Dodgers’ Kiké Hernández receives extremely encouraging injury update

After fighting through the offseason and much of the early spring to return to the field after offseason surgery, Kike Hernandez was dealt a cruel blow by the baseball gods just two games into his season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, landing on the IL with an oblique injury.

Now, for the Dodgers, Hernandez’s absence has been felt, but it hasn’t been debilitating, with Ryan Ward and Alex Call holding things down as both Hernandezes, Kike, and Teoscar, worked their way back to full strength. But the Dodgers have had to get creative at times with Kike unavailable to play, putting additional strain on players like Tommy Edman, who has been forced to play multiple positions since his own return from IL.

Discussing the Dodgers’ prospects with the trade deadline slowly but surely approaching, The Athletic’s Katie Woo let it be known that she expects Kike in roughly eight weeks from his initial injury projection, instead of the 12 weeks that was a possibility.

“Kiké Hernández (oblique strain) is trending ahead of schedule, and the team is cautiously optimistic he’ll miss closer to the minimum of eight weeks projected than the 12,” Woo wrote.

In the regular season, Hernandez has been a solid piece in the Dodgers’ puzzle. A true utility man who can play any position, even emergency pitcher, Hernandez is the kind of player who can fill in for anyone if they need a break or suffer an injury, with an ability to pinch hit in a pinch situationally as well.

While the Dodgers have missed him during his absence, having to start players like Ward and Santiago Espinal who are no longer on Dave Roberts’ bench, when Hernandez really shines is in the postseason, where he and Miguel Rojas both became crucial starters in left field and second base, respectively, in 2025. As long as Hernandez is back by October, that’s all the Dodgers really need from the 34-year-old at this stage of the game.