Marlins’ Elieser Hernandez returns from latest injury. His goal: ‘Finish the season strong’
It has been a trying year for Elieser Hernandez.
Two separate injured list stints — first with right biceps inflammation in April, then a right quad strain in June — have limited Hernandez to just two starts at the MLB level and essentially kept him away from the Miami Marlins all season.
All he can do now is use this final six-week stretch as an attempt to salvage something from an otherwise lost season.
“Finish the season strong,” Hernandez said. “That’s all I want.”
Sunday was a step in the right direction.
Hernandez was steady in the Marlins’ 4-1 win over the Chicago Cubs to complete a three-game series sweep at loanDepot park. The 26-year-old righty held the Cubs to one earned run on four hits, a walk and a hit by pitch while striking out four over 5 1/3 innings.
He threw 82 pitches, 57 of which went for strikes and 10 of which were swings and misses by Cubs hitters.
“I feel well,” Hernandez said. “It felt really good, great, to be on the field again. It’s something great that I can look forward to many things in the future now.”
Hernandez retired the first six batters he faced before giving up a leadoff single to Robinson Chirinos and a walk to Andrew Romine in the third. He got out of the jam by striking out pitcher Alex Mills, inducing a popup against Rafael Ortega and getting Frank Schwindel to fly out to left field.
Schwindel scored the Cubs’ only run against Hernandez by sending a 90.5 mph four-seam fastball painted at the top of the strike zone an estimated 422 feet to center field to lead off the sixth inning.
“A lot of strikes,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. “A lot of attack.”
Hernandez primarily relied on a fastball-slider combo to get through the start.
He also threw his changeup, a pitch he has been working to reincorporate into his arsenal, nine times. He adjusted his grip on the pitch while on his second rehab assignment in Triple A Jacksonville.
The results on Sunday: two swings and misses, a called strike, a pair of groundouts, two balls and a softly hit single.
“It’s a pitch that’s working for me so far,” Hernandez said, “and I’m looking forward to keep using it and having good results with it.”
Hernandez’s return also signals another positive step for the Marlins.
For what seems like the first time this season, Miami has a full starting rotation at the big league level.
The Marlins’ starting rotation has been in a state of disarray all season. First, they were without Sixto Sanchez (season-ending shoulder surgery) and Hernandez. Pablo Lopez (right rotator cuff strain) has been out sine the All-Star break. Trevor Rogers (first family medal emergency list, then bereavement list) has not started since July 31.
In total, the Marlins have used 17 different starting pitchers this year, a franchise record. That includes relief pitchers making a combined 10 starts on bullpen days. Rookies Zach Thompson and Braxton Garrett have earned regular starts in the rotation, while others (Nick Neidert, Jordan Holloway, Daniel Castano and Cody Poteet, to name a few) had spot successes while up in the big leagues and/or have also missed time with injuries.
“You see how many guys we’ve ended up using,” Mattingly said. “It’s going to be positive for some guys that have gotten opportunities and gained experience, but Elieser’s solid. He’s a good starter. He’s consistent pretty much every time out. So you start looking at Pablo, Sandy, Trevor and you throw him into the mix, it just would have been another consistent starter for us where we wouldn’t have been pulling guys and moving starters back and forth. It just would have been a more consistent rotation for us.”
With Hernandez back, they might finally have another piece to create that more consistent rotation to close out the season.
“It’s been a hard year for me,” Hernandez said. I’ve never had this many injuries but I kept myself very positive mentally and now we’re here and looking for positive results.”
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