{"id":920379,"date":"2026-10-08T07:46:23","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T07:46:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/920379\/"},"modified":"2026-10-08T07:46:23","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T07:46:23","slug":"with-a-taste-of-tequila-papi-salutes-teoscar-hernandez-and-the-dodgers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/920379\/","title":{"rendered":"With A Taste Of Tequila, Papi Salutes Teoscar Hernandez And The Dodgers"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Los Angeles Dodgers are heading back to the NL Championship Series for the third straight season, and remain on course for a World Series three-peat.<\/p>\n

That’s a cause for celebration in itself.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Which is why MLB on FOX analyst David Ortiz didn’t mind saluting Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernandez with a swig of tequila after the team eliminated the Atlanta Braves in Game 4 of the NL Division Series.<\/p>\n

Ortiz lauded Hernandez’s ability to deliver for the Dodgers in crucial moments despite being on a team with more celebrated stars like Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts.<\/p>\n

“Every time you come out quietly and do some damage, brother. \u2026 You always come through when they really, really need you. You always prepare for those moments,” Ortiz said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While Hernandez went hitless in Games 3 and 4 against the Braves, the 33-year-old outfielder had a crucial two-run home run in the 5-3 win in Game 1.<\/p>\n

Hernandez, as he was drenched with beer and champagne by his celebrating teammates in the visitors’ locker room in Atlanta, said he thrives when the team needs him the most.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“I love [the moments]. Throughout my career, I’m not afraid to fail. I think that’s the key, and I try to pass that to thing to the new guys \u2013 don’t be afraid to fail,” Hernandez explained. “I just want to be that guy in that tough spot.”<\/p>\n

Hernandez came on late toward the end of the season after struggling this summer. But things turned for him in September, where Hern\u00e1ndez\u2019s final month saw him hit .341 with a .965 OPS, along with four homers and 18 RBIs.<\/p>\n

When asked by MLB on FOX analyst Alex Rodriguez about the mid-season adjustments he made as a hitter, Hernandez credited his improvement at the plate to switching up his stance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“I had like three different stances that I used throughout the season and the way I’m hitting right now is one of them. I used to have a little bit of a leg kick. Another one is similar to Shohei, to stay on the ground.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“And another is pulling my front leg outside and doing a toe tap. I do this to control my body, to see the ball traveling and use the whole field.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hernandez and the Dodgers will be back in action on Sunday in Game 1 of the NLCS on FOX.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘I Just Want to Be The Guy’ \ud83d\udd25 Teoscar Hern\u00e1ndez on his CLUTCH Playoff Moments as Dodgers’ Advance \"'I<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Los Angeles Dodgers are heading back to the NL Championship Series for the third straight season, and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":920380,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[558],"tags":[64,63,243129,12215,1187,5882,591,488348,6590,5149,85,10222],"class_list":["post-920379","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mlb","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-event_recap","tag-freddie-freeman","tag-los-angeles-dodgers","tag-major-league-baseball","tag-mlb","tag-mlb-los-angeles-dodgers-vs-atlanta-braves-10-07-2026","tag-mookie-betts","tag-shohei-ohtani","tag-sports","tag-teoscar-hernandez"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/920379","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=920379"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/920379\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/920380"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=920379"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=920379"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=920379"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}