Evelio Hernandez, a Cuban-born pitcher for the Washington Senators
in the 1950s, passed away Friday December 18, 2015 at his home in Miami, Florida, just days shy of his 85th birthday. The reporting of his
death was confirmed by former Almendares teammate Cholly Naranjo.
Born December 24, 1930 in Guanabacoa, Cuba, the right-handed pitcher
was signed into the Washington Senators organization in 1954 by the
legendary scout Joe Cambria. It was during that winter that Hernandez
had his first taste of winter ball, pitching two games for Almendares en
route to a Cuban League Championship.
Hernandez used the lesson he learned from the veterans during the
1954-55 winter ball season to amass 23 victories in 1955 for
Washington’s Class C team in Hobbs, New Mexico. This earned him a
promotion to Class A Charlotte in 1956. His domination on the mound
continued, and after going 18-4, the Senators called him up in
September. He pitched four games, earning his first major league win with a complete game 7-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on September 29, 1956.
He returned to the Senators in 1957 in a more prominent role as he made the club out of spring training. He pitched in 14 games without a decision before being sent to the minors in June. While he would pitch professionally until 1967, he never returned to the major leagues. He finished his career in Washington with a 1-1 record and a 4.45 ERA in 18 games.
Hernandez found success in the Mexican League, pitching for Monterrey from 1959-1967. On August 10, 1966, he threw what was at the time only the 11th no-hitter in the league’s history, blanking Puebla 2-0. It was a banner season for Hernandez, who pitched in 40 games that season, starting 31 and completing 15.
After his baseball career was over, Hernandez passed on his tremendous knowledge and experience to the youth of Miami, serving as a high school baseball coach for over 20 years. As the head coach at Loyola Miami, he led the baseball team to five Class A state championships during his tenure.
* -Ed. Note - The date of his passing has been corrected to Friday December 18, 2015. Also, his birth year has been reported in his funeral home obituary as 1930, instead of the 1931 as listed in the MLB database.
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| Evelio Hernandez |
He returned to the Senators in 1957 in a more prominent role as he made the club out of spring training. He pitched in 14 games without a decision before being sent to the minors in June. While he would pitch professionally until 1967, he never returned to the major leagues. He finished his career in Washington with a 1-1 record and a 4.45 ERA in 18 games.
Hernandez found success in the Mexican League, pitching for Monterrey from 1959-1967. On August 10, 1966, he threw what was at the time only the 11th no-hitter in the league’s history, blanking Puebla 2-0. It was a banner season for Hernandez, who pitched in 40 games that season, starting 31 and completing 15.
After his baseball career was over, Hernandez passed on his tremendous knowledge and experience to the youth of Miami, serving as a high school baseball coach for over 20 years. As the head coach at Loyola Miami, he led the baseball team to five Class A state championships during his tenure.
* -Ed. Note - The date of his passing has been corrected to Friday December 18, 2015. Also, his birth year has been reported in his funeral home obituary as 1930, instead of the 1931 as listed in the MLB database.