The Dodgers are bringing Kiké Hernández back for the 2026 season. The utilityman first announced the agreement on social media. It’s a one-year, $4.5MM deal for the Wasserman client, reports Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. The Dodgers will need to open a spot on the 40-man roster once the signing is final, though they can do so by placing newly re-signed reliever Evan Phillips on the 60-day injured list.
Hernández has spent the past two and a half seasons in L.A. He sandwiched a few seasons in Boston in between but has spent the majority of his career with the Dodgers. Hernández was a high-end utility player earlier in his career, playing plus defense everywhere on the diamond while hitting left-handed pitching well. His offensive production has tailed off over the past few years, but the Dodgers love him as a clubhouse presence and he remains a versatile defender.
The 34-year-old Hernández is coming off a .203/.255/.366 showing across 256 regular season plate appearances. He popped 10 home runs in 93 games but struck out at a career-high 26.6% clip. Since returning to L.A. at the 2023 trade deadline, he’s a .228/.279/.382 hitter in a little over 800 trips to the plate. His .220/.278/.393 line against left-handed pitching is well below what he did against southpaws earlier in his career.
Hernández does have a strong postseason track record, compiling an .826 OPS over 103 games in October. That didn’t really materialize last season, when he hit .250/.290/.359 with one homer in 69 plate appearances. He nevertheless clearly had the trust of skipper Dave Roberts, who penciled Hernández into the lineup for every game of their World Series run. He played mostly left field as the Dodgers lost faith in the slumping Andy Pages. That ended in triumph with the third World Series of his career, as he was also part of the 2020 and ’24 clubs.
There’s no room in the starting lineup entering the season. They signed Kyle Tucker to play right field, pushing Teoscar Hernández to left. Kiké Hernández can take some center field reps but hasn’t been a regular there since 2022. That’ll probably fall to Pages and potentially Tommy Edman, depending on how the Dodgers feel about him covering a lot of ground coming off ankle surgery. Hernández will available off the bench and can take a few at-bats from Max Muncy at third base against left-handed pitching. He’ll offer a more defensively minded alternative to Teoscar Hernández as a late-game substitute.
Hernández and Miguel Rojas are locks for bench roles, as is a backup catcher (very likely Dalton Rushing). That’d leave one spot which will probably go to Hyeseong Kim if Edman is ready for Opening Day. Should Edman require an IL stint, Kim will draw in at second base and there’d be one spot available for Alex Call, Ryan Ward or Alex Freeland.
The Dodgers are taxed at a 110% rate as third-time payor with a CBT number above $304MM. RosterResource calculates their luxury tax payroll above $400MM. The Hernández signing will cost them $9.45MM between his salary and the accompanying $4.95MM tax bill.
Image courtesy of Michael McLoone, Imagn Images.
Like the swallows to Capistrano…
Did MLB expand the rosters to 50?
Its unlimited once you start piling people on the 60 DAY IL.
Kinda. A player has to be added to the 40-man before he can be placed on the 60-day IL, so somebody has to get bumped.
Probably move Evan Phillips to the 60 day.
Or moved to the 60 day IL
Yep. The Phillips signing created the roster bump. Presumably K. Hernandez gets his roster spot and then can be moved to the 60-day when someone else is added (would be funny if it turns to be Rortvedt). So I guess if a team has one open 40-man slot they can sort of pass players through it in an unlimited way so long as they are all eligible for the 60-day IL.
They ruined the market!!!!!!
How is it the Dodgers and not the Mets and Yankees who were spending more first?
Oh, yeah, because the Dodgers won in the post-season and the ohers either lost in the postseason or did not make it at all.
Those knee-jerk commenters should read this Jeff Passan article, assuming they have the reading skills. espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/47620464/mlb-2026-kyle-tuc…
Dodgers are unc squad
University of North Carolina?
Commissioner should have had the stones to put a halt to deferred money for the good of the game. Enjoy your strike, it’s your own fault.
Cause signing an injured utility man to a small contract is bad?
It’ll be a lockout. And owners who cry poverty are at fault….
As every baseball fan should know by now from years of watching this kabuki show, the owners lock out the players to take away their strike leverage. Rooting for one is about as smart as rooting for a disease (which, I realize, some now do).
The cheap owners in baseball that every fan says they hate want a cap, but I seriously doubt that they’ll strike if they don’t get one.
The commissioner can’t change the CBA because he feels like it. That’s why it’s a *collective bargaining agreement*
It’s impossible to get through the concrete brains that the deferral option is in the CBA because both the players and the owners like it.
More dong thrust in the clubhouse!
With this signing, the Dodgers have secured their 3 peat.
Where would he play? They already have 12 position players without him. I suppose they could go with 12 pitchers not including Ohtani as long as the starters hold up.
So Ohtani allows them to carry all of Miguel Rojas, Kiké and Jack Dreyer I suppose
He’s going to play on the Injured List for a while.
If everyone is ever healthy they’re in big trouble
Kiké is a pitcher… sometimes.
He’ll play recovering from injury for a few months.
Then later he’ll play playoff Kike. His best position.
C: Smith, Rushing
IF: Freeman, Edman, Muncy, Betts
OF: Teo, Pages, Tucker
UC: Ohtani
BN: Rojas, Hernandez, Call
Is UC unicorn?
Ohtani has opened his own campus within the University of California system – UC Ohtani.
Kim factors in, especially with Edman recovering.
The most Anticlimactic of Anticlimactic signings ever
Kike, along with Phillips, will likely go to the 60 day IL, which should give them an opening for Rortvedt should he clear waivers.
gnom
If Rortvedt clears waivers he’s not on the 40
How much deferred??????
All
How big is the signing bonus?
$4,499,999.99
Can’t they just put Phillips on the 60-day IL to make room for this signing?
That’s possibly what will happen. And then Kiké will also be moved to the 60-man as well.
I’ve said for years he is the best player on that team. If the game is close I would rather face any of the all-stars than him. It’s funny that their best player is one of their cheapest.
I didn’t know Kiki Hernandez’s agent posts here.
I dislike him very much. I have seen many games against him and the amount I dislike him should tell you how much I don’t like seeing him play.
Kike burner found.
I disagree with Kim as the last hitter if everyone is healthy. Call gets the nod over him. I acknowledge that it makes the bench righty heavy but who are we pinch hitting for anyway?
Agreed, and also because Kim can be optioned and Call cannot (I believe).