Dodgers activate Teoscar Hernández, restoring lineup to full strength amid pitching concerns
Hernández, 32, sustained a left groin strain while chasing down a line drive in the outfield during the Dodgers' game versus the Miami Marlins on May 6. At the time of his injury, he was batting .315 with a .933 OPS, 10 doubles and nine home runs, while leading MLB with 34 RBI in 33 games (136 plate appearances).
Advertisement
With Hernández's return, outfielder James Outman was sent back down to Triple-A Oklahoma City. He was recalled from the minors to fill Hernández's spot on the roster. Outman, 28, was batting .125/.222/.375 with two homers and four RBI.
The Dodgers may not be done making moves with their outfielders now that Hernández and Tommy Edman have been activated. The team released veteran utilityman Chris Taylor on Sunday, deciding to keep Hyeseong Kim (.452/.485/.581 in 33 PAs) instead. Andy Pages has also been playing very well, batting .280 with a .987 OPS, nine homers, 27 RBI and five stolen bases.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts will likely opt to use Edman and Kim, in addition to Enrique Hernández, at multiple positions based on pitching matchups and the need for days off to keep players fresh. However, Michael Conforto could ultimately be pushed out of the outfield mix, carrying a .171//.305/.279 batting line with nine doubles and two home runs.
Advertisement
With just 44 games played, the Dodgers will probably give Conforto more time to turn his season around. But he only signed a one-year deal and thus may be viewed as expendable in a roster crunch. But moving Taylor and veteran catcher Austin Barnes off the roster shows that the Dodgers feel the urgency to make tough decisions as they face a tough race in the National League West.
Going into Monday's MLB slate, the Dodgers lead both the San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants by one game in the National League West. The Arizona Diamondbacks aren't far behind either, just four games back.
Advertisement
Of greater concern is the team's pitching, which ranks 11th in the NL (and 21st in MLB) with a 4.18 ERA. Starters Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki are all on the injured list, in addition to relievers Blake Treinen, Evan Phillips and Kirby Yates. Clayton Kershaw made his first start of the season on Saturday, but looked like a work in progress after returning from multiple surgeries.
As Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said on Sunday, building pitching depth is an endless chase.
'It's like a game of Whack-a-Mole, and things keep popping up," Friedman said, via the Los Angeles Times. "The definition of enough depth, I think is a fool's errand. I don't know what enough depth means. I think more is always better with pitching depth.'
Figuring out the team's outfield mix is a luxury by comparison. That's a problem the Dodgers will surely accept right now while there are far more pressing issues to address.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
6 underrated players who could boost their teams in final push toward MLB playoffs
When it comes to the playoff chase, nobody is overlooking the importance of established stars such as Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge or Tarik Skubal. Those players have the weight of their teams' fortunes squarely on their shoulders, and everyone knows it. But in reality, it doesn't take huge names to make a huge impact. The stretch run, which features some tight races, could very well hinge on players who were not widely expected to be significant factors, at least not up until recently. With that in mind, six writers (three from and three from Yahoo Sports) got together and picked one player apiece whom they see as underrated candidates to be impact players down the stretch. Here are their selections. All statistics updated through Tuesday. Cristian Javier, SP, Astros The fact that the Astros are still neck-and-neck with the Mariners in the AL West race is pretty remarkable considering how many key players have been injured this season. The list of players on the injured list for the Astros includes, but is not limited to: Yordan Alvarez, Isaac Paredes, Josh Hader, Ronel Blanco, Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia. Fortunately, the Astros saw some good injury fortune with the return of Javier on Monday. Sidelined since May 21, 2024, after undergoing Tommy John surgery, Javier allowed two runs in five innings against the Red Sox on Monday — which came on a two-run home run from Alex Bregman — while striking out five batters. Notably, Javier's fastball sat at 93.4 mph, a mark he hasn't been at since his dominant 2022 season, when he had a 2.54 ERA and 194 strikeouts in 148 2/3 innings and helped pitch a combined no-hitter in Game 4 of the World Series against the Phillies. [Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2025 NFL season] We know that Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown are a heck of a 1-2 punch at the top of the Astros' rotation. But there are serious questions about who would slot in as a Game 3 starter for Houston, should the club secure a postseason berth. Perhaps just as important right now, the Astros need another quality starter to help fend off the Mariners and clinch yet another division title. —Brent Maguire, Andrew Vaughn, 1B, Brewers After a failed run with the White Sox, Vaughn has become one of the best hitters in baseball since he got to Milwaukee, a key part of the Brewers' recent success. Milwaukee, which is an incredible 39-11 since trading for Vaughn, will be without Jackson Chourio for the next few weeks as he recovers from a hamstring injury. As a result, the Brewers will need their new first baseman and his increased production even more down the stretch as the team looks to tie a bow on the NL Central title and make a run at baseball's No. 1 seed in the postseason. —Russell Dorsey, Yahoo Sports Ramón Laureano, OF, Padres It's easy to overlook Laureano on a Padres team loaded with star power, including newly acquired flamethrower Mason Miller. The 31-year-old outfielder didn't even get top billing in the deal with the Orioles that brought him to San Diego — that went to 2025 All-Star Ryan O'Hearn. But if Laureano can sustain his performance, he'll go down as one of the biggest positional upgrades any team made at the trade deadline, considering the black hole that was the Padres' left-field situation before he arrived. Through the end of July, only four teams got less production from their left fielders than the Padres (74 wRC+). In August? San Diego ranks fourth with a 159 wRC+ in left — including a 149 wRC+ from Laureano over 44 PAs at the position. —Thomas Harrigan, Kristian Campbell, 1B/2B, Red Sox First base has been a hot topic for the Red Sox for a while now. Triston Casas' season-ending ACL injury in early May sparked a series of shocking events, including Rafael Devers' refusal to play first base and subsequent trade to the Giants in an early-season blockbuster. Since Devers was dealt, Boston has been relying primarily on a platoon of Abraham Toro and Romy González at first base. That combo performed admirably at first, but Toro in particular — the larger side of the platoon as the switch-hitter who starts against right-handers — has struggled immensely recently, with a .481 OPS since July 8. Enter — or, perhaps more accurately, reenter — Kristian Campbell. Campbell began the season as one of baseball's top prospects, and the eight-year, $60 million extension he signed in April was indicative of Boston's confidence that he could be a key contributor in the short and long term. A terrific April at the plate suggested Campbell was indeed ready to make an impact, but then he went ice-cold for a lengthy stretch, necessitating a reset in Triple-A, where he has been since mid-June. Campbell continued to scuffle initially but has been heating up over the past month, hitting .370/.465/.575 in his past 20 games with Worcester. More importantly, he has been playing first base after appearing mostly at second in the spring, hinting that he could resurface as an option there for the big-league club. Whether he's a first baseman long-term doesn't really matter; right now, if Campbell can play first, he can fill a need for the Red Sox down the stretch. If he can make an impact the rest of the way, it'd be a cool redemption story after his demotion, especially if he can provide the kind of spark Boston needs to return to October. —Jordan Shusterman, Yahoo Sports Cade Horton, SP, Cubs The Cubs have been working overtime to hold their rotation together all year. Other teams have more high-profile pitchers on the injured list, but the Cubs are the ones still leading with ace Matthew Boyd, which one has to assume wasn't part of their original plan. Even as they get Javier Assad and Jameson Taillon back, we can't minimize the role Horton could play in the final weeks of the regular season. Horton didn't get off to a great start, but as he's figured out how to limit hard contact — now that it's clear he won't be averaging over a strikeout per inning at the MLB level in 2025 — he's really starting to come into his own. The 23-year-old came into his Wednesday night start against the Blue Jays with a 1.05 ERA since July 1 and a scoreless streak he'd run up to 23 1/3 innings. That scoreless streak hit 29 innings before he gave up a run in a 4-1 Chicago victory. At this point, the Cubs really can't burden themselves with what the Brewers are doing outside of their final five head-to-head games — there's basically no recourse for a miraculous hot streak. All they can do is to get themselves back in fighting form, playing their best baseball, and a good way to do that is to get your rotation back into a steady rhythm. Horton's certainly doing his part. —Shanthi Sepe-Chepuru, Trent Grisham, OF, Yankees October baseball is no longer a given for the 2025 Yankees, who, thanks to a late summer tumble, sit just one game up on the Cleveland Guardians for the final AL wild-card spot. That stark reality is most certainly not Grisham's fault. Disregarded in the minds of most as little more than a bench outfielder, the mustachioed lefty is enjoying a phenomenal season ahead of his first foray into free agency this winter. Call it good fortune, call it clutch, call it whatever you want, but one of the most notable features of Grisham's 2025 has been the timeliness of his long balls. Grisham has 25 homers, 20 of which have either tied the game or put the Yankees in front. By Win Probability Added — a WAR-like metric that also measures the timing of a player's contributions — Grisham has been the 13th-best hitter in the sport. Whenever the Bombers have needed a boost with a blast, Grisham has been there. I see no reason to expect that trend to stop now. —Jake Mintz, Yahoo Sports
Los Angeles Times
28 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Shohei Ohtani ‘focused on what the team is doing,' not distraction of Hawaii real estate lawsuit
Shohei Ohtani's name is in headlines again. And, for the second time in two years, not for baseball reasons. News emerged this week that Ohtani, the Dodgers' two-way star and reigning National League MVP, was being sued along with his agent in Hawaii by a real estate investor and broker. The claim: That Ohtani and his representative, Nez Balelo of Creative Artists Agency, had the plaintiffs fired from a $240 million luxury housing development that Ohtani had been contracted to help endorse. The contours of the case are complicated; relating to contract law, tortious interference and two years of alleged disputes between Balelo and the plaintiffs, developer Kevin J. Hayes Sr. and real estate broker Tomoko Matsumoto, leading up to their termination from the project. But as it pertains to Ohtani and this current Dodgers season, only one question really matters: Will the situation create any distraction for him off the field? When pressed on that Wednesday, he quickly shut the idea down. 'I'm focused on what the team is doing,' Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton. 'And doing everything in my power to make sure we bring a W on the field.' According to the lawsuit, Hayes and Matsumoto reached an endorsement deal with Ohtani in 2023 for their luxury housing development on Hawaii's Big Island. The Japanese star was not only to be a spokesperson for the project, but also a resident committed to purchasing one of the development's 14 residences as an offseason home. However, the lawsuit claimed, Balelo increasingly demanded unspecified concessions (the details of which were redacted in the filing) over the last two years from Hayes and Matsumoto — becoming what it described as a 'disruptive force' who 'inserted himself into every aspect of the relationship.' Last month, the lawsuit alleged, Balelo went to Hayes' and Matsumoto's business partner, Kingsbarn Realty Capital, and threatened litigation if the two weren't terminated from the project. 'Kingsbarn openly admitted … that Balelo had demanded the terminations and that they were being done solely to placate him,' the lawsuit said. 'Specifically, Kingsbarn acknowledged that Balelo had threatened to drag Kingsbarn into a separate lawsuit unless it terminated Hayes and Matsumoto.' The lawsuit also claims that Balelo's supposed threat of litigation — which pertained to the use of Ohtani's name, image and likeness rights being used to promote a seperate real estate project on Hawaii's Big Island — was 'baseless,' amounting to an 'abuse of power' by Ohtani's longtime agent to 'force a business partner to betray its contractual obligations and strip Plaintiffs of the very project they conceived and built.' A Kingsbarn spokesperson told The Athletic this week that the allegations 'are completely frivolous and without merit,' and that 'Kingsbarn takes full responsibility for its actions regarding Kevin Hayes and for removing Tomoko Matsumoto as the project's broker.' Ohtani's direct involvement in the dispute appears limited. According to a person with knowledge of the situation who wasn't authorized to speak publicly, the plaintiffs dealt almost exclusively with Balelo, who has represented Ohtani since he came to the major leagues from Japan before the 2018 season. Still, because Balelo was acting on behalf of Ohtani, the superstar was included as a defendant as well. That means — just like in March 2024, when scandal swirled around Ohtani after his former interpreter was found to have stolen money from his bank accounts to pay off illegal gambling debts — Ohtani has another potential disturbance to navigate off the field. Granted, Ohtani hardly seemed affected by last year's controversy, helping the Dodgers win the World Series while winning the third MVP award of his career. And this current lawsuit, according to attorney and legal expert Arash Sadat of Mills Sadat Dowlat LLP, presents a much more standard type of legal dispute often seen around real estate deals. 'This kind of stuff happens all the time,' Sadat said. 'They're not rare at all.' Sadat noted that, based on the lawsuit, it's not clear 'what Shohei knew and didn't know' when it came to Balelo's alleged interactions with the plaintiffs. 'All of the allegations in the complaint relate to conduct by his agent,' Sadat said. 'If the plaintiffs in this case could show any direct involvement by Ohtani, you can bet that would have been included in the complaint.' If the case were to proceed without a resolution, it is possible Ohtani could eventually be required to give a deposition detailing his knowledge of the alleged events. That, however, is not something that would happen imminently. And even if it did, Sadat added, it's unclear whether his testimony would even be released publicly, given that large swaths of redactions in the original lawsuit of seemingly proprietary business information. Sadat speculated the chances of the case ever going to trial as slim. The overwhelming majority of such lawsuits are typically settled or dismissed well before then. 'Real estate tends to bring out emotions in people,' Sadat said. 'You have a high-profile real estate developer. You have a high-profile real estate agent. You have a sports agent over at CAA. You're talking about big egos here. And when that happens, and someone feels slighted, oftentimes… litigation is the result.'
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
In LA battle, Angels overcome Ohtani, knock Dodgers out of first place
Aug. 14 (UPI) -- The Los Angeles Angels scored four runs off Shohei Ohtani to help complete a sweep, while knocking the rival Los Angeles Dodgers out of first place in the National League West. The 6-5 setback Wednesday in Anaheim, Calif., paired with an 11-1 San Diego Padres victory over the San Francisco Giants, gave the Padres a one-game lead in the National League West. Just six weeks ago, the Dodgers held a nine-game lead atop the division. With their victory, the Angels also picked up their seventh consecutive win over the Dodgers, setting a Freeway Series record. "We are where we're at," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters. "We put ourselves in this spot. I wouldn't have expected us to be in second place right now." Ohtani got the Dodgers off to a strong start with a leadoff triple off Angels starter Kyle Hendricks. He came around to score when shortstop Mookie Betts singled three pitches later. With his first hit, Ohtani became the first pitcher since 1900 to lead off an MLB game with a triple. Dodgers catcher Will Smith smacked a 407-foot, two-run homer later in the inning for a 3-0 Dodgers lead. The Angels, who failed to score in the bottom of the first inning, broke through against Ohtani in the second. Left fielder Taylor Ward started the rally with a 375-foot leadoff homer. Infielder Luis Renfigo plated third baseman Yoan Moncada with an RBI sacrifice fly three at-bats later. Betts gave the Dodgers a cushion with an RBI single in the top of the fourth. Angels relief pitcher Ryan Zeferjahn walked Smith with the bases loaded in the same inning for a 5-2 Dodgers lead, but the visitors didn't score again. Angels shortstop Zach Neto raked a two-run double off Ohtani in the bottom of the fifth, cutting the deficit to one. Catcher Logan O'Hoppe hit two-run single off Dodgers reliever Edgardo Henriquez in the eighth to give the Angels their final advantage. Angels reliever Kenley Jansen retired the Dodgers in order in the top of the ninth to secure the three-game sweep. Ohtani went 1 for 4 with three strikeouts, a walk and a run scored. He allowed five hit and four runs over 4 1/3 innings. He also issued seven strikeouts, including two to former Angels teammate Mike Trout. Betts was the only Dodgers player with multiple hits. He went 2 for 5 with two RBIs and a run scored. Hendricks allowed six hits and five runs over 3 1/3 innings for the Angels, but was not on record for a decision. Zeferjahn, Jansen and fellow Angels relievers Andrew Chafin, Reid Detmers and Brock Burke combined to allow just one hit over 5 2/3 shutout innings. The Dodgers will host the Padres in a battle for first place at 10:10 p.m. EDT Friday in Los Angeles. The Angels (59-62) sit in fourth place in the American League West, nine games behind the division-leading Houston Astros (68-53). They will take on the last-place Athletics (54-69) at 10:05 p.m. Friday in West Sacramento, Calif.
