On Tuesday, Kiké Hernández was forced to exit early and was placed on the injured list just two days after making his season debut. On Wednesday, another Hernández got bit by the injury bug.
Teoscar Hernández departed Wednesday’s game after suffering a left hamstring strain while trying to beat out a ground ball in the bottom of the second inning. Hernández was placed on the injured list on Thursday, with Ryan Ward being called back up from Triple-A Oklahoma City to fill his spot, per Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times.
He sustained a left hamstring strain and is headed to the injured list, manager Dave Roberts said after the game. Hernández, after undergoing preliminary testing Wednesday, was scheduled for imaging Thursday. The Dodgers planned to recall outfield/first base prospect Ryan Ward, a person with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly confirmed Thursday morning.
While the Dodgers received bad news regarding both the Hernández’s injuries, reliever Evan Phillips is right on track in his recovery process. Sonja Chen of MLB.com notes that Phillips is set to begin his rehab assignment after throwing another two live outings, putting him on pace to return in July.
“It’s really good to see,” manager Dave Roberts said. “Evan’s a guy that’s very focused and determined, and he’s going to do everything he’s supposed to do to get back. And to potentially have him back is a big weapon that we’ve missed for quite some time, and I miss seeing him around. … I depended on him a lot when he was active, so to get him back is going to be a big boost to everyone.”
Tommy Edman is now in the midst of his rehab assignment, as the Dodgers announced on Monday prior to their 5-1 win over Colorado. Edman went 1-3 in his Triple-A season debut on Tuesday.
The injuries to both Kiké and Teoscar Hernández have allowed Hyeseong Kim to receive more playing time, as the speedster finished Wednesday’s game in left field, a position foreign to him at the big league level.
For Kim, the goal is simply to focus on contributing on a nightly basis at the highest level rather than worry about decisions outside of his immediate control, notes Doug Padilla of the Orange County Register.
“As a baseball player, it’s my job to produce, so I’m always focused on producing numbers, and just given the situation, I try not to think about it too much,” Kim said through an interpreter. “Just keep working hard and keep producing as best I can.”