Now that the Los Angeles Dodgers have added Kiké Hernández, pending a physical, they have quite a predicament on their hands – too many players and not enough roster spots.

To make room for the utility man, the Dodgers will have to clear space on the 40-man and the 26-man rosters. Clearing space on the 40-man roster will be easy as they’ll just move someone to the 60-day injured list. Making room on the 26-man roster will prove to be much more dofficult.

This is what the Dodgers know before spring training even starts. The active position player roster will include Will Smith, Austin Barnes, Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, Max Muncy, Kiké Hernández, Teoscar Hernández, Michael Conforto, Tommy Edman, and Miguel Rojas ,leaving two spots open for Hyseong Kim, James Outman, Chris Taylor and Andy Pages to fight for.

The Dodgers just signed Kim this offseason and if he proves himself in camp then he will stay with the big league club, which leaves the other three to be potentially up for grabs on the trade market.

Taylor and the Dodgers agreed to a four-year, $60 million contract when he reached free agency following the 2021 season.

While he does not have a no-trade clause, his contract does include two other things: A $2 million assignment bonus with each trade, plus his 2026 option increases by $1 million if traded after the 2024 season and before start of the 2026 season

Pages was almost traded once.

It was back in 2020 when the Dodgers tried to send him, Joc Pederson, and Ross Stripling to the Los Angeles Angels. The deal fell through, Pages was called up in April 2024, and he never looked back.

The outfielder is young and has plenty of upside after finishing the season slashing .248/.305/.407. Pages has accrued 155 days of major league service time and has one option year left after being optioned in both 2023 and 2024.

Finally, there is Outman.

Outman finished second in National League Rookie of the Year voting two years ago, losing to Arizona’s Corbin Carroll, but his sophomore season was a complete slump.

The outfielder’s offensive numbers took a significant hit in 2024, slashing .147/.256/.265 as his home run and walk rates declined while his strikeout rate increased. He ended up playing more games in Triple-A (69) than in the majors (53).

While the Dodgers have a ton of depth that will set them up for a long season, that depth is also going to cause some headaches for the front office and coaching staff.

Two spots for four players will leave two men very disappointed when decisions are made.