The Los Angeles Dodgers are nearly back to full strength on the position-player side after activating left fielder Teoscar Hernandez from the injured list on Monday.
Hernandez was placed on the IL on May 29 with a Grade 1 left hamstring strain. He was batting .276 with seven home runs and 31 RBIs in 51 games at the time of his injury. He hit .367 with seven extra-base hits and 14 RBIs in the 18 games leading up to his IL stint.
“It changes the dynamic and the length (of the lineup),” manager Dave Roberts said of Hernandez’s return. “Teo, obviously, there’s added slug, and depending if he’s hitting fifth, sixth or seventh, it just adds that length.”
During Hernandez’s four-game rehabilitation assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City, he batted .214 and hit two-run homers in three straight games.
The only starting position player still on the injured list for the Dodgers is catcher Will Smith, who has been on the IL with neck inflammation since June 11.
The Dodgers’ record was 18-10 in the 28 games Hernandez was sidelined.
The club plans to ease Hernandez back into action, likely starting him in four or five games per week during its 10-game stretch without a day off.
In the corresponding move for Hernandez’s activation, the Dodgers optioned outfielder Ryan Ward to Triple-A. In 20 games, Ward batted .218 with three homers and 12 RBIs.
