Teoscar Hernández spent the majority of a wildly successful first season with the Los Angeles Dodgers playing in left field, but 2025 has been a much different story.
After the Dodgers re-signed Hernández to a three-year, $66 million contract, he’s exclusively played right field this season and struggled mightily at the plate. Defensive metrics grade out Hernández similarly to his performance last year, but optically he appears to have significantly regressed in the field.
That surfaced again on Monday night as Hernández failed to come up with multiple catches in right field. The last of which resulted in a one-out double that set the table for the Rockies’ walk-off win that snapped the Dodgers’ winning streak at three games.
After the game, Hernández explained his view of the play and falling short of making the catch, as seen on SportsNet LA:
“We were playing no doubles, and like you said, it’s a big outfield. I was really far and tried to make a play. I didn’t, it came off my glove unfortunately. Things happen. I’ve just got to wash it and keep moving forward.”
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts stopped short of placing blame on Hernández, but noted he needs to improve defensively:
“I didn’t see the break, I didn’t look at the replay, it was up in the air a long time. I thought he had a chance to get it, but it was off his glove. … He’s just got to get better out there. There’s just no way to put it. I know there’s effort. It’s not a lack of effort. But the thing is, we’ve just got to kind of get better. We do. I don’t know what else to say.”
Monday marked a second time in the past month that Roberts has called on Hernández to play better defense in right field.
There also have been several instances where Hernández is taken out of a game for defensive purposes. That wasn’t an option in the series opener against the Rockies due to the game being tied and Hernández’s spot in the lineup due up if the Dodgers had forced it to the 10th inning.
Teoscar Hernández’s defensive comparison
As a left fielder last season, Hernández finished with -8 Outs Above Average (OAA) and had an 84% success rate.
In right field this year, Hernández is at -8 OAA and boasts an 85% success rate.
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