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2021 DRaysBay Community Prospect List special election: C/OF Heriberto Hernandez

It’s the most wonderful time of the year!

By Daniel Russell
Tampa Bay Rays v Baltimore Orioles Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images

Previous Winner:

SS Greg Jones (S/R, 6’2 175, 23 in 2021)

2019 statistics with short-season Hudson Valley: 218 PA, .335/.413/.461, 19/27 SB, 18 XBH, 10.1 BB%, 25.7 K%

Jones may have been considered raw coming out of UNC Wilmington, but he got his pro career off to a great start. He was third in the New York-Penn League in average, second in on-base percentage, and seventh in slugging percentage. His best tool is his speed. He may never hit for much power, but he should take good at-bats and get his bat on the ball to make use of his speed. He was a late addition to the team’s alternate site in 2020.

Jones, like Ronaldo Hernandez before him, has been gathering votes for many rounds and finally slots in approximately where the Community had him last year.

Here’s the full list to date:

2021 Community prospect list

Rank Player Votes Total Percentage Last season
Rank Player Votes Total Percentage Last season
1 SS Wander Franco 24 39 61.5% 1
2 OF Randy Arozarena 33 33 100.0% 9
3 IF Vidal Brujan 20 34 58.8% 3
4 RHP Luis Patino Special election N/A
5 LHP Shane McClanahan 11 29 37.9% 6
6 RHP Shane Baz 19 28 67.9% 4
7 DH/LHP Brendan McKay 19 31 61.3% 2
8 OF Josh Lowe 9 27 33.3% 5
9 IF Xavier Edwards 14 34 41.2% 8
10 IF Taylor Walls 10 28 35.7% 15
11 RHP Brent Honeywell Jr. 10 27 37.0% 11
12 C/OF Heriberto Hernandez Special election N/A
13 RHP Cole Wilcox Special election N/A
14 C Ronaldo Hernandez 8 21 38.1% 10
14 SS Greg Jones 13 25 52.0% 12
15 SS Carlos Colmenarez Special election N/A
16 C Blake Hunt Special election N/A
17 RHP Joe Ryan 14 25 56.0% 13
18 LHP Josh Fleming 11 21 52.4% 26
19 RHP JJ Goss 8 25 32.0% 16
20 RHP Seth Johnson 15 25 60.0% 24
21 RHP Nick Bitsko 10 25 40.0% N/A
22 3B Kevin Padlo 17 27 63.0% 14
23 SS Alejandro Pie 6 20 30.0% 31
24 SS Alika Williams 7 18 38.9% N/A
25 IF Osleivis Basabe 6 17 35.3% N/A
26 RHP Taj Bradley 5 18 27.8% 22
27 C Ford Proctor 5 18 27.8% 40
28 RHP Drew Strotman 12 20 60.0% 32
29 LHP Ian Seymour 6 17 35.3% N/A
30 LHP John Doxakis
31 IF Esteban Quiroz
32 OF Jhon Diaz
33 IF Pedro Martinez
34 OF Nick Schnell
35 RHP Michael Mercado
36 SS Abiezel Ramirez
37 RP Ryan Thompson
38 RHP Sandy Gaston
39 LHP Michael Plassmeyer
40 IF Curtis Mead
41 OF Niko Hulsizer
42 OF Moises Gomez

Now for the fun.

For the second in as many years, a prospect has entered the fray with enough potential to force a special election!

Here’s how that works.

Newly acquired catcher (?) Heriberto Hernandez is the only player being considered this poll. Using the standard +1 voting system in the comments, a vote for 1st indicates you think he’s the top prospect in the organization. A vote for 2nd indicates you are voting for Hernandez to go between Wander Franco and Randy Arozarena. If you vote 10th, between Taylor Walls and Brent Honeywell Jr.

If you vote 13th, your vote signifies you think Hernandez should just take the next spot on the list. If you vote for 14+ you are indicating you feel he should not be placed in a special election.

Because of the wide variety of opinions in these votes, we’ll average each selection and place Hernandez based on that score. If your vote is in the 14+ it will be weighted as a score of +5 points (no. 18 in this election).

Let’s get to the voting!

C/OF Heriberto Hernandez (R/R, 6’1 180, 21 in 2021)

2019 statistics with Arizona League Rangers and short-season Spokane: .345/.436/.635, 11 HR, 32 XBH, 12.4 BB%, 25.6 K%

Hernandez was the key player acquired in the trade that sent Nate Lowe to Texas. It took just $10,000 to sign him, but he’s been extremely productive since making his pro debut thanks to great bat speed and impressive in-game power. He’s played just as much first base and corner outfield as catcher, so it’s not yet clear where he best fits defensively.

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