Dodgers Interview: Teoscar on his Big Homer, Playing through Slumps
"I'm just trying to do the best that I can right now"
SAN DIEGO — The Dodgers came to San Diego needing a statement series—and Teoscar Hernández gave them just that. His three-run blast in the top of the sixth broke open a tie game and lifted the Dodgers to a 5–2 win over the Padres on Sunday afternoon, securing a key series win in early June over a division rival that’s been nipping at their heels in the standings.
For Hernández, the homer wasn’t just a clutch hit in a big moment. It was personal redemption after a stretch in which he had been grinding through at-bats, searching for the rhythm that had defined his strong start to the season.
“It felt really good,” Hernández said after the game. “Especially that I put the team in front, you know. Like you say, I’ve been working really hard, battling every at-bat, trying to get good pitches to hit, put it in play, have great at-bats. Obviously, they haven’t been there, but I’m just trying to do the best that I can right now and just trying to get that feeling that I had before I got injured.”
Hernández had missed time earlier in the season with a groin injury, and while he’s been back on the field, he acknowledged that regaining timing at the plate has been a slow process.
“It’s hard,” he said. “It’s hard to take the timing and the pitch selection, trying to do things to help the team. And being in the middle of the lineup, in the middle of the game with big at-bats—especially when I have three guys in front that get on base a lot—every time I go up there, it feels huge for the game and for the team. So, I’m going to try to keep doing my best, trying to put those balls in play and trying to put the team ahead.”
That’s exactly what he did against Padres reliever Jeremiah Estrada. After a shaky stretch in which Estrada threw six balls in seven pitches (he had just walked Will Smith), Hernández stayed patient and locked in on a mistake over the middle of the plate.
“He was a little struggling finding the strike zone,” Hernández explained. “He threw I think seven balls in a row (sic), and then a strike, and then I was just trying to get focused, trying to get the pitch middle-middle, not doing too much. And I got that one and put a good swing on it.”
The three-run shot turned a 1–1 tie into a 4–1 Dodgers lead, which held the rest of the way thanks to a shutdown effort from the bullpen and an earlier standout defensive play from rookie centerfielder Andy Pages. Pages, who has shown signs of emerging into a complete player, cut down a runner trying to advance in the seventh with a laser from center.
“Andy, he can throw,” Hernández said with a grin. “He can be really accurate. He’s a great centerfielder. He’s shown it this season, and I think he’s going to be one of the best ones in the game.”
Hernández has taken notice of Pages’ growth on both sides of the ball.
“The improvement has been huge,” he added. “He’s got the confidence now. He’s hitting really good. Sometimes when you’re not hitting and you’re young, you don’t get that extra focus that you need on defense. But he’s doing a great job right now.”
As for Hernández’s own physical condition, he said his body feels strong again and that the lingering effects of his earlier groin issue are behind him. Now it’s just about finding his rhythm at the plate—and Sunday may have been the turning point.
“I feel really good,” he said. “My body feels really good. I don’t feel anything on my groin anymore. It’s just more about timing, pitch selection, and trying to put the ball in play.”
Winning two out of three on the road in San Diego gave the Dodgers a bit of breathing room atop the division and capped off a series where the team had to scrap for every edge. For Hernández, it was another reminder that no matter the time of year, the mission remains the same.
“It feels good,” he said. “Especially because they’re really close in the standings. But you know, every win against any team is important for us.”
It was a classic Dodgers formula: strong pitching, timely hitting, and contributions up and down the lineup. But Sunday belonged to Teoscar Hernández, who reminded everyone just how dangerous he can be when he gets a pitch to hit—and just how much he means to this Dodgers club.
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