Felix Hernandez, six-time All-Star and 2010 American League Cy Young Award winner, signed a contract with the Baltimore Orioles for a minor league for the 2021 season, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network. Hernandez will win $ 1 million.
Hernandez, 35 in early April, has not played in the majors since 2019. Although he signed with the Atlanta Braves last season and played in spring training, he dropped out before the 60-game season started in July. Hernandez has struggled to find traction in recent years: since 2017, he posted an ERA of 5.42 (77 ERA +) and a streak to walk ratio of 2.36 out of 314 entries launched.
For Hernandez’s career, he accumulated 117 ERA + and 50.3 wins over substitution, according to Baseball-Reference calculations. All 419 of his games in the major league regular season have been with the Seattle Mariners. It is interesting to note that Hernandez never appeared in the postseason.
Hernandez is a two-time ERA champion and has received the Cy Young Award in six seasons, most recently in 2015. He will enter the season with 169 career wins, although the chances of reaching 200, let alone 300, have fallen on the side of the road.
The Orioles are designed to be again one of the worst teams in baseball. Baltimore switched to Alex Cobb earlier this week, leaving the O’s without much of a hitch for their rotation out of perhaps John Means and Jorge Lopez (who is out of options). Other competitors for the Orioles rotation include Keegan Akin, Dean Kremer and Bruce Zimmermann. The Orioles also recently signed southpaw Wade LeBlanc for a minor league, suggesting he has a chance to give up the club.
Other notable additions from Baltimore in this off-season were shortstop Freddy Galvis, second baseman Yolmer Sanchez and Rule 5 pitchers, Mac Sceroler and Tyler Wells.