Two days after the Brewers swept the Dodgers out of the NLCS, the offseason conversation is already running hot — and the name coming up most is Teoscar Hernández. The question circulating in Dodger circles: do they move Teo to clear the way for Josue De Paula, the 21-year-old who posted a 1.081 OPS in his MLB debut? The answer isn’t simple, but the numbers on both sides make the argument harder to dismiss than it might seem.
The Prospect Who Has Outgrown Triple-A
De Paula arrived in the majors on September 11, 2026, and in just 11 regular-season games hit .323/.500/.581 — a slash line that turns any small sample into a real conversation. His OPS of 1.081 and a wRC+ of 199 — meaning he produced nearly twice the value of the average MLB hitter — are the numbers that make people pay attention. Yes, it’s only 42 at-bats, and the sample size demands caution. But what he did all season in Double-A Tulsa is harder to wave off: .303/.401/.547, 27 home runs, 31 stolen bases, and 104 RBI in 124 games. Baseball America named him the Dodgers’ Minor League Player of the Year, and MLB Pipeline had him ranked as the No. 4 prospect in the country heading into the postseason.
His brief MLB Statcast numbers also hold up: a 89.2 mph average exit velocity, an 11.5% barrel rate, and an xwOBA of .437 — meaning he hit the ball better than his results showed, not worse. And his chase rate of just 18.6% in the majors is the kind of plate discipline you rarely see from a player his age. The one legitimate knock is defense: eight errors in the minors in 2026, with corner outfield still a work in progress. GM Brandon Gomes has acknowledged it, though internal reports on his development are reportedly positive. It’s a real risk — but not one that’s stopping anyone from having this conversation.
Why Teoscar Is the Odd Man Out — and Why Moving Him Isn’t Easy
Hernández finds himself in the uncomfortable position of being a solid player at the wrong place at the wrong time. In 2026 he hit .267/.334/.425 with 16 home runs in 125 games — his lowest home run total in a full season. That’s not a collapse, but it’s not the player the Dodgers signed to a three-year, $66 million deal before the 2025 season either.
His Statcast profile still shows real ability: 90.3 mph average exit velocity (71st percentile), a 10.7% barrel rate, and a 44.8% hard-hit rate. The contact quality is there — the problem is consistency. His squared-up rate sits in the 36th percentile, his whiff rate in the 8th percentile, and his chase rate in the 39th. The talent exists; the 2026 version just didn’t put it all together.
The contract complicates any trade. Hernández has $17 million guaranteed for 2027 and a $15 million club option for 2028 — whoever takes him carries that weight, which shrinks the market. The Dodgers already shopped him last offseason and found no takers, ultimately sliding him to left field to accommodate Kyle Tucker. Now, with a NLCS sweep and De Paula knocking on the door, the situation has shifted. According to reports from The Athletic filtered through Ken Rosenthal, moving Hernández is the cleanest solution to a Dodgers outfield logjam that also includes Eduardo Quintero and Mike Sirota. The Boston Red Sox have also surfaced as a potential destination — they need right-handed power, and Teo has it.
How Likely Is a Trade?
Honesty first: this is still speculation. The Dodgers tried to move him before and couldn’t. GM Gomes said in December 2025 that a trade was «not something he anticipated at all.» What’s changed is the context. The Milwaukee sweep accelerates everything, and a roster with three outfield prospects and no natural opening isn’t a problem that fixes itself.
The math is hard to argue with. A No. 4 prospect in the country who debuted with a 1.081 OPS can’t sit in Triple-A for another year. A 33-year-old veteran carrying $17 million on the books with a known defensive deficit — he ranked in the 3rd percentile in outs above average in 2025 — is the obvious candidate to give up the spot. Teo isn’t a bad player. He’s a player with market value who could genuinely help another team. The Dodgers, meanwhile, have De Paula ready to be part of their future.
The offseason is just getting started, but this piece of the puzzle already feels more urgent than it did a year ago.
Teoscar Hernández — 2026 By the Numbers
- 491 plate appearances
- 16 home runs, 64 RBI
- AVG: .267 | OPS: .759
- xwOBA: .332
- Average exit velocity: 90.3 mph
- Barrel rate: 10.7%
- Hard-hit rate: 44.8%
- Average bat speed: 72.6 mph
- Whiff rate: 8th percentile in MLB
- Sprint speed: 78th percentile
