Red Sox Reportedly Could Trade Struggling Slugger Back To Dodgers

Boston could move a player that could use a fresh start

Scott Neville | Jul 18, 2023

Red Sox Reportedly Could Trade Struggling Slugger Back To Dodgers /

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The Boston Red Sox have a strong Los Angeles Dodgers contingency and could look to trade one back to the city where they had the most success.

Alex Verdugo, Justin Turner, Kenley Jansen, Kiké Hernández and Chris Martin all had success with Los Angeles and many of them built up strong reputations there.

Hernández in particular was a fan favorite for his antics off the field, ability to fill in all over the diamond and stick in clutch hits both in the post and regular season.

Unfortunately, the 31-year-old's opportunity to fill a life-long dream of being an everyday shortstop has not gone as planned in his third season with Boston.

Hernández is hitting .218 with 17 extra-base hits including six home runs, 31 RBIs and a .598 OPS in 81 games while also leading Major League Baseball in errors this season.

The Athletic's Chad Jennings proposed a trade to send Hernández back to Los Angeles in exchange for unranked prospect Chris Newell.

"The Dodgers would love to get Hernández back, and he would certainly help them at shortstop and in the outfield," The Athletic's Jim Bowden wrote Tuesday regarding the proposed trade.

At this point, Hernández being moved would likely be best for both sides. He's beloved in Los Angeles, which is where he'd likely be worth the most and have the highest chance of turning around his season.

The fit makes a lot of sense and would help clear up a Red Sox infield that is about to get cluttered with the return of Pablo Reyes and eventually Trevor Story.

More MLB: Red Sox Linked To White Sox In What Would Be An 'All-In' Trade Scenario

Published Jul 18, 2023

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu