It has been no mystery as to how Darwinzon Hernandez wants this story to end up.
In his mind, starting pitching is undoubtedly his preferred landing spot.
"We haven’t had those discussions yet, but obviously whatever the team needs for me to do," said the Red Sox lefty when asked about his role now that he has been called up to the big leagues after his battle with COVID-19. "If they want me to be a starter, I’ll be a starter. If they want me to be a reliever, I’ll be a reliever. All I’m trying to do is just help the team as much as I can to win. Obviously, as you all know, I see myself as a starter because that’s what I’ve always been. But, in terms of the role that they see best fit for me, it doesn’t really matter. But obviously my desire would be to start."
But what about the Red Sox?
As Hernandez's first season in the majors unfurled, it became more and more evident the Sox had no issues with the 23-year-old becoming a late-inning weapon out of the bullpen for years to come. Sure, he had come up through the minors as a starting pitcher, but it was tough to ignore how well the relieving role fit Hernandez, who only started one of his 29 appearances in 2019.
By the time he threw his last pitch during his debut season, Hernandez had struck out 57 batters in just 30 1/3 innings.
It wasn't about gameplans or getting through an order multiple times. It was just pure stuff missing a lot of bats, with just enough command thrown in to offer end-of-game confidence.
But in recent months the tune from the Red Sox has seemed to sound a little different.
With the organization starving for high-end talent in the starting rotation, manager Ron Roenicke and Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom don't exactly stiff-arm the idea of Hernandez evolving back into a starter at some point this season.
"As we go on, we’ll see what we feel like," Roenicke said prior to Thursday night's game in Baltimore. "We’ll see if Chaim and the crew and us down here if we feel like that we want to try to start him or if we like him so much in the bullpen that we just keep him there to make really a difference in having a length with a guy you really like in that role."
Hernandez, of course, could land somewhere in between, with the Red Sox' continuous need for openers and bulk relievers.
"If we like the possibility of looking at him as an opener or really a true starter depending on how long he’s stretched out, we may do that," the Sox manager explained. "I don’t want to say we’re going to do one or the other. I think we’re going to look at what goes on, see where we think he can get out there and really and succeed. Whatever that is, we’ll make sure we’re trying to do it."
It's no question that the idea of Hernandez starting is an intriguing one made his name in the role, starting 86 of his 112 minor league games. The issue has always been command, with his 15 walks in three starts with Pawtucket last season serving as a reminder. And during his stint in the majors his OPS-against jumped from .473 when getting the first strike to .894 on at-bats that included ball one.