Seth Hernandez is MLB Pipeline’s No. 3-ranked prospect for the 2025 Draft. Here is everything you need to know about Hernandez.
FAST FACTS
MLB Pipeline ranking: No. 3
Position: RHP
Height/weight: 6-foot-4, 190 lbs.
Bats/throws: R/R
Age: 19 (Born June 28, 2006)
School: Corona (CA) High School
MLB PIPELINE SCOUTING GRADES (20-to-80 scale)
Fastball: 70
Curveball: 60
Slider: 55
Changeup: 60
Control: 55
Overall: 60
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1. He has three ELITE pitches
One of the best fastballs in the Draft. A bat-missing changeup. A tight curveball with excellent spin. Any one of those pitches could make a good Draft prospect. Hernandez has all three. His admirable arsenal makes him the top right-handed pitching prospect in the 2025 Draft class and as good a candidate as any to be a top-of-the-rotation starter.
Hernandez's "bread and butter" -- his changeup -- plays expertly off his high-octane fastball, diving below the zone to elicit swings and misses. His curveball also has impressive movement, taking a true 12-to-6 shape with well-above-average spin. All three pitches -- plus a hard slider Hernandez has incorporated into his repertoire -- earned above-average grades from MLB Pipeline on the 20-to-80 scale. He’s got plenty of weapons to get hitters out.
2. He burst onto the high school scene
Hernandez was homeschooled until his junior year of high school, but it didn’t take him long to make an impact at Corona. In his first season with the Panthers, he put up some truly incredible numbers: a 9-0 record, a 0.62 ERA and 73 strikeouts in 56 innings of work. That’s not even counting his production at the plate: He hit .352 as a junior in 2024, slugging eight home runs and posting a 1.080 OPS. It wasn’t bad for a high school debut, but Hernandez’s senior season was arguably even better. In 2025, he struck out 105 batters in 53 1/3 innings -- nearly two per inning! -- against just seven walks, posting a 0.39 ERA. He was named the 2025 Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year at the high school level.
3. He has a lot in common with a longtime MLB starter
When Hernandez saw himself compared to former Major League right-hander Josh Beckett, the high school star went straight to YouTube to dig deeper into Beckett’s game. It didn’t take Hernandez long to see the similarities. “Looking at it, it’s like, 'OK, that kind of really looks like me,’” he told MLB Network. “It’s kind of scary, just because he looks a lot like me.” Beckett, who had a 3.88 ERA in 14 seasons for the Red Sox, Marlins and Dodgers from 2001-2014, boasts a similar frame and delivery to Hernandez. He was the No. 2 overall Draft pick back in 1999 out of his Texas high school -- a range Hernandez could certainly find himself in. "I've got to outdo him now," Hernandez said.
4. He played on a stacked high school team
Corona High School, the alma mater of four Major Leaguers, could produce at least four more from the 2025 Draft class alone. The school, which counts among its alumni Giants right-hander Tristan Beck, Mariners outfielder Samad Taylor, recently retired reliever Joe Kelly and former Padres outfielder Mike Darr, housed a considerable amount of talent within its baseball facilities this spring. Not only did Hernandez suit up for Corona, but so did shortstop Billy Carlson -- MLB Pipeline’s No. 7 Draft prospect. And No. 64 Draft prospect Brady Ebel. And No. 150 Draft prospect Ethin Bingaman. That’s a whole lot of Draft promise on one group of teenagers, and it made for a great season for Corona. The Panthers went 28-3 in 2025 and made it to the Division I CIF Southern Section semifinals before being upset by St. John Bosco, 2-0 -- handing Hernandez his first loss on the mound in two seasons of high school baseball.
5. He paints more than just the corners
Many players have hobbies that go beyond the diamond, and Hernandez is no exception. In addition to his volunteer work for his church and for a local senior living community, Hernandez is also a sculptor and abstract artist. He’s not the first ballplayer to dabble in art: Several well-known players, including Curt Flood, Omar Vizquel and Didi Gregorius, have been painters. Former Minor League pitcher Blake McFarland turned to creating sculpture after his playing days. Players like Bronson Arroyo and Jose Iglesias have found their niche as musicians (Iglesias’ song “OMG” became a Mets anthem in 2024, for instance).