Yesterday 18-year-old outfielder Yandro Hernández officially signed with the Minnesota Twins for a bonus of $800,000. The athletic outfielder was also a switch-hitter and was a member of the U-18 Cuban National Team in 2022. He is the sixteenth player from the Largest of the Antilles to sign during the current international free agency period.
Hernández was part of the Cuban team that attended the pre-World Cup in La Paz, Mexico, at the end of 2022, a tournament in which Cuba was unable to qualify for the World Cup. During the competition he hit .357 with a pair of doubles and an RBI.
The son of ex-Serie Nacional outfielder Stayler Hernández has great potential, before his departure he played in the U-18 National Championship with his province (which was stopped due to lack of fuel). He literally led the tournament in every offensive category.
Cuban OF Yandro Hernández (18) officially signs with the Minnesota Twins.
Bonus deal: $800,000.
Athletic outfielder, switch hitter and U-18 Cuban National team member in 2022.
He is the Cuban born player #16 who signs in the current international period. pic.twitter.com/0gQmj6RZvq
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) May 3, 2024
The slugger led hitters with a .463 average, was also the leader in hits (37), SLG (.575) and OPS (1.117). He also placed second in runs scored (24) and OBP (.542), while finishing third in doubles (9) and RBIs (25).
In Cuba, a lot of talent continues to emerge, but with the economic situation that the country is going through, the departures of young talented players are more common everyday. Which is the case of Hernández.
The young prospect is the eighth U-18 player to leave the country. One of his teammates and a player who also had an excellent performance in that U-18 league, José Luis Cerice, has also agreed to terms with the Kansas City Royals for $700,000.