Plenty of pieces and factors went into the Los Angeles Dodgers’ World Series title in 2024. Dave Roberts and company closed out the New York Yankees on Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium in a five-game series that separated the Dodgers as the best team in baseball.
Now, the task for Los Angeles becomes retaining and improving the roster as they try to repeat next season. In order to do that, the front office will have some work to do with a long list of players that will be hitting free agency this winter.
One of the marquee free agents on the roster is outfielder Teoscar Hernandez, who was a big contributor at the plate and in the field for the Dodgers this season. Hernandez crushed 33 home runs and had 99 RBI’s this season, finishing with a career-high WAR (4.3). In the World Series, he showed off his arm in Game 3 when he threw Giancarlo Stanton out at home plate.
On Friday, Hernandez gave an emotional tribute to Dodgers fans at the team’s championship parade. In response, fans on social media begged the team to bring him back next season.
“Teo touched everyone, what he did for us this season, we want him to be a Dodger for life,” one fan commented on X, formerly Twitter. Another added, “The amount of clutch moments Teo gave the Dodgers this season, they need to sign him to a multi-year contract.”
Hernandez was in his first year with the Dodgers after a long, successful stint with the Toronto Blue Jays and a one-year stop with the Seattle Mariners. His 33 home runs were a career-high and his 99 RBI’s were his second most ever as he was selected as an All-Star for the second time in his career after making it in 2021.
Some of the other notable Dodgers free agents include Clayton Kershaw (player option), Walker Buehler, Kiké Hernández and Jack Flaherty, so the front office is going to have to shell out significant money to keep some key pieces from the 2024 team. They will also likely have to make a few business decisions along the way, but fans are clearly hoping that Hernandez is back in Dodger blue when the season begins next spring.
