The Arizona Diamondbacks have signed catcher Ronaldo Hernandez to a minor-league deal. The 26-year-old was originally signed by the Tampa Bay Rays and made his professional debut in the 2015 season. More recently, he spent the 2023 season at the Triple-A level in the Red Sox organization, swatting 17 home runs alongside a .242 batting average across 99 games played. Overall, the righty-swinging backstop owns a career .279 average with 91 HR across 636 games played in the minor leagues. He will presumably serve as Triple-A catching depth for the reigning NL champs in the 2024 campaign.
The Boston Red Sox acquired catching prospect Ronaldo Hernandez and infield prospect Nick Sogard from the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday in exchange for right-hander Chris Mazza, left-hander Jeffrey Springs and cash considerations. Hernandez was Tampa's No. 14 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. The 23-year-old has a really strong arm and hit .265 with nine home runs and 60 RBI at High-A in 2019. Sogard, 23, was a 12th-round pick in 2019 and hit .290 with 20 steals in 63 games for Class A Short Season. Mazza pitched in nine games last year (six starts), posting a 4.80 ERA and 29 K's in 30 innings. He has a 5.05 ERA in 18 big-league appearances in two seasons. Springs made 16 relief outings in 2020 and had a rough 7.08 ERA in 20 1/3 innings.
