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Alden Gonzalez, ESPN Staff Writer
The Los Angeles Dodgers, in search of depth throughout their infield, reached a deal to reacquire super-utilityman Enrique Hernandez from the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday.
The Red Sox received Nick Robertson and Justin Hagenman, two right-handed relievers who have pitched mostly in the minor leagues and will report to the team’s Triple-A affiliate. In exchange, they agreed to pay $2.5 million of the roughly $3.5 million remaining on Hernandez’s contract.
Hernandez, 31, is expected to start against lefties, helping out mostly at second base and center field and potentially playing occasionally at shortstop. Hernandez has struggled offensively in Boston over the last two years, slashing only .222/.286/.330 in 725 plate appearances. He has, however, been slightly better against lefties this season, batting .260/.314/.338. And Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the team’s hitting coaches, Aaron Bates and Robert Van Scoyoc, have identified some mechanical tweaks that could lead to more production.
“Obviously he helped us win a championship and had his best years here in a Dodger uniform,” Roberts said. “I know the fans are excited. He’s got a great relationship with the fans, does a lot of stuff in the community, and I think for us it’s more of — he hasn’t had the best of seasons, but the bet is being back home, the familiarity, kinda can tap back into being the player that we know he can be and that we’ve seen.”
While Hernandez has spent most of the season as the Red Sox’s primary shortstop, the imminent return of Trevor Story from surgery on the ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing elbow made him expendable. Story started a rehab assignment on Friday and joined the Red Sox’s Triple-A team Tuesday.
Boston remains active in the trade market ahead of the Aug. 1 deadline, looking for pitching to supplement a rotation that has been beset by injuries. The Red Sox have scored 504 runs this season entering Tuesday, the third most in the American League, but their 463 runs allowed is the most in the AL East and 10th in the league.
“You don’t want to miss a really compelling opportunity even if it puts you over the tax,” Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said of taking on another high-salary player. “There’s not a hard-and-fast line, but it’s obviously something that’s important.”
Hernandez played for the Dodgers from 2015 to 2020 and became one of the franchise’s most beloved players during that time. He culminated his stint with a tying home run in Game 7 of the 2020 National League Championship Series, on the way to the franchise’s first World Series title in more than 30 years.
Hernandez then signed a two-year, $14 million free agent contract with the Red Sox over the ensuing offseason, and the team extended him with a one-year, $10 million deal last fall.
The Dodgers own a four-game cushion on first place in the NL West, but they’re still reeling from the loss of shortstop Gavin Lux, who tore his ACL in spring training, and have absorbed struggles from two of their brightest young players, second baseman Miguel Vargas and center fielder James Outman. On Tuesday night against the Toronto Blue Jays, Outman delivered a walk-off double in the 10th inning to complete the Dodgers’ 8-7 comeback victory after they trailed 7-3 in the ninth.
Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said Tuesday that the addition of Hernandez “doesn’t preclude us from exploring other right-handed bats,” which remains one of the team’s main targets — along with help for the rotation and the bullpen.
“He’s a Swiss Army knife,” Roberts said of Hernandez. “I still stand by he’s one of the most talented baseball players I’ve been around. I’m excited to see him blend in with this ballclub. It’s a very unselfish group, team-first-oriented.”
ESPN’s Jeff Passan contributed to this report.