The Dodgers Need to Re-sign Teoscar Hernández Today
Why is this taking so long? What is the disconnect? Free for all readers.
Hi friends-
I sat down for lunch today and checked MLBTradeRumors.com, my favorite website on the Internet, when I noticed something that shook me a bit.
MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reported that free agent outfielder Teoscar Hernández is seeking a three-year deal for $22-$24 million a year. I had thought that after the tremendous year Hernández had, the way the free agent market has subsequently exploded, and his being an indispensable member of a Dodgers club that just won a World Series, that he would look for a four-year deal worth, say, $80 million.
And that the reason he remains unsigned on December 17th despite the lack of other good free agent outfield options is because teams were reluctant to give a 32-year old ballplayer a four-year contract.
I was wrong.
Hernández isn’t seeking a four-year deal. I just independently confirmed Feinsand’s report that Hernández is, in fact, looking for a three-year contract, and that the numbers are dead on. This means that presumably, if the Dodgers offered Hernández a three-year deal worth $66-$70 million, he would sign this afternoon and this dumb game of chicken would be over.
It’s unclear what the Dodgers have offered, but the deal Hernández is seeking is not unreasonable. MLBTR predicted Hernández would sign for 3/$60M. The Athletic guessed 3/$69M.
This means that basically everyone in the industry is aligned on his worth. No one in Hernández’s camp is acting delulu and asking for Juan Soto money. No team will have to mortgage their stadium or add ugly uniform patches to afford his services.
So, what gives?
It’s a little embarrassing, frankly, that the Dodgers, who are known for spending like Rockefellers six martinis deep, are suddenly acting broke when it comes to re-signing a fan favorite who is a) good at his job and b) fills their biggest need right now and c) whose positive vibes were integral to the team winning a world championship just six weeks ago.
If you are bamboozled as to why this reunion hasn’t happened yet, our support group meets at noon on Saturdays.
Anyway, there are lots of reasons why the Dodgers should want Teoscar back, so here’s the skinny:
The first is his steady production. After playing 160 games in 2023, he took the field in 154 games in 2024. So if you’re keeping score at home, that means Hernández suited up for 314 games over the past two seasons and missed only 10.
Furthermore, these were his splits by month last season:
That is….remarkably consistent production. Look at his homers per month. Look at how he got better in July, and then again in August, before peaking in September/October—an upward trend that is especially relevant to the Dodgers, who frankly consider anything less than a World Series Championship a failure right now. It’s fair to question how durable he will remain in his ages 32-35 seasons, but at least the jumping off point is good.
It’s hard to know if Hernández’s consistent ability to hit is why he always seemed to be in the best mood of any Dodger I’ve ever seen in my life, or if having unlocked the key to living a happy life is why he was able to hit the crap out of the ball day in and day out.
The Dodgers have been reportedly negotiating with him for a month, and are said to still want him back. Manager Dave Roberts has spoken highly of him, and said losing him in free agency “would be tough.” You can bet Roberts is lobbying the front office to bring back a guy who is as good in the clubhouse as he is on the field, because his job as manager is to win baseball games.
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The Dodgers signed outfielder Michael Conforto to a one-year deal worth $17 million last week, but he’s a left-handed outfield bat who will replace whatever the team was trying to get out of veterans Jason Heyward and then Kevin Kiermaier last year. Conforto will most likely start in right field against right-handed starting pitchers, and come off the bench in key spots versus righty relievers.
Hernández was better against LHP (.931 OPS) than he was against RHP (.808) last year, but his still-solid numbers against righties make him an every day player. The Conforto signing should not impact Hernández’s roster spot whatsoever, unless the Dodgers are now pretending to dig for money in couch cushions.
If the Dodgers don’t re-sign Hernández, with Mookie Betts moving to the infield, the team’s 2025 outfield will look like this:
LF: Chris Taylor (slumping, but maybe turned a corner in the second half of the season with a swing fix???)/ Andy Pages/ converted catching prospect Dalton Rushing (???)
CF: Tommy Edman (If he’s not playing shortstop???)/ Andy Pages (out of position)/ Chris Taylor/ James Outman (demoted)
RF: Michael Conforto vs. righties/ Andy Pages vs. lefties
Can they win a World Championship with an outfield with that many question marks? Maybe, given that they also employ Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Shohei Ohtani, Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Tyler Glasnow. Nobody—and I mean nobody—will feel sorry for the Dodgers if they fail to re-sign Teoscar Hernández.
But man, I don’t even know if the Dodgers would have won the NL West—let alone the World Series— without Hernández in 2024. The team won the division by 5 games. Hernández alone was worth 4.3 wins, according to Baseball-Reference.
He also hit the game-tying double with two outs in the 5th inning in Game 5 of the World Series to cap arguably the greatest rally in Dodger history:
Hernández hit .350 in the Fall Classic with a .931 OPS including that game changing double, plus a critical home run that marked the difference between the Dodgers winning and losing in Game 2.
His World Series performance alone is worth, what? Eight to ten million dollars to a multibillion dollar franchise? Maybe that’s the difference between what the Dodgers want to pay Hernández, and what he feels he’s worth. I don’t know. I just can’t imagine the sides are even that far apart. Are they $400 apart? Should interested fans Venmo the team? This is so silly! Make the deal already!
Lastly, here are four more reasons the Dodgers should give Hernández whatever he wants:
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For all his gifts, Shohei Ohtani has struggled so badly in the friend department that his bro woes made international news. Hernández appears to be Ohtani’s best friend on the Dodgers. Isn’t the $700 million pillar of the franchise entitled to his own emotional support left fielder, even if his production in year three of his contract falls off a cliff?
Ohtani better call Friedman and tell him to get this done, or his bestie could wind up in Boston or Toronto or Baltimore or with some other team that needs an outfielder who plays every day and just showed out with an .840 OPS (read: all 30 teams)
If the Dodgers can’t bridge the gap here, they will only have themselves to blame.
Four photos worth more than any words! Stunning selection of photos, Molly. Re-sign Teoscar Hernandez now!
Dear lord Molly, I could not agree with you MORE!! What is the hold up?? Teoscar should be signed immediately and if they don't hurry up and do it, I am going to cry. Someone with a attitude like his, not to mention his production needs to be in the dugout every day throwing sunflower seeds on everyone! Shohei needs his bestie, STAT!