CLEVELAND -- Cleveland Guardians reliever Carlos Hernandez disclosed he was texting while driving in January when he crashed his car in Venezuela and suffered multiple career-threatening injuries.
Hernandez was added to Cleveland’s 40-man roster on Tuesday, allowing the right-hander to complete his journey back to the majors.
“I feel like I’m here just as a testament of God’s will,” Hernandez said through an interpreter while sitting in the Guardians’ dugout during batting practice. “Otherwise, there’s no way to explain what has happened to me for normal words.”
Hernandez, who appeared in five games for the Guardians last season, was pulled from the wreckage after crashing on Jan. 11. The 29-year-old said he was driving with his brother-in-law and a good friend when he became distracted.
He suffered a broken right femur, sprained ankle, broken left arm and “deep cut in my arm that it was almost to the bone.”
“I want it to serve as a reminder not to drive and text,” he said. “The accident happened right when I was texting in the middle of driving and it was very intense. It was very serious injuries. I was really scared, but I hope this serves as a reminder not to drive and text.”
Hernandez, who has spent most of this season rehabbing at Triple-A Columbus, said the other passengers were also hurt but have recovered.
“Thankfully, everybody’s alive,” he said.
Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said he was in contact with Hernandez following the accident.
“I spoke with him a little bit right after it happened and then spoke with him a couple times when he got to Arizona,” Vogt said. “But the main thing was just checking on him and his family and making sure that they were OK and that he was OK.
“Some things are way bigger than baseball. It’s pretty incredible that he’s back on the mound getting back to the big leagues. I’m sure he and his family are very proud.”
Hernandez has spent the bulk of his career with Kansas City, pitching for the Royals from 2020-24. He was with Philadelphia, Detroit and Cleveland last season.
