Hernandez (shoulder) retired the first 14 hitters he faced in Triple-A Tacoma's victory over Las Vegas on Sunday and gave up just one earned run on one hit over five innings, Michael Leboff of MiLB.com reports. "I knew it was going to be better today because it had been a while since I had been on the mound," Hernandez told reporters. "I had command of my fastball and all of my pitches, and it worked."

Hernandez also remarked that his mechanics were much improved as he cruised through four consecutive 1-2-3 innings on an efficient 44 pitches. His only mistake came on an RBI double that he allowed in his final frame, but the overall results were naturally very encouraging after Hernandez's struggles in his last outing. The right-hander is scheduled for one more rehab start with the Rainiers before his expected activation from the disabled list.