Michel Hernandez, catcher

After the Orioles released him, where did he end up?

He hooked up with the Indians’ organization, and played with Akron and Columbus.

Could he have been a major-leaguer?

First off, he wouldn’t have been a regular, because he has zero power. However, it does seem odd that he didn’t get a real shot at a backup role. Hernandez, a Cuban refugee, signed with the Yankees and started his career at 19. He struggled with the bat at first, but his age 23 and 24 seasons were pretty good, with batting averages in the .290 range in the high minors. He was the odd man out in some roster moves, and got claimed on waivers by two different teams. He then settled in as a .260-range hitter as an AAA lifer. Hernandez wasn’t a great defensive catcher, but if he had ended up in the right organization at 24 he might have had a long-term job as a backup.

The weird thing about Hernandez is that he’s never been a real full-time catcher, playing around 80 games a year. I wonder if he just doesn’t have the durability or stamina to be a full-time catcher. You might think that it wouldn’t matter as a backup, but you do want your backup to be able catch five or six games in a row if the regular suffers a minor injury. If Hernandez wasn’t physically able to go back-to-back, teams might not consider him for a job.