KC Royals named as 'best team fit' for Dodgers slugger Teoscar Hernández

The 2024 season was an incredible comeback story for the Kansas City Royals, but their final weeks of the regular season and subsequent playoff campaign exposed a critical weakness that they can't afford to have exposed again. Particularly in the ALDS, the team's offense fell apart, and while a large part of that was due to their top three hitters — Bobby Witt Jr., Vinnie Pasquantino, and Salvador Pérez — simultaneously going through a poorly-timed slump, it was also just glaringly obvious that the Royals needed more power.

Fortunately, Kansas City has at least one top option in free agency. On October 24, MLB.com's Jim Bowden named the Royals as a "best team fit" for Los Angeles Dodgers' slugger Teoscar Hernández, and it's very easy to see how the 32-year-old right-fielder would slot into the KC lineup.

Hernández would add a power bat to the KC Royals' outfield

At the Royals' end-of-season press conference, general manager J.J. Picollo explained that he's aware of the offensive issues in the team's outfield and wants to increase production in that area.

“The offense from the outfield positions has to get better,” Picollo said. “Generally speaking, when you’re looking at left field, right field, that’s where you’re thinking about power guys. And we know this ballpark doesn’t lend itself to homers, but it does lend itself to slug. So we’ve got to be more productive there.”

In 2024, the Royals' outfield consisted of MJ Melendez, Kyle Isbel, Tommy Pham, and Hunter Renfroe, and not one of them was a threat at the plate. Especially if Renfroe declines his $7.5 million player option for 2025, the outfield is an obvious place to add the power bat that the Royals' lineup so desperately needs.

Enter, Hernández.

In 154 regular-season games with the Dodgers this season, Hernández slashed .272/.339/.501 with a career-best 33 home runs, 99 RBI, and 12 stolen bases in 589 at-bats. As well as his impressive stats, the 32-year-old earned the second All-Star nod of his career and won the MLB Home Run Derby, becoming the first Dodger to ever win the contest.

Admittedly, Hernández is a below-average defender, but his offensive capabilities could outweigh that negative. The right-hander would slot into the middle of the Royals' lineup, right behind Witt Jr., livening up the team's offense for what will hopefully be another playoff bid.

KC Royals likely to want a short-term deal

Sportrac predicts Hernández will land a 3-year, $71.2 million deal out of free agency this offseason, putting his average annual value at $23.8 million, just above the $23.5 million he made with the Dodgers in 2024. That could be stretching Kansas City's budget, and the team will likely be resistant to a multi-year deal for the veteran outfielder. Still, landing Hernández on a one-year contract like he had in Los Angeles isn't out of the question.

Considering the impressive stats he put up this season, there are likely to be a number of teams competing for Hernández's services in free agency, and the Royals will have to make a strong offer to stay in the conversation. The team proved in 2024 that they aren't afraid to spend money to bolster the roster with the right players, and Hernández may be exactly what Kansas City needs.