Ramón Hernández

Infobox MLB player
name = Ramón Hernández

---

width = 250
caption =
team = Baltimore Orioles
number = 55
position = Catcher
birthdate = birth date and age|1976|5|20
birthplace = Caracas, Venezuela
bats = Right
throws = Right
debutdate = June 29
debutyear = 1999
debutteam = Oakland Athletics
statyear = 2008
stat1label = Games
stat1value = 1188
stat2label = Batting average
stat2value = .263
stat3label = Home runs
stat3value = 137
stat4label = Runs batted in
stat4value = 602
teams =
*Oakland Athletics (by|1999-by|2003)
*San Diego Padres (by|2004-by|2005)
*Baltimore Orioles (by|2006-present)
awards =
*All-Star selection (by|2003)

Ramón José Hernández [IPA|/ɾa.ˈmon ɛɾ.ˈnan.dɛθ/] (born May 20, 1976 in Caracas, Venezuela) is a Major League Baseball catcher and right-handed batter who plays for the Baltimore Orioles. Previously, he played with the Oakland Athletics (by|1999-by|2003) and San Diego Padres (by|2004-by|2005).

Career

Hernández is a career .262 hitter with 137 home runs, 572 RBI, and 455 runs scored in 1,132 games throughout his 10 seasons with the Oakland Athletics, San Diego Padres, and Baltimore Orioles.

1999-2003

Hernández made his debut with Oakland in June 1999 as a backup catcher for A.J. Hinch. His steady progress enabled the Athletics to trade Hinch to the Kansas City Royals a year later.

With experience, Hernández became known as a catcher who could solidly hit, mentor young pitchers and had steady defense. He earned praise for his defense and game-calling skills with a powerful pitching staff that included Cy Young Award winner Barry Zito, Mark Mulder and Tim Hudson.

In 2003, Hernández broke out with his best season, hitting .273 with 21 home runs and 78 RBI and made his first All-Star Game. His most memorable moment as an Athletic came in Game 1 of the 2003 ALDS against the Boston Red Sox. With the bases loaded, two outs, and two strikes in the bottom of the 12th inning, Hernandez bunted down the third base line, which scored Eric Chavez to win the game. After the season, Oakland traded him to the Padres, mainly for financial reasons. At the time of the deal, Hernández had caught at least 135 games each of the last four years.

2004-2005

In both 2004 and 2005, Hernandez battled injuries. In 2004, he missed four weeks mid-season after injuring his left knee in a collision at the plate. Upon his return, he batted .281 with 11 home runs with 38 RBI in the second part. He finished the 2004 season with a .276 batting average, 18 home runs, and 63 RBI. In 2005, he suffered a wrist injury on June 17 while diving into first base during a game against the Twins. His jammed wrist forced him to the disabled list, causing him to miss 18 games. Hernández returned to the lineup on July 7, but the condition worsened and he decided to have surgery to repair the torn cartilage. The surgery forced Hernández to the DL for the third time in two seasons, and he missed the entire month of August. He rejoined the team in time for the September stretch run, and was pivotal in the Padres' run to the National League West championship. Hernández hit .359 in September with five home runs, and drove in 20 runs in just 22 games. He came up with several clutch hits, including two dramatic game-winning home runs: a three-run walk-off shot against Washington in the 12th inning on September 17, and a grand slam against division rival San Francisco just 10 days later. He finished the season with a .290 average and 12 home runs, and became one of baseball's more coveted players in the winter's free agent market.

2006

Before the by|2006 season, Hernández signed a $27.5 million, four-year contract to play for the Baltimore Orioles. The contract includes a team option for the 2010 season as well. In his introductory press conference, Hernández spoke excitedly about working with a young pitching staff, hitting in Camden Yards and helping the team become a contender. He also expressed optimism about spending the next four years with Miguel Tejada as a teammate (Tejada was traded to the Astros before the by|2008 season). Hernández and Tejada played in Oakland for almost five years, and they are godfathers to each other's children. Hernández would compile a respectable .275 batting average in 2006 with 23 home runs and 91 RBI. Veterans Chris Widger and Danny Ardoin served as Hernández's backups throughout the season.

Highlights

* All-Star (2003)
* Set Oakland record in games caught (142, 2000; one more than Ray Fosse, 1973)
* Ranked fifth in home runs and RBI among 21 major league catchers (15 and 60 in 2001, behind Mike Piazza, Jorge Posada, Javy López and Charles Johnson.)
* Was the 2,000 career strikeout of Andy Pettite on September 21, 2008 in the final game of Yankee Stadium.

See also

* List of Baltimore Orioles Opening Day Starting Lineups
* Top 500 home run hitters of all time

External links

* [http://www.baseball-reference.com/h/hernara02.shtml Baseball Reference]
* [http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6258 ESPN]
* [http://members.tripod.com/bb_catchers/catchers/hernandezr.htm Encyclopedia of Baseball Catchers]