Former big league Infielder Jose Miguel Fernandez has signed on for another season with Korea’s Doosan Bears, per a team announcement (via Yonhap News; h/t to Dan Kurtz of MyKBO). It’s said to be a $450K deal with the potential to double the value via incentives.
Fernandez was among the notable players we highlighted earlier in the offseason in a series checking in on previous affiliated performers who moved to Asia’s top leagues. He had raked at Triple-A and hit well enough in a brief MLB debut in 2018, but evidently didn’t generate much interest on this side of the Pacific last winter.
Now 31 years of age, Fernandez was slow in reaching the professional ranks. He had a harder-than-usual time in navigating the geopolitical minefield facing all Cuban ballplayers. Despite defecting in the fall of 2014, he didn’t sign with the Dodgers until early 2017.
Fernandez is the quintessential professional hitter. He has some power but stands out most for his combination of exceptional plate discipline and ability to hit for average. He led the Korea Baseball Organization last year in hits while recording more walks (61) than strikeouts (54). Fernandez ended his first season in Korea’s top league with an excellent .344/.413/.483 batting line and 15 home runs over 645 plate appearances.
He can just call himself Jose Fernandez now, the other one’s gone♂️
guess you’ve never heard of Jose Manuel Hernandez
Pretty sure that’s not a thing as he debuted stateside a year after the pitcher passed away.
seems like he could have been a Boggs type option for Josh Donaldson suitors.
He’s a horrid defender defender at both 2nd and 3rd. He doesn’t possess much pop. You don’t question the contact really, but his offensive profile doesn’t work at 1st and his defensive profile doesn’t play at 3rd.
Like, former Rangers great Brandon Boggs? Or Mitch Boggs? Surely you don’t mean Wade Boggs?
i can hardly believe he couldnt get more here.
Not sure about that, but I’m surprised he did not get more there considering the year he just had.
well i mean its less then the MLB minimum that he is getting, and im sure that’s a small price to pay for slick hitting depth at the corners.
Good for him. I thought he’d done enough to warrant another MLB gig, but he’s getting paid well.
Seems like he could be a good bench piece, especially with the addition of the 26th man
This guy is a legit major league bat. He’d be an upgrade for a lot of teams. The way people think they need power out of certain positions is flawed. You need production and he could provide it.