Enrique Hernandez

Hernandez's time in Boston ended with a whimper, as he struggled to a .599 OPS in 86 games with the Red Sox last season before being traded. The Dodgers brought him back to Los Angeles, where he had enjoyed his most success, and Hernandez indeed rebounded down the stretch. He was even included on the team's NLDS roster and will return to the Dodgers in 2024, having signed a one-year deal in February. After his 2018 season, it looked like Hernandez might break the chains of merely being a utility/platoon player, but at this point in his career he will have to accept a niche role. Hernandez, now 32, is a career .239 hitter with modest power and little speed. Coming off double hernia surgery in October, he may be eased into action this spring, though the team expects him to be available for the March 20-21 series against the Padres in South Korea.

Hernandez missed two months in 2022 with a hip injury and struggled offensively when available with a .222/.291/.338 slash line in 93 games. He primarily worked in center field once again and remains a plus defender, but he hit only six home runs and had a career-low .116 ISO. Boston still inked Hernandez to a one-year, $10 million extension in September, so he'll be back for 2023. He was productive during his first campaign with the Red Sox in 2021 with a .786 OPS, 20 home runs and 84 runs, but it's unclear if he can replicate those numbers while entering his age-31 season. With Trevor Story set to miss at least the early part of the 2023 season while recovering from elbow surgery, Hernandez is expected to move into an everyday role in the middle infield in his third year in Boston.

Two straight years of declining production with the Dodgers didn't deter Boston from signing Hernandez to a two-year, $14 million deal. Despite a subpar OBP and 12 career steals, Alex Cora challenged Hernandez to win the leadoff job and he went on to hit first in 118 of 134 starts. While his .337 OBP was relatively low, it was his highest since 2015. Despite an early stint on the IL for a sore hamstring and an extended second half stay on the COVID-19 IL, Hernandez posted a career high with 84 runs. Hernandez's 14 defensive runs saved was the third highest total for a centerfielder while his eight assists tied for second most. His 1.260 OPS in the playoffs helped Boston fall two wins shy of the World Series. Hernandez should garner everyday playing time, though it's unclear if it will be in the outfield or infield. Regardless, he should again compile bountiful counting stats, especially runs.

Hernandez has long been valued by the Dodgers for his defensive versatility; in 2020, he saw time at six different positions, offering the team a plug-and-play option in both the infield and outfield. However, his offensive production continued to slip, and he ended the season with a subpar 83 wRC+. He rarely took a walk (career-low 4.1 BB%) and popped out too often when he put the ball in play, posting a 14.0 IFFB%. Though he maintained a respectable strikeout rate (20.9%), Hernandez produced little power, finishing with his lowest AB/HR (27.8) since 2016. The deficiencies at the plate cost the utilityman playing time as the season wore on, and he ultimately started only 67% of the games in which he played -- his lowest mark since 2017. Hernandez signed a two-year, $14 million deal with Boston and should play four or five days per week in the early stages of this mini rebuild.

Hernandez regressed significantly last season as his .237/.304/.411 slash line, 76.1% contact rate and .715 OPS were considerable dropoffs from a promising 2018 campaign. While it's tempting to blame his paltry .266 BABIP on bad luck, the mark is in line with his career norm and representative of a swing-for-the-fences approach (as evidenced by his 19.5 degree average launch angle and 43.3% flyball rate) combined with a mediocre average exit velocity (88.4 mph) and barrel rate (4.1 Brls/PA). Hernandez's value to the Dodgers lies largely in his versatility; in 2019, he played every position except catcher and pitcher. This allowed Hernandez to average 461 plate appearances over the past two seasons; however, his playing time is likely to lessen in 2020 with the emergence of Gavin Lux at second base and the development of several other youngsters who are threats to Hernandez's place in the pecking order.

After a couple years spent boxed in as a complementary bench player, Hernandez got a chance to prove he's more than that. He didn't quite play every day, but Hernandez logged 462 plate appearances during the regular season -- 120 more than his previous career high -- while jumping all around the diamond, playing every position except catcher. Offensively, Hernandez was 18% better than league average as he shaved his strikeout rate by 6.5 percentage points and added nearly 50 points to his slugging percentage. He hit .252/.338/.495 against right-handed pitching, which was a dramatic improvement upon his .159/.244/.255 line against righties in 2017. Hernandez's 16.7% infield-flyball rate was an eyesore and realistically, there's probably only one way to go when it comes to batting average (down), but his cost will be minimal given he's not a true everyday player, and he's eligible at three positions (2B, SS, OF).

Hernandez has yet to see even 350 plate appearances in a single season with the Dodgers and it is not imminently clear how that will change in 2018 with the crowded depth chart they have. The shortstop/outfield eligibility is a nice part of his profile, but it is only nice if you can use it and with his playing time limitations, he is only an option for NL-only leagues as a last outfielder or a middle-infield role. He has the other flaw of being a guy that is much better against the short side of a platoon as he rakes lefties while struggling against righties. His profile and abilities are reminiscent of Sean Rodriguez, who eventually found a way to make the most of his opportunities in a similar role. Go look at Rodriguez's 2016 if you would like to see the high end of what Hernandez could be in 2018.

There is no way to sugarcoat Hernandez's 2016 season, because the performance was ugly no matter how you slice and dice the numbers. He was a juggernaut in a small sample against southpaws in 2015, but in 2016 he hit under the Mendoza Line against pitchers from each side of the rubber. He hit .170 on the road but only .205 at home (albeit with a lower OBP). A midseason ribcage injury may have contributed to his struggles at the plate, but Hernandez had fallen deep into the abyss well before that injury came to light. The Dodgers will hit the reset button, and he may even be given a chance to start at second base if an upgrade can't be acquired before the start of the season. If he enters the year as an everyday player, he is worth a flier in deeper leagues, given his age (25) and the fact that he has yet be given a chance in a steady big league role.

Hernandez came over from the Marlins in the deal involving Dee Gordon and quickly cemented himself as the Dodgers' top utility player, seeing time at six different positions. At the dish, he was better than expected, and Hernandez torched southpaws to the tune of .423/.471/.744 in 78 at-bats. He saw quite a bit of time in center field down the stretch due to the struggles of Joc Pederson. He walked in just 5.0% of his plate appearances last season, but that could improve with more major league experience. Hernandez doesn't run much, limiting his value, but he's still just 24. Heading into 2016, the Dodgers seem likely to utilize Hernandez in a similar role to last year, meaning he will likely see only semi-regular playing time between center field and the middle-infield positions, barring injury to a Dodgers starter.

Opportunity in the major leagues was hard to come by for Hernandez after a mid-season trade from the Astros as the 23-year-old infielder was given just 40 at-bats and hit .175/.267/.425 after batting .284/.348/.420 over 80 at-bats prior to the move. Hernandez was also consistently solid on the farm last season, putting together a .319/.372/.484 line with 58 runs, 25 doubles, 11 home runs and 42 runs scored in 98 games across two levels. Hernandez’s low strikeout rate and gap-power could provide some intriguing offensive opportunity if he wins playing time, but he'll likely be limited to a utility role after being acquired by the Dodgers in December.