The Los Angeles Dodgers have never been afraid to throw the Boston Red Sox a lifeline.
The Dodgers happily took on what has to be the biggest salary dump in sports history when they took Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, and Nick Punto off the team’s hands back in 2012. And when the Dodgers pulled the trigger on a trade for Mookie Betts, they even accepted the inclusion of David Price to make that trade come together back in 2020. (I mean, that’s a no brainer to acquire Betts, I know, but it still proved to be of help for the payroll-slashing Red Sox.)
And it looks like the Dodgers may be of help to the Sox on the trade market once again, with L.A. considered a potential landing spot for the struggling Kiké Hernandez, and with the Red Sox staring down a roster crunch of sorts in the coming days.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – SEPTEMBER 02: Enrique Hernandez #5 of the Boston Red Sox hits an RBI during the fourth inning against the Texas Rangers at Fenway Park on September 02, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Paul Rutherford/Getty Images)
Now in his third year with the Red Sox, the 31-year-old Hernandez has by all means seen his game hit its undeniable rock bottom this year. At the plate, Hernandez is hitting just .218, while his on-base percentage is an ugly .276 and his OPS sits at .593. Those are all team-worst marks among qualifying Red Sox batters in 2023.
This is hardly a case of Hernandez struggling for a month or a few bad weeks, as he’s failed to hit better than .220 in back-to-back-to-back months, and has made just 12 appearances and totaled 35 at-bats in the month of July.
July has actually been his worst month to date, too, with a season-worst .143 average and nine strikeouts in 35 at-bats (he’s struck out in 26 percent of his plate appearances this month). With the Sox officially within striking distance of a playoff spot in a crowded American League, his struggles are something that the team can no longer run from, and their recent usage of Hernandez confirms that they are not.
BOSTON, MA – MAY 13: Enrique Hernandez #5 of the Red Sox stands at second base after his throwing-error allowed a runner to score during the ninth inning of their 4-3 loss to the Cardinals at Fenway Park on May 13, 2023. (Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
It’s been an especially ugly year for Hernandez in the field, too, as the Puerto Rican-born Hernandez has already been dinged for 14 errors at shortstop this season.
His 15 errors in total rank as the most in all of baseball this season, and those struggles have by all means forced the Red Sox to play Absolutely-Anybody-Else at the shortstop position.
Given the front office’s decision to move on from Xander Bogaerts and the ongoing injury recovery of Trevor Story, Kiké’s fielding struggles have put him under a microscope that’s seemingly burned a hole through his glove.
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – JUNE 20: Enrique Hernandez #5 and Christian Arroyo #39 of the Red Sox celebrate their victory against the Twins after the game at Target Field on June 20, 2023 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (David Berding/Getty Images)
And as mentioned, the Red Sox are staring down a tough decision — or even two — when it comes to their roster.
Story’s recovery has hit the point where he is on the field for a rehab assignment with Double-A Portland, and based on how Story is swinging the bat down there, a return to the bigs isn’t too far off. Story is joined in the minors by Pablo Reyes (a .303 average in 27 games with Boston this season), and his return also feels imminent.
So, the Red Sox are essentially deciding between Hernandez, Christian Arroyo, and Yu Chang. Of the three, Hernandez feels like the obvious odd man out due to his struggles. It is worth noting that the Red Sox may be about to buy themselves some time with these hard decisions, with Alex Cora making it sound as if Arroyo is bound for the injured list due to a jammed thumb suffered during the team’s recent road trip out in Oakland.
Even so, the Sox know that a decision on Hernandez is nearing, and ahead of the Aug. 1 deadline, it may be in the team’s best interest to move Hernandez for something while they still can.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – MAY 04: Enrique Hernandez #5 of the Boston Red Sox reacts after striking out against the Toronto Blue Jays during the seventh inning at Fenway Park on May 04, 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
Given his struggles, as well as Boston’s lack of options when it comes to what they can do with him, Hernandez is unlikely to fetch much of substance should the Dodgers come through and complete yet another trade with the Sox.
If anything, this would be the Red Sox doing Hernandez a favor opposed to hitting him with a ‘DFA’, and sending him to a team that’s more than familiar with his game, with Hernandez sporting ‘Dodger blue’ from 2015 through 2020.
Hernandez, who hit a career-high 127 hits with the Red Sox in 2021, originally joined the Red Sox on a two-year, $14 million contract in 2021, and is playing 2023 on a one-year, $10 million contract signed last September.
