Boston manager Alex Cora said Hernandez will pitch out of the bullpen and envisions using him late in games, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports. "As of now, we're going to treat him as a reliever. We do believe that stuff-wise, he can give us big outs late in games," Cora said.

EDGE Analysis

The question of whether Hernandez would return to being a starter, as he was throughout his minor-league career, has been posed since the power lefty arrived at the major-league level in 2019. Cora added that plans could change, but for now, Hernandez will pitch the last third of games. That theoretically puts him in line to close out contests for a team that has not yet named its closer.