Good Things Come for a Really Good Guy

The story of Freddy Fermin is the type of story I envisioned when I started this blog almost three years ago. I love the underdog nature of his story, and his success is something to celebrate.

Fermin was traded at the MLB Trade Deadline in a deal that brought the Kansas City Royals two major-league-ready pitchers: Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek. Kolek was sent to Triple-A Omaha, while Bergert made his Royals debut earlier this week in Boston. He pitched 5 2/3 innings and allowed just two runs (one came in after he left the game). Kolek won’t be in Omaha long.

It’s unusual that a backup catcher would bring that much in return, but Fermin was no ordinary backup catcher. He was a career .268 hitter in four seasons with the Royals, with a .697 OPS. He is an excellent framer of pitches, and he’s thrown out an exceptional 35 percent of runners attempting to steal against him.

But as long as franchise icon Salvador Perez is in Kansas City, Fermin was going to be a backup.

The fact that he was on the major-league roster at all was pretty impressive. He signed as an international free agent out of Guayana, Venezuela, just before his 20^th birthday in 2015, an advanced age for an international signing. He’s not particularly big at 5-10, which scared off some teams. When other teams scouted him, they would question why no one else had signed him, so they wouldn’t sign him either.

Finally, the Royals signed him for less than $10,000. There was a rumor going around when Fermin made the Royals’ roster in 2023 that he made a deal with the Royals to get the signing bonus he received. The story went that he offered to give it all back if he didn’t make the majors at some point.

I looked for verification on that story, but found none. Joel Goldberg, the Royals’ pre- and post-game host on their television broadcasts, told me he had heard the same story, but he couldn’t confirm that it was true.

But the thing is, it was definitely believable, because of the confidence and work-ethic Fermin showed. It would fit the story of how he overcame numerous hurdles to get to the majors.

His travelogue of teams he played for in six seasons in the minor leagues and in winter ball would make Waldo jealous. He played in extended spring camp. He stayed in Arizona over the winter months. He played in winter ball, both in Panama and Venezuela.

Prior to the 2023 season, Fermin was named MVP of the Venezuelan Winter League and unanimously selected as the league’s Rookie of the Year, after leading the league with a .404 batting average and ranking second in on-base percentage (.482) and OPS (1.048).

But there is no better example of his work-ethic than how he has worked on his English.

Anne Rogers, who covers the Royals for MLB.com, wrote about that in a feature in 2023.

“He asked for extra classes with education/ESL coordinator Monica Ramirez,” Rogers wrote. “In Arizona, the two met at 5:30 a.m. to study before practice, then again after practice. During the COVID-19 shutdown, they met at safe distances to hand off worksheets, then practice over Zoom and WhatsApp.

“‘He needed a lot of practice, repetition, a lot of work,’ Ramirez said. ‘I never wanted him to get discouraged, and every time I corrected him, he just kept going. He was unstoppable. It made me very proud.’”

When Fermin first arrived in the big leagues, he usually had a translator for his interviews. I spoke with him quite a few times and he could communicate well. But when he knew he could be quoted, he asked to have a translator there.

Now, he almost always does his interviews with the English-speaking media in English, without a translator.

Fermin was well-liked in the Royals clubhouse.

“Anybody that’s been around Freddy knows how infectious his personality is,” Royals general manager and president of baseball operations JJ Picollo said. “He is not only a fan favorite, but he’s a clubhouse favorite.

“I will say that’s an emotional thing because you’ve had Freddy since he was 20 years old. You watched him grind his way through the minor leagues. Nobody can outwork that guy. He was a perfect partner for Salvador Perez.”

But with Perez firmly entrenched as the starter, and the organizational depth at catcher—two or the top prospects are catchers—Fermin was expendable.

San Diego provides a new opportunity for “the Ferminator.” He’ll be the starting catcher on a likely playoff team.

The fan reaction in San Diego was somewhat mixed at first, but it didn’t take long to bring them around. One person wrote on X, “Dare I say that Freddy Fermin was worth what we gave up for him? AJ Preller Masterclass!”

Another wrote, “Freddy Fermin is gonna be one of those Pads we look back on 10 years down the road and we just smile and reminisce.”

And finally, Jon Morosi of MLB Network wrote, “Of all the deadline deals, that trade between KC and San Diego was one of my favorites and it's because I do believe that Freddy Fermin is talented enough to be the catcher on a World Series team.”

There’s another interesting twist to the trade. In San Diego, he’ll be reunited with the only other MLB catcher from Guayana. The other one, Carlos Hernandez, was the starting catcher for the Padres when they were the 1998 National League champs. Hernandez played Little League Baseball in Venezuela with Freddy Fermin Sr., Freddy’s dad.

Hernandez is now the Spanish-language broadcaster for the Padres.

On the day after Freddy was traded to the Padres, his father called his old friend.

“He said, ‘Carlos, you’re there, man, you’ve got to help him!'” Hernández told MLB.com’s San Diego beat writer AJ Casavell. “‘I said I would do anything that he asked me. Anything to help him, I’ll be here.’”

The Padres closer, Robert Suarez, is also from Guayana, though Fermin doesn’t know him as well as he knows Hernandez.

So while Royals fans will miss him, Freddy Fermin is no longer a backup. He’s likely headed to the postseason with the Padres, and he’ll likely be a star for years to come in San Diego.

Just the kind of feel-good story we all love.