The Los Angeles Dodgers may not be as determined to move on from Teoscar Hernandez as expected, according to an insider.
Why Teoscar Hernandez is a trade candidate
The Dodgers look ready to retool, inject new life into the batting order and possibly the bullpen, and keep pushing the team’s aging core for another World Series.
One of the casualties of a roster revamp, on paper, is Teoscar Hernandez, who is on an expiring contract, is 34 years old, and is showing signs of decline.
His defense has never been a strength, and it is below average now; he struggled in the postseason, hitting .200/.219/.300.
More importantly, he is an outfielder, and theoretically, he is taking a spot where Josue De Paula can slot in alongside Shohei Ohtani on offense.
Why Teoscar may not be traded
However, The Athletic’s Katie Woo isn’t sure Hernandez will get dealt, given the circumstances this offseason.
Woo said during an appearance on Dodgers Territory that “there is a lot of work to be done” on De Paula’s defense.
She laid out how the lack of contact between the Dodgers’ coaches and De Paula during the lockout could limit his defensive development, calling into question his viability as a full-time left fielder.
Along with De Paula’s defensive questions, moving a veteran like Hernandez, who is set to make around $15 million in 2027, may pose its own roadblocks.
With both factors combined, and the lockout looming in the background, Woo thinks a Hernandez trade to get De Paula in is easier said than done.
“On paper, it seems like an easy transaction,” Woo said on Dodgers Territory. This makes a lot of sense, but the more you dive into it and the more there’s that uncertainty over what JDP is going to look like defensively, the more I can go 50-50 on what they should do with Teo.”
Could Hernandez really stay?
It would be a shock to see the Dodgers not change something from a 2026 team that was missing some youth.
Other than Miguel Rojas leaving the picture, there is no other reasonable way to get younger than moving on from Hernandez, unless Tommy Edman moves into a full-time utility role for a star trade acquisition at infield.
Also, considering how special De Paula was offensively in his cup of coffee with the team, it is hard to see the Dodgers stifling his development by not giving him defensive runway.
De Paula has the potential to be an X-factor for the team, and unless the Dodgers want to simply run it back, Hernandez may need to go to free up resources for another move, either for prospect depth or to strike another trade.
