José Ernesto Hernández (born December 31, 1997) is a Dominican professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

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who is a free agent. He has previously played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB) for the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

Early life

Hernández is from Puerto Plata, where he grew up playing baseball and basketball.

Career

Los Angeles Dodgers

On May 12, 2016, the

Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

signed Hernández as an international

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

. He made his professional debut with the

Dominican Summer League Dodgers The Dominican Summer Dodgers are a minor league baseball team in the Dominican Summer League. The team plays in the Boca Chica Northwest division and is affiliated with the Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professi ...

. Returning to the DSL Dodgers in 2017, he recorded a 6–2 record and 2.52 ERA with 55 strikeouts in innings pitched across 15 appearances (14 starts). For the 2018 season, he played with the rookie-level

Arizona League Dodgers The Arizona Complex League Dodgers are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona. The team is compo ...

, registering a 2–1 record and 2.96 ERA with 38 strikeouts in innings pitched over 15 games. After missing the 2019 season because of injury, Hernández did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. In his return season, he made 32 appearances split between the Single-A

Rancho Cucamonga Quakes The Rancho Cucamonga Quakes are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Rancho Cucamonga, California, and play their home games at LoanMart Field. The franc ...

and High-A

Great Lakes Loons The Great Lakes Loons are a Minor League Baseball team of the Midwest League and the High-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They are located in Midland, Michigan, and play their home games at Dow Diamond, which opened in April 2007. Hist ...

, posting a 3–2 record and 4.37 ERA with 61 strikeouts in innings pitched. In 2022, Hernández played High-A Great Lakes and the Double-A

Tulsa Drillers The Tulsa Drillers are a minor league baseball team based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers major-league club. Stadium The Drillers play at ONEOK Field (pronounc ...

, accumulating a 4–4 record and 3.32 ERA with 69 strikeouts and eight saves in innings pitched.

Pittsburgh Pirates

On December 7, 2022, the

selected Hernández from the Dodgers in the

Rule 5 draft The Rule 5 draft is a Major League Baseball (MLB) player draft that occurs each year in December, at the annual Winter Meeting of general managers. The Rule 5 draft aims to prevent teams from stockpiling too many young players on their minor lea ...

. He made the Pirates’

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roster out of spring training in 2023 and made his debut with one scoreless inning of relief on April 1 against the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. The Reds compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Divisi ...

. His first MLB strikeout was of

Christian Arroyo Christian Israel Arroyo (born May 30, 1995) is an American professional baseball infielder in the Philadelphia Phillies organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Francisco Giants, Tampa Bay Rays, Cleveland ...

of the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

on April 4. In 50 relief outings during his rookie campaign, Hernández recorded a 4.97 ERA with 62 strikeouts across innings pitched. Hernandez was optioned to the Triple–A

Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory ...

prior to the 2024 season, but made the Opening Day roster after pitcher Roansy Contreras was placed on the MLB paternity list. In his first appearance of the season, Hernandez pitched a scoreless 12th inning to notch his first career save in a against the

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League East, East Division. The ...

. In seven games for the Pirates, he recorded a 3.38 ERA with four strikeouts across innings pitched. On June 11, he was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

Los Angeles Dodgers (second stint)

On June 13, 2024, Hernández was traded back to the Dodgers in exchange for cash considerations. He was removed from the 40–man roster and sent outright to the minor leagues on July 17. He pitched three scoreless innings on a rehab assignment for the rookie-level

Arizona Complex League Dodgers The Arizona Complex League Dodgers are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona. The team is compos ...

and then 18 innings for the Triple–A Oklahoma City Baseball Club, where he allowed nine earned runs for a 4.50 ERA with 14 strikeouts. Hernández returned to Oklahoma City for 2025, where he pitched innings in 21 games, compiling an 0-4 record and 4.94 ERA with 34 strikeouts. He was released by the Dodgers organization on June 22.https://www.milb.com/transactions/2025-06-22

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hernandez, Jose Living people 1997 births Baseball players from Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic Major League Baseball players from the Dominican Republic 21st-century Dominican Republic sportsmen Major League Baseball pitchers Pittsburgh Pirates players Dominican Summer League Dodgers players Arizona Complex League Dodgers players Arizona League Dodgers players Rancho Cucamonga Quakes players Great Lakes Loons players Tulsa Drillers players Indianapolis Indians players Tigres del Licey players Oklahoma City Baseball Club players Oklahoma City Comets players