Los Angeles Dodgers Reportedly the Leading Team for the All-Star layer in Free Agency Pursuits
After signing free agents Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto to more than $1 billion worth of deals this offseason, the Los Angeles Dodgers reportedly aren’t done.
Per reporter Hector Gomez on social media:
SOURCE: The #Dodgers now emerge as the frontrunner over the #RedSox, the #Angels and the #Mariners to sign Teoscar Hernandez as they appear willing to stretch beyond a three-year offer.
The 31-year-old outfielder is coming off a year in which he hit .258 for Seattle with 26 homers. He’s played eight years in the big leagues with the Astros, Blue Jays and Mariners. He was an All-Star in 2021 with Toronto and has hit 159 career home runs.
Getting a four-year deal or more would be quite a coup for Hernandez, who is aging, is not known as a great defender, and was third in baseball in strikeouts in 2023. That said, he’s still a productive slugger and could help the Dodgers replace the production of JD Martinez, who is leaving in free agency. Of course, the team has already added Ohtani, so getting Hernandez too would just be adding on.
If Hernandez does in fact choose the Dodgers, it would represent a missed opportunity for the Red Sox. Boston reportedly likes Hernandez and was even discussing the framework of a deal with him weeks ago, so evidently something has fallen through.
The Sox already have a glut of outfielders so Hernandez wasn’t a necessity, but signing him would have allowed the team to move some of those pieces in deals for pitching, which is a necessity.
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