Teoscar Hernández returned to his preferred position of right field this season after re-signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers on a three-year contract, but he’s largely been a defensive liability.
Hernández established a reputation as bat-first type of player throughout his career and the Dodgers were well aware of that when agreeing to terms both before the 2024 season and when re-signing him. Hernández’s value as a position player relies on his ability to outproduce defensive deficiencies.
That was the case earlier on in the season, but Hernández has taken a sizable step back offensively and his defensive struggles have become more frequent since returning from the injured list in May. Specifically, his range in the outfield has been the biggest problem.
Even at his best with the glove, Hernández is more suited to be a designated hitter. But that is obviously not an option with the Dodgers given Shohei Ohtani occupies that spot in the lineup.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has acknowledged that Hernández’s injuries — a left groin/adductor issue that required a stint on the 10-day injured list, and now a bone bruise on his left foot — may be contributing to the defensive struggles.
But Roberts still wants to see better play from Hernández.
“No thought of moving Mookie back out to right field. And I do think that Teo is more natural in right, but there’s got to be improvement,” Roberts said. “And I think that some part of it might be the hip, the injury that he had. He says he feels good.
“There are some 50-50 balls that I think we can maybe make better plays on. It’s certainly not from lack of effort. But I know that, and I believe, that he can be better out there.
“So he’s our right fielder, and Mookie is our shortstop.”
After Hernández failed to cut a ball off this past Saturday, Roberts reiterated the need for improved defense.
“That ball has to be cut off. It can’t be a triple. The other one turned into a triple as well, or a double. Whatever it was,” he said. “So those little things just can’t happen. Pitching is tough enough, hitting is tough enough, but the defensive part of it — throwing to the right bases, cutting a ball off, getting it in, not turning a double into a triple — that stuff can’t happen.”
Dodgers believe right field is Teoscar Hernández’s best position
Of the 1,308 innings Hernández logged last season, 871.2 came in left field, with the remainder in right field. Hernández has said he feels most comfortable in right field, and the Dodgers agree it is his best position.
“I think so. And I can’t put my finger on it, but the eye test a little bit, certainly the metrics speak to that,” Roberts said. “So like I said, we got to get better in different facets, not just right field, just kind of overall, I think defensively.
“We don’t have a staff that’s going to strike out a bunch of guys overall. So when balls are in play, we’ve got to make outs and not give teams extra outs.
“That’s one thing I’d probably say we could be better at over the course of so far, the three months of the season so far.”
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