FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Darwinzon Hernandez is a bit behind.
The 23-year-old lefty has only pitched once in spring training so far, having had to recently return to the Dominican Republic due to a death in his family. The plan now is for Hernandez to throw in a simulated game Thursday (the Red Sox' off day).
"We’re hoping not," said Red Sox' interim manager Ron Roenicke when asked if Hernandez's hiatus had put his availability for Opening Day in doubt. "If everything goes well with him we should be fine. He threw some when he was gone."
The bigger question is when Hernandez does hit the regular season how will he be used?
With the current holes in the starting rotation, it's fair to suggest Hernandez might be an option. But while that might be on the table down the road, Roenicke doesn't see starting in the southpaw's immediate future.
"We still hadn’t planned on him starting the season as a starter," the interim manager said. "I think everybody knows that he’s got a possibility down the road to be a starter, but at the time right now, we want him really confident. He made big steps last year when he came up with us. His command was, I thought, really good last year. He had one game where I thought emotionally it kind of got away from him, but he was doing that quite a bit in the minor leagues, so I think the jump from last year has everybody feeling great about him. And if he continues to do this, and the maturity is good, as a stater, your makeup has to be a lot different because you’ve got to be able to bounce back from innings. As a reliever, you're out of the game. So, I think, just his maturity. If he succeeds, the confidence with grow. And I think down the road, that may allow him to be a starter."
An interesting option in the meantime remains where Hernandez might fit in if the Red Sox decide to go with an Opener. It's why the Red Sox are planning on stretching him out a bit one season after he turned in just two relief outings of two innings or more.
"If we can do that, he could be a two-inning guy," Roenicke said. "We could keep pushing him and make him three innings if we need him, and depending on what we do with that fifth spot in the rotation, he could be one of those guys we use as an opener or the second guy who comes in after an Opener."