Kiké Hernández Opens Up on Weird Free Agency, Says He Chose Dodgers Over Yankees
When the Los Angeles Dodgers opened camp three weeks ago, Kiké Hernández didn’t know if his return to the club was going to happen or not.
Hernández appeared on Foul Territory Thursday morning and said it was a weird free agency that, in the end, came down to the Dodgers and the New York Yankees.
“I chose the Dodgers because they have a lot of left-handed hitters,” Hernández said. “Obviously I have familiarity, I was already late to spring, I didn’t have to pack my bags and fly to Florida and all that and then move my family across the country. Dodgers being here in Arizona was convenient. Also they have a lot of left-handed hitters in the lineup. I think main reason was, they were able least guarantee me at least to start against left-handed pitchers.”
Via Foul Territory
He also had interest from the Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Angels, and San Francisco Giants. The latter two teams never officially made him an offer, and he didn’t want to settle for an amount that he felt was below his worth.
“There was a lot of teams that checked in just to see, they’re like, ‘Hey time keeps going by and guys are signing for really cheap and we’re wondering if he wants to sign for that cheap, too.’ And I held my ground. I was waiting for the right opportunity.”
Via Foul Territory
The path to signing his one-year, $4 million deal wasn’t smooth. He thought he had a done deal a month ago but the trade that was in place fell through overnight.
“I thought I had a deal done in place with them about a month ago. Obviously they needed to move (Manuel) Margot in order for me to sign. I guess there was a trade in place and it felt apart overnight. I went to bed thinking we had a deal and I woke up being unemployed again. It just kind of dragged out and at the end, I called Andrew (Friedman) last week and I was like, ‘Hey Andrew, I’ve been waiting, l’ve been waiting, but I can only wait for so long. Game’s already and I’m starting to really get antsy. And I was like, if we can’t get it done this weekend then I’m gonna have to move on and go somewhere. Because I keep waiting and opportunities are starting to go away because l’m waiting. And at the end, they were down to their last day and he made it happen.”
Via Foul Territory
The Dodgers were able to make a Manuel Margot trade happen somewhat at the buzzer, paving the way for Hernández to return to Los Angeles.
Hernández is grateful to be back with the Dodgers and will make his spring training debut on Friday against Cleveland.
Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
