Kiké Hernández made an immediate impact in his first game back with the Los Angeles Dodgers since undergoing offseason left elbow surgery.
The utility man went 2-for-2 with a double and RBI in the Dodgers’ 5-3 comeback win over the Colorado Rockies on Memorial Day.
The Dodgers re-signed Hernández to a one-year, $4.5 million contract just prior to the start of Spring Training, and he is now in his 10th season with the team.
There were no guarantees that Hernández would be back with the Dodgers, but the 34-year-old may have sealed the deal after hearing from Dr. Neal ElAttrache and calling president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman right after his operation.
“We went into the surgery not really knowing how serious it was going to be, or if it was just going to be a cleanup,” Hernández began. “And I woke up with ElAttrache telling me, ‘This was the worst injury I’ve ever seen of this kind, and I don’t know how you played.’ I told him, ‘Thank you, I take it as a compliment.’
“I FaceTimed Andrew (Friedman) right then and there, and I told him, ‘ElAttrache, tell him what you just said,’ and I was like, ‘I did this for you, so you better bring me back.’ And ‘Possum’ (Dodgers trainer Yosuke Nakajima) took the phone away from me, because I was pretty drugged up still.
“But that’s how it went.”
Kiké Hernández feels healthy
Hernández got off to a good start after a difficult 2025 season in which he pushed himself to play through extreme discomfort.
“I mean, a lot better,” Hernández answered when asked how he is feeling this year compared to last. “It was a rough year. The best description that I can put on is like every time I would get in my batting stance, I would feel like I had a blowtorch on.
“And it was kind of frustrating because there was not much we could do for it. But it’s fixed, and I’m glad it’s fixed and feeling pretty good right now.”
Despite being limited by the elbow issue, Hernández still came through with several clutch hits and defensive gems during the Dodgers’ 2025 World Series run. He memorably helped turn a game-winning double play with Miguel Rojas that extended the Fall Classic to a decisive seventh matchup.
“I thought I could still do enough to help our team win,” Hernández reflected. “The game of baseball is not just about hitting a homer. I figured at times there were some good at-bats in there, and then I knew that what I could do in left field could be a game-changer, and it turned out that it was.”
Now healthy again, Hernández is expected receive most of his playing time at second base and third base this season, with occasional starts in the outfield as well.
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