Before Spring Training was cancelled and the 2020 Major League Baseball season was postponed due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the Los Angeles Dodgers seemed to be playing like a team with a chip on its shoulder.
They may have won a franchise-record 106 games in 2019, but they were defeated by the Washington Nationals in the National League Division Series, thus extending the franchise’s World Series drought.
L.A. returned a very talented team this year while also adding a few key players in Mookie Betts, Brusdar Graterol and Blake Treinen to help get over the hump. David Price was included in that equation prior to opting out.
The Dodgers nonetheless went into the season as a heavy favorite to maintain their hold over the National League West and reach, if not win, the World Series. It’s also an important year on a personal level for several players, with Kiké Hernandez among then and acknowledging as much, via Jorge Castillo of the L.A. Times:
“It’s probably the biggest year of my career without a doubt,” he said. “I guess it’s the year you prepare for your entire life, so it was exciting to think about it that way.”
Not only is Hernandez calling it that because of the Dodgers’ urgency to win a World Series, but he is due to become a free agent this winter for the first time in his career.
The 28-year-old has developed into one of the best utility players in all of baseball in his five years with the Dodgers and could be in for a lucrative deal in free agency if he’s able to put together a productive season.
Any team can use someone of Hernandez’s caliber as he can play anywhere on the field while also providing some pop at the plate.
It’s unclear how much interest the Dodgers will have in re-signing him considering they have other players to fill his role such as Chris Taylor and Zack McKinstry.
There’s no denying that Hernandez has been the heart and soul of the Dodgers in recent years though and he has stated that he loves playing for L.A., so perhaps the two sides will be able to work out a long-term deal to keep him around.
Hernandez enjoyed Kobe celebration
The Dodgers recognized L.A. Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna during a pregame ceremony on Sunday. Bryant would have been celebrating his 42nd birthday.
“We lost Kobe a little too soon. What he meant to not only this city but the entire world, to see the impact he had not only on basketball players but athletes and non-athletes all over the world, I think that tells you what type of person he was,” Hernandez said.
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