Dodgers News: Teoscar Hernández Trade Seems Unlikely, Per Brandon Gomes
Despite reports, it seems a trade of Teoscar Hernández is low, for now
ORLANDO, FL—As the Los Angeles Dodgers look for another Major League-ready outfielder to support their three-peat pursuit, a new development emerged last week when Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic mentioned Teoscar Hernandez’s name in trade discussions just ahead of the Winter Meetings in Orlando.
Hernández, 33, a fan-favorite and a massive part of the Dodgers’ consecutive winning World Series teams, did regress overall in Year One of his four-year deal, which he re-signed with the Dodgers last winter.
Reports of a Hernández trade grew overnight, with multiple MLB insiders confirming, including Fabian Ardaya and Katie Woo of The Athletic and Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports.
Amid those reports, fellow Dodgers beat reporter, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times, asked Dodgers General Manager Brandon Gomes about Hernández being on the trade block and whether the team was actually considering a trade this winter.
“That doesn’t feel likely,” Gomes added of the possibility of trading Hernández. “Obviously, you can never say never on those types of things. I know that’s come up [in reports]. But that’s not something we anticipate at all.”
Despite Hernández having multiple deferrals in both deals he signed with Los Angeles, the right-handed power bat owes a respectable $26 million over the next two years, including $23.5 million in deferred salary and a $15 million club option for 2028 or a $6.5 million buyout.
The idea of trading Hernández at all does not come lightly.
While the 2024 All-Star still hit a respectable 25 home runs, including a few memorable moments in the postseason, his defensive metrics were awful, ranking in the bottom third of the league with -9 OAA.
Offensively, Hernández also posted one of the worst on-base percentages in baseball at .284 and posted just a 102 wRC+ and a combined 0.6 fWAR, a dramatic decrease compared to his 3.4 fWAR in 2024.
Still, trading Hernández does not make sense unless the Dodgers have an immediate solution, whether through a separate trade or a free-agent signing.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts did share that he still has his vote of confidence during yesterday’s press conference, but could shift to left field if a situation arises.
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