{"id":285694,"date":"2025-11-16T00:03:07","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T00:03:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/285694\/"},"modified":"2025-11-16T00:03:07","modified_gmt":"2025-11-16T00:03:07","slug":"kike-hernandez-undergoes-elbow-surgery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/285694\/","title":{"rendered":"Kik\u00e9 Hern\u00e1ndez Undergoes Elbow Surgery"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dodgers utilityman Kik\u00e9 Hern\u00e1ndez<\/a>\u00a0had surgery on Friday to repair a torn muscle in his elbow. The veteran announced the procedure in an Instagram post<\/a>. Hern\u00e1ndez said he suffered the injury in May and played through it the rest of the season, which led to the elbow tendon detaching from the bone.<\/p>\n

The 34-year-old Hern\u00e1ndez is currently a free agent. He signed a one-year, $6.5MM deal to return to LA this past offseason. Hern\u00e1ndez is a three-time World Series champion (2020, 2024, 2025). He\u2019s spent the majority of his 12-year career with the Dodgers, while also making brief stops in Houston, Miami, and Boston. It\u2019s unclear how long Hern\u00e1ndez will need to recover, but he noted that post-surgery rehab will prohibit him from playing with Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic. The injury is to his non-throwing arm, which could improve his recovery timetable.<\/p>\n

Hern\u00e1ndez scuffled to a .203\/.255\/.366 slash line this past season. The elbow issue could\u2019ve led to the down year, as he hit just .169 with an elevated 29.5% strikeout rate in 129 regular-season plate appearances after May. He missed most of July and August while tending to the injury. Despite the struggles, Hern\u00e1ndez started every postseason game for the Dodgers. He piled up 24 strikeouts in 17 games, but hit a respectable .250 and popped a homer in Game 5 of the World Series.<\/p>\n

A well-regarded lefty masher, Hern\u00e1ndez once again had sizable splits this year. His batting average was almost identical against righties and lefties, but his OPS was more than 100 points higher when facing left-handed pitching. Hern\u00e1ndez slugged .415 with six home runs in 108 plate appearances against lefties in the regular season. His slugging percentage fell to .333 against righties. He hit four homers in 148 plate appearances against same-handed pitching.<\/p>\n

Hern\u00e1ndez is best known for his defensive versatility, and the 2025 campaign was no different. He made at least nine starts at first base, second base, and third base, plus seven starts in the outfield. He even chipped in 5 1\/3 innings on the mound. Hern\u00e1ndez mostly played left field in the playoffs, while also appearing at center field and third base.<\/p>\n

While Hern\u00e1ndez isn\u2019t under contract right now, it\u2019s hard to imagine him in anything other than a Dodgers uniform. He\u2019s played 920 games with the team since coming over from Miami in a trade headlined by Dee Strange-Gordon<\/a>. Hern\u00e1ndez signed with Boston after winning the 2020 title with LA, spending two and a half seasons with the Red Sox. He was traded back to the Dodgers midway through the 2023 season. Hern\u00e1ndez has been a valuable contributor for the back-to-back champs, both on the field and in the clubhouse.<\/p>\n

With Max Muncy<\/a> back on a club option, LA will return the majority of the championship squad, outside of Game 7 hero Miguel Rojas<\/a> (also a free agent). Even with stars around the diamond, the depth chart still has soft spots at second base and corner outfield. Hern\u00e1ndez could be brought back for relatively cheap to fill his typical utility role.<\/p>\n

Photo courtesy of Joe Lumaya, Imagn Images<\/p>\n