You would have thought that Seiya Suzuki’s name would no longer appear in trade rumors following the Cody Bellinger trade, but it was. Well, those trade rumors should be over now as the Los Angeles Dodgers have re-signed free agent outfielder Teoscar Hernández to a three-year contract.
Hernández, 32, had one of the best seasons of his career with the Dodgers in 2024, and obviously had interest in returning for 2025 and beyond. The outfielder was also being courted by his former team the Toronto Blue Jays and in the past week there were rumors that the Dodgers were supposedly interested in trading for an outfielder. Suzuki’s name appeared in those trade rumors, first published by Ken Rosenthal and most recently after Christmas by Jon Heyman in the New York Post.
Well, as was suspected, that was all talk by the Dodgers, who were probably nudging Hernández to make up his mind on a new contract. Now that the Dodgers have re-signed Hernández, we can all forget about those nonsense trade rumors involving Suzuki.
Hernández’s contract includes a fourth-year option and yes the deal includes deferred money.
Outfielder Teoscar Hernández and the Los Angeles Dodgers are in agreement on a three-year, $66 million contract, sources tell ESPN. The deal includes a fourth-year option for $15 million, a little more than $23 million in deferred money and a $23 million signing bonus.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 27, 2024
Putting aside the Suzuki talk for a second, it’s still frustrating to see the Dodgers go out and sign whoever they want while the Cubs remain handcuffed by their own payroll restrictions. The heaviest of sighs.
But hey, no more having to have a discourse about the Cubs trading away their best hitter from the past couple years. Please, stop using Seiya Suzuki as leverage in trade rumors. Thanks.
