinging strike rate and 17.1 strikeout rate. He has also allowed an alarming 10 walks, with a 12.2 percent walk rate.
As a team with World Series aspirations, Hernández isn't an arm that should be with the club for the long run this year. His most recent outing in the back-half of Wednesday's doubleheader might be the last appearance the front office will need to see from him before making a move.
With the Phillies down 12-7 in the ninth inning of a game that everyone wanted to be done with, Hernández came in and extended the Phillies' misery a little longer. He managed just two outs before being removed, allowing the Cardinals to score two more runs on three hits and one walk.
With right-hander José Ruiz currently on a rehab assignment in Triple-A, Hernandez might be on borrowed time. He has no minor league options remaining, so will have to be designated for assignment and passed through waivers if the Phillies want to send him to Lehigh Valley to keep his arm in the organization.
If he is cut loose at some point, it definitely won't be a loss that Phillies fans will be torn up about.