GLENDALE, Ariz. — A strained groin muscle in May landed Teoscar Hernandez on the injured list and lingered for the rest of the year. But the real injury might have been to his pride.

Re-signed by the Dodgers before last season, Hernandez moved back to his preferred position in right field. By midseason, though, his defense there became a liability for the Dodgers and the subject of criticism.

The 33-year-old Hernandez’s offseason response was evident when he arrived in spring camp this week. He has dropped 12 pounds, he said, with a renewed focus on getting in better shape for the 2026 season.

“Right now, I’m feeling really good – back to the way I used to be,” he said Tuesday. “My whole career I used to be 204, 205 (pounds), that range. Last year was a little over. But I’m back to normal right now.

“(Last year) I wasn’t moving the way I know I can move. That was one of my goals for the offseason – trying to get back in the shape I used to be, the weights that I know I can perform really good. That was my main goal this offseason.”

Though he spent less than two weeks on the IL following the groin injury in early May and played with a bruised foot in July, Hernandez acknowledged the lower-body injuries affected him all year. Hernandez was hitting .313 with a .933 OPS and 34 RBIs in his first 33 games when he suffered the groin injury. He hit .223 with a .672 OPS the rest of the regular season.

“Now that everything is over – I didn’t get back in my health when I got back from my injury. I was fighting through it,” Hernandez admitted Tuesday. “Obviously, I didn’t say anything. I just wanted to be on the field and trying to help the team.

“You have to use your legs. When you put a lot of weight on your legs and they’re not right, you’re not going to move the way you want to move at home plate, defense, running, all aspects of baseball.”

Hernandez’s pride kept taking hits during the offseason. The Dodgers signed Kyle Tucker as a free agent. Tucker will play right field with Hernandez moving back to left. And there were rumors that the Dodgers had gauged trade interest in Hernandez over the winter.

“At this point, I’ve been traded two times in my career,” said Hernandez who went from Houston to Toronto at the trade deadline in 2017, then from Toronto to Seattle following the 2022 season. “It’s good to win and be part of this (in Los Angeles). Obviously, I don’t want to go. But if they feel they can be a better team, they’re going to do it. As much as I like to be here, for them it has the business side of it and if they feel they can be better trading me and getting somebody else, they’re going to do it. And for me, I’m just going to play whenever I have to play. That’s my job.”

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts called Hernandez after the Tucker signing and told him he would be giving up right field to the newcomer.

“It was short,” Hernandez said of the conversation. “He told me, ‘You’re moving to left field.’ (I said) ‘OK. Let’s do it.’ That’s it. I’m ready in any way they need me. I just want to be there, be on the field and play every day.”

Roberts defended Hernandez’s effort in right field at times last year and said this spring that his defense “really, really ticked up” after an August series at Coors Field when it became a major issue. Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman acknowledged “we had some conversations” after the series in Colorado and “his effort level really stepped up.”

“Teoscar looks great,” Friedman said Tuesday. “I saw some interviews over the winter where he said his goal was to win a Gold Glove. I love that.”

PITCHER PROGRESS

Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani threw to hitters in live batting practice during Tuesday’s workout. It was the first time facing hitters for Ohtani this spring while Yamamoto progressed to throwing two simulated innings.

Yamamoto is expected to pitch in at least one Cactus League game before he leaves to join Team Japan for the World Baseball Classic. It is “unlikely” that Ohtani pitches in the Cactus League, Roberts said.

Ohtani hit 98 mph during his one simulated inning Tuesday. Dalton Rushing caught him and said his stuff was “electric.”

Friedman said there was “a really good conversation” with Ohtani about why the team does not want him to pitch in the WBC.

“We sat down and talked to him about it,” Friedman said. “Just coming off the (2023 Tommy John) surgery, coming off the year he had, pitching through October, just the quick turnaround at that kind of intensity, coming off surgery. And then obviously, we have designs of playing through October this year, and Shohei being a big part of that on the mound. That, coupled with the idea that he wants to pitch for the next eight years, we want him to pitch for the next eight years, just trying to be really mindful of all of that.

“So we sat down, had the conversation with him. He understood it. The competitor in him doesn’t love it, but he understood it.”

Ohtani said he is not sure how much he will be able to continue his pitching buildup while playing for Team Japan, but Friedman said he is confident Ohtani will be taking a turn in the Dodgers’ starting rotation from the beginning of the regular season.

“Where he is right now, and we’ll continue his throwing progression, but not necessarily getting into games,” Friedman said. “And then we’ll figure out what he’s able to accomplish while he’s in Japan on those off days. And then we’ll be able to slide him back in here, into our rotation, as quickly as possible.”