Kiké Hernandez could be shown the door this off-season and it is not because of his performance. He might make too much money in arbitration and because of it, the Dodgers could look to ship him elsewhere to create space for a bigger fish.
MLB Trade Rumors currently predicts Kiké Hernandez to receive somewhere in the neighborhood of $5.5 million. That is not a lot of money to the naked eye, but when examining what his role seems to be in 2020, he seems a bit redundant.
The emergence of top prospect Gavin Lux, the presence of Chris Taylor on the roster, and a potential signing of Anthony Rendon would only murky the waters that are Hernandez’s role with the team going forward.
Hernandez is a valuable player due to his versatility and defense. He had some uncharacteristic troubles with left-handers in 2019, but that should surely correct itself in 2020.
Now, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, Hernandez represents a seamless fit for the roster of the New York Mets.
https://t.co/2Z9ISgGce3 Thoughts about #Mets center field beginning with a pipedream with the #RedSox. #Pirates #Dodgers #Rays #Astros #SFGiants
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) November 7, 2019
Here is specifically what Sherman said regarding the super-utility player:
He’s a jack-of-all-trades, but that includes being a pretty good center fielder. Hernandez is a free agent after 2020. The Dodgers were interested in Edwin Diaz in July and are looking for closer insurance (or more) for Kenley Jansen. Los Angeles runs the kind of organization that feels it can get the talent out of someone such as Diaz. The Mets would not do this straight up because they also feel like they can fix Diaz. But what if, say, a cost controlled starter such as Ross Stripling were added to Hernandez plus the Dodgers agreed to take on Lowrie’s $9 million for 2020 as the price of doing business?
Edwin Diaz
Now, for the fun stuff. Sherman brings up a very interesting name to the table. Edwin Diaz. Diaz was the 2018 Reliever of the Year. In 2019, he was a huge disappointment after coming to the Mets from the Seattle Mariners.
In 2018, Diaz posted an electric 1.96 ERA and struck out 124 batters across 73 1/3 innings. He also picked up a whopping total of 57 saves. In 2019, things went way south. He posted a brutal 5.59 ERA, however, his stuff still maintained its bite with 99 strikeouts in just 58 innings.
The Dodgers were heavily linked to him at the 2019 trade deadline by Andy Martino of SNY Network, among others.
Dodgers still in play for Edwin Diaz, per major league sources.
— Andy Martino (@martinonyc) July 29, 2019
It would not be a surprise whatsoever to see the Dodgers make a run at home to help shore up their bullpen.
Also, Ross Stripling’s inclusion in the proposed deal is not at all surprising. Stripling seems like an obvious piece to move this off-season, but he could also be more valuable to the Dodgers due to the depth he provides both the rotation and bullpen.
Overall
Do you want Edwin Diaz? In other words, do you think the Dodgers should be the team to try and fix him up?
