“I have to make sure what is best for me in my career” - Teoscar Hernandez reflected on his decision to choose the Dodgers over Red Sox in free agency

Teoscar Hernandez made sure the Los Angeles Dodgers offered him an extension deal by the end of the season. In his first season with the team, he brought the Dodgers their first Home Run Derby trophy and also participated in Tuesday’s All-Star game on behalf of the LA club.

However, with a little turn of fates, the Dodgers might have missed out on Hernandez to the Boston Red Sox. Rob Bradford, a host of the Baseball Isn’t Boring podcast, met with the 31-year-old outfielder, talking about his free agency stint with the Red Sox, which was never finalized.

“Obviously, I was not gonna go and spend my free agency trying to get a bad deal. At the end of the [day], I love Red Rox and it was one my favorite teams, and I love playing there [at Fenway Park]. But at the end of the day, I have to make [sure] what is best for me in my career and my family,” Hernandez told Bradford.

The Boston club offered Teoscar Hernandez a two-year, $28 million contract. However, the Dominican star wanted a longer tenure in his deal and the Red Sox moved their focus from him.

If they had added an extra year in that deal, things might have been different now. But the Dodgers scooped the All-Star outfielder with a $23.5 million-a-year contract, with a chance to make up to $4 million depending on his performance before that.

“At the end, honestly, I thought they were going to make it. But, unfortunately, they say they have to wait because they have to move and all that stuff. And I couldn’t wait. I couldn’t wait any longer,” Hernandez said.

Teoscar Hernandez is playing strongly this season, scoring 62 RBIs, 48 runs and 19 home runs in 95 games. He has a slash line of .261/.327/.475 and an OPS of .802 which got him selected for his career’s second Midsummer Classic and first for the Dodgers.

Teoscar Hernandez revealed his reason for choosing the Dodgers

Teoscar Hernandez, while talking about the Red Sox’s roster, shared that he wanted to join a team that isn’t afraid of spending to get better players. That description perfectly fits the LA Dodgers.

"Teams that wanna win. They spend, they go after good players. I’m not saying they don’t have good players because they do. The Red Sox are really good right now and they had amazing players,” Hernandez added.

“But it just, for my part, I just want to go to a team that, it’s looking for everybody that is good to win. To spend, they are not afraid to spend and to go after good players so they can make their team better.”

By the time Hernandez joined, the Dodgers already had signed Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow, spending over a billion in the process.

Right now, the Dodgers are top of the NL East with a 56-41 record, while the Red Sox (53-42) are in third place. This is following the New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles in the AL East.