Carlos Hernández returns, Tyler Duffey designated for assignment

The hard-throwing right-hander had missed the start of the year.

The Royals announced the return of right-hander Carlos Hernández from the Injured List after he missed the first seven weeks with a shoulder injury. To make room on the roster, the Royals designated pitcher Tyler Duffey for assignment.

Hernández was sidelined during spring training due to shoulder pain, and began a rehab assignment in late April. Armed with a fastball that can hit triple-digits, the 26-year-old has been erratic in his time with the Royals, with a career ERA of 5.17. Last year he performed well in the first half and had an ERA of 3.57 going into August, but gave up 21 runs over his last 17 innings to push his ERA to 5.21 with 77 strikeouts in 70 innings overall.

Duffey was signed to a minor league deal and was called up to the big league roster on April 22. He made nine appearances with the Royals and gave up five runs in nine innings with ten strikeouts and eight walks. The 33-year-old right-hander struggled in his last outing on Monday against the Tigers, walking three of the six batters he faced.

The 40-man roster now sits at 39 players.