Red Sox, Yankees, Dodgers Among ‘Stiff Competition’ For $75 Million Slugger

All eyes are on the Juan Soto free agency sweepstakes as bidding has reportedly surpassed the $700 million mark. One fellow free agent likely very interested in the outcome is Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Teoscar Hernández. Could the Boston Red Sox land him if they’re unsuccessful in wooing Soto to Fenway Park?

Hernández posted a .840 OPS with 33 home runs, 99 RBI and 84 runs scored in 2024 with the Dodgers. He was a crucial piece of the club’s championship puzzle and won his third Silver Slugger Award. Back on the open market after taking a one-year, $23.5 million deal last winter, he’s looking for a bigger payday this time around.

While the general expectation has been that Hernández will return to LA, both sides aren’t believed to be close on a new deal. This is leaving the opportunity for other teams to potentially snatch him from the Dodgers’ grasp. MassLive’s Chris Cotillo shared a report Saturday on Boston’s continued pursuit of Hernández.

“Red Sox remain in on Teoscar Hernández but face stiff competition from Dodgers and Yankees, per source. That market is expected to heat up once Soto signs, not pre-empt it like (Willy) Adames and (Tyler) O’Neill did,” Cotillo wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “Obviously, Hernández is a very logical pivot for the teams who don’t land Soto. He’s expected to let it play out that way. Adames and O’Neill jumped on good deals from non-Soto suitors.”

The Athletic’s Jim Bowden is predicting the outfielder will sign a three-year, $75 million deal this winter. That’s slightly higher than the three-year, $71 million estimate from Spotrac.

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Shohei Ohtani Opens Up on His Deferrals, Dodgers’ Promise to Him

The Los Angeles Dodgers and Shohei Ohtani made history after agreeing to a 10-year, $700 million contract in Dec. 2023. The most unique aspect of the landmark deal was the fact that 97 percent of Ohtani’s contract was deferred.

For most, if not all, other players, deferring so much of a contract would not have been feasible, but Ohtani isn’t like most players. The superstar earns more than $60 million from endorsements, which allowed the Dodgers to make a unique and profitable investment when they signed Ohtani.

The sacrifice for Ohtani was well worth it. In his first season with the Dodgers, Ohtani became the first player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases. He also had the best offensive season of his career and won his first World Series in the first postseason appearance of his career.

“It definitely was rewarding,” Ohtani told Bob Nightengale of USA Today. “You know, Mark, Andrew, the owners, we all made a promise to each other that we would go out and create the best team to put out on the field. And we were able to win the World Series, so in that sense, we were able to keep our promise towards each other.”

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Thanks to Ohtani’s deferred payments, the Dodgers are in the process of building baseball’s next dynasty. The five-year, $185 million signing of Blake Snell would not have been possible without Ohtani’s unique contract.

Not only did the Dodgers benefit from landing their $700 million man, but the organization also gained financial flexibility because of the manner in which Ohtani’s contract is structured.

“I know they’re renovating the field [$100 million on clubhouses] right now, putting in even more resources to sign possibly other players, so it was refreshing and rewarding to know that we all did our part to help the Dodgers win the World Series,” Ohtani said.