The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Livan Hernandez, a National League refugee, pitched brilliantly on June 17 in a 2-1 Minnesota Twins victory over the Washington Nationals in interleague play at the Metrodome. Hernandez, who last year pitched for the Arizona Diamondbacks, went seven innings to become the winning pitcher, giving up five hits and one earned run. He threw 77 pitches, 50 of them for strikes.

Hernandez’s first year in the American League has been like a ride on a hellish rollercoaster, some of it good, some of it bad, some of it ugly.

The Good

• In his first nine starts in 2008, Livan won six, losing only two.
• The Twins are 11-5 in Hernandez’s 16 starts this season.
• He is one of four current major leaguers with at least 10 years of service time who have never been placed on a disabled list.
• In 2007, he became one of three active pitchers in the major leagues to make 30 or more starts in each of the previous 10 seasons.
• Livan has reached the 200-inning mark for eight consecutive seasons.
• Is fifth on the all-time win list for Cuban-born pitchers, behind Camilo Pascual’s 174 wins. (Livan currently has 151 career wins).