Junior

Fernandez

The Royals didn’t say if Fernández was going to get an invitation to spring training, but that’s a relatively small detail. The right-hander signed with the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan, but he appeared in just two games in the NPB. Once considered among the better relief prospects in baseball, Fernández will need to pitch exceptionally well this spring to be anything more than depth for Kansas City in 2025.

Fernández heads overseas for 2024 after spending all of last season in the minor leagues between the Blue Jays and Nationals. The 26-year-old righty has made 50 career relief appearances in the big leagues since 2019.

Fernández hasn’t pitched in the majors this season, but has made 50 career relief appearances dating back to 2019. The 26-year-old righty has posted a lackluster 5.69 ERA, 1.71 WHIP and 46/26 K/BB ratio across 49 innings (42 appearances) this season at the Triple-A level.

No real surprises here but Bard and Fernández seem like the most likely to get the call to Toronto as extra bullpen depth at some point this season.

Fernández went unclaimed on waivers after being designated for assignment last week and remain with the Blue Jays as extra relief depth. The 25-year-old right-hander made a trio of relief appearances last season for the Pirates and holds an underwhelming 5.17 ERA, 1.72 WHIP and 47/35 K/BB ratio across 54 innings (50 appearances) in the big leagues dating back to 2019.

Fernández was just claimed off waivers last month from the division-rival Yankees and has been jettisoned from the Blue Jays’ 40-man roster to make room for newly-acquired righty Zach Thompson. The flame-throwing 25-year-old righty made 16 relief appearances last season between the Pirates and Cardinals. There should be some interest again on waivers.

Fernández was designated for assignment by the Yankees last month to open up a 40-man roster spot for the re-signing of Aaron Judge. The hard-throwing 25-year-old right-hander posted a shiny 2.41 ERA in 18 2/3 innings between the Cardinals and Pirates in 2022, but he’s dealt with command issues at all levels. Call him a bullpen project for Toronto.

Fernández was claimed off waivers from the Pirates earlier this winter, but he now gets the boot to reopen a 40-man roster spot for Aaron Judge. The 25-year-old right-hander should be able to find a new home via waivers after showing a bit of promise (2.41 ERA in 18 2/3 innings) between St. Louis and Pittsburgh last season.

It’s surprising Fernández made it that far on waivers. His track record is mixed at best -- he has a 5.17 ERA and a 47/35 K/BB ratio in 54 innings as a major leaguer since debuting in 2019 -- but he throws 97-100 mph and has a fine groundball rate. Someone is eventually going to turn him into useful reliever and maybe an excellent one.

The 25-year-old hurler is one of many Pirates that were shuffled off of the 40-man roster on Tuesday. Fernandez did a nice job in his limited time at the big league level in 2022 -- posting a 2.41 ERA, 1.61 WHIP and 14/12 K/BB ratio across 18 2/3 innings between the Cardinals and Pirates. There’s a chance that he could generate some interest on waivers.