Right-hander Roberto Hernandez took a step closer to returning to the mound for the Cleveland Indians as Roberto Hernandez.
When he last pitched for the Tribe, Hernandez was known as Fausto Carmona but his real identity was revealed after Hernandez was arrested for fraud by Dominican Republic authorities in January. After recently getting cleared to return to the United States, Hernandez made his way to the mound for the Class A Lake County Captains with hopes of returning to the major leagues soon.
Hernandez is now serving a three-week suspension from Major League Baseball due to his arrest and it appears he may be ready to pitch at the Major League level when allowed. According to Cleveland assistant director of player personnel, Carter Hawkins, Hernandez has impressed since his return and looked good in Thursday night's game.
Hernandez threw 66 pitches, 44 for strikes. For the most part his velocity ranged between 89 and 92 mph. He topped out at 93 and dropped to 85 in the fourth and fifth innings.
"That's what he's thrown the last couple of years," said Hawkins. "He can get major-league outs with that. It's just a matter of command."
Hernandez threw five innings, allowing six hits, three runs, just one earned, no walks, four strike outs, and one home run. But the specific numbers weren't as important to Hernandez as the process moving the pitcher a step closer to returning to the mound for the Indians.
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