By Jordan Long
The Boston Red Sox stand at 67-69, last place in the American League East Division. They are 9 games behind the New York Yankees for first place. In the Wild Card standings, they are 9 games back of Toronto who holds the 3rd and final Wild Card spot. Most likely, the Boston Red Sox are going to miss the postseason. This didn’t stop them from signing centerfielder Enrique “Kike” Hernandez to a one-year deal that avoids him from going into free agency.
Hernandez is in his second season in Boston. In 2021, he had 508 plate appearances for the Red Sox, hitting .250. Hernandez also smacked 20 home runs which were his most since 2018 when Hernandez was a member of the L.A. Dodgers. In 2018, he had 21 home runs. During 2021 Hernandez played 2nd base, shortstop, and centerfield for Boston. His natural position is centerfield where he was placed for 93 games. He totaled 4 errors and 8 outfield assists.
Boston earned a playoff spot that year and went all the way to the American League Championship Series but were beaten by the Houston Astros in 6 games. In that playoff run, Hernandez’s batting average was .408 with 5 home runs and 9 RBI’s. Boston expected a bigger year for him.
Unfortunately, Hernandez had a down year and was injured. Hernandez was placed on the 10-day injured list on June 8th due to a hip flexor strain. Boston expected he would be back after that stint. Hernandez ended up on the 60-day disabled list on July 23rd. That didn’t end his season though. He rejoined the team on August 16th.
The Red Sox didn’t see Hernandez a lot this season. He had a total of 68 plate appearances so far this year. Hernandez’s batting average is .219 with 6 home runs and 37 RBI’s. In the outfield, Hernandez played centerfield for 64 games with 1 outfield assist, not great numbers.
The Red Sox could have let him test free agency. There might have been a team who may have signed him because Hernandez is a veteran player. The Red Sox though decided to keep Hernandez. The financial terms of the deal weren’t announced but according to ESPN.com, it is for $10 million.
The Red Sox are taking a risk. They are anticipating Hernandez can stay healthy. If so, he can be one of the better hitters in the lineup who can drive the ball into the gap or over the wall. They can’t have Hernandez stay on the injured or the disabled list like this season. At least it’s only a 1-year deal and Boston isn’t invested for a long time. The worst case is he struggles and Boston decides to trade him. Boston wants to be a playoff team next year. They feel keeping Hernandez is a move that will help get them there.
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