Teoscar Hernández stays with the Los Angeles Dodgers for a few more years.
The outfielder and 2024 World Series champion agreed to a three-year, $66 million contract with Los Angeles on Friday, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The deal reportedly includes a fourth-year option for $15 million, a $23 million signing bonus and, as is now common for the Dodgers, about $23 million in deferred money.
The player provided his own confirmation on his Instagram story.
The deal might not come as a big surprise to those who listened to Hernandez after the Dodgers’ 2024 World Series championship, as he said re-signing with the team was a priority and that “do everything possible to return“However, there was a report that there was a gap between the player and the team in negotiations, which was apparently resolved.
Because he turned down a qualifying offer from the Dodgers, any other team would have had to give up draft picks to sign Hernandez.
Teoscar Hernández went from disappointing free agency to World Series champion
Hernandez had one of the best year-over-year turnarounds in 2024, coming off a disappointing 2023 with the Seattle Mariners with a stellar performance as a Dodger. Hernandez was brought to Los Angeles to help push the Shohei Ohtani-led Dodgers into a championship-caliber team, a mission that was certainly successful.
The Dominican outfielder finished the season with a .272 batting average (his best in three seasons) and a career-high 33 home runs. Hernandez also finished 2024 with an .840 OPS, a total increase of 100 points from his year in Seattle. As a bonus, he also emerged victorious in the 2024 Home Run Derby.
His star continued to rise in the MLB playoffs, including a game-tying RBI double in Game 5 of the World Series, which the Dodgers won to seal their eighth title. He was ranked No. 9 on Yahoo Sports’ list of the top 50 free agents this winter.
A free agent last winter following his stint with the Mariners, Hernandez signed a one-year, $23.5 million contract with the Dodgers in January, with some of that money (about $8.5 million) deferred. The contract did not reach the type of long-term agreement that Hernández expected, neither in terms of years nor salary.
Now, after proving himself in 2024 and re-entering free agency, Hernández will spend the next three years in Los Angeles. By betting on himself, Hernandez has essentially earned himself a four-year, $89.5 million contract in his latest free agency, which isn’t bad considering where he was a year ago.
Dodgers deferred money trend continues with Teoscar Hernández
It really shouldn’t be surprising that Hernandez’s deal contains postponements.
The Dodgers have made it quite clear that they will defer money with any free agent who is willing to do so, as the contract structure saves the team immense amounts of money in competitive balance tax calculations.
Shohei Ohtani and his $680 million in deferred money are the perfect example of this, but Mookie Betts ($115 million), Will Smith ($50 million), Freddie Freeman ($57 million), Blake Snell ($62 million) million dollars), Tommy Edman ($25 million) and now Hernández have all taken the step. That adds up to more than $1 billion paid to players after their contracts are up.
The Hernandez deal also fills the Dodgers’ last glaring need this offseason. They lost Walker Buehler in free agency in a $21 million deal to the Boston Red Sox and still have Jack Flaherty out there, but they found a big rotation boost in Snell and have several starting pitchers returning next season. . They also re-signed reliever Blake Treinen and brought in Michael Conforto to fill right field, while Hernandez will likely handle left field.
Of course, they’re probably not done yet. Like Hernandez, Clayton Kershaw also said he plans to return and it’s hard for the Dodgers to turn him down. And then there’s Roki Sasaki, the Japanese phenom who would give them the biggest bargain of the offseason if he decides to join a couple of his Samurai Japan teammates in Los Angeles.