DUNEDIN, Fla. – It was a jovial Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez who checked into Yankees camp yesterday morning. The veteran right-hander was home after spending last year on Montreal’s disabled list following shoulder surgery, then showing his wares in two showcases for scouts.
“The Red Sox made a serious offer and I thank them,” El Duque said at Legends Field. “But part of the decision involved my family, and my family wanted to return here, and I am a Yankee.”
Officially, El Duque isn’t a Yankee until the contract language is approved by his agent’s lawyer. And don’t look for him in Joe Torre’s rotation or bullpen in the near future.
“I can’t tell you the exact [return] date,” said El Duque, who signed a one-year deal for a guaranteed $500,000 that is loaded with incentives. “Maybe people will remember the movie from 1998.”
That year, El Duque made his major league debut on June 3 and developed into one of the best clutch Yankees hurlers in the Torre Era.
How much El Duque has left remains to be seen. The Yankees list him at 34 years old, but some say he is four years older, and shoulder surgery erased last season after he was traded from the Yankees to the White Sox then to the Expos.
El Duque was signed to give the rotation depth in the event of an injury to a starter. Or he could evolve into the role Ramiro Mendoza handled in the bullpen.
“I am not in a position to battle for a starting position or a relieving job,” El Duque said. “This is the beginning of the situation. We will have to wait and see.”