Astros' Hernandez yet to report to spring training with visa issues
Right-hander Roberto Hernandez remains a notable absence from Houston Astros camp one week after pitchers and catchers were required to report.
Signed to a minor-league deal earlier this month, Hernandez has had trouble trying to secure a work visa.
"I checked today," Astros manager A.J. Hinch told Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle on Friday. "He wasn't in his chair, but we're still hopeful, which is repeat, copy and paste from yesterday."
Part of the delay stems from Hernandez's past. In 2012, he was handed a three-week suspension from the league for attempting to secure a work visa under the name Fausto Carmona.
Hinch doesn't expect the delay to last much longer.
"It's really just getting through the visa process, which can take a little while," Hinch said. "There's different appointments. There's different documents that need to be provided and things like that. It's more complex than simply international travel. It's a little more complex, I think, throughout his career."
The 34-year-old went 8-11 with a 4.10 ERA in 164 2/3 innings last season split between the Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers.