Enrique Hernández was placed on the injured list on Wednesday after manager Dave Roberts described the injury as a "significant tear" in his oblique, a setback that comes days after Hernández returned from offseason elbow surgery and immediately produced at the plate.
Roberts said Hernández will be out for "several weeks, if not months," and added, "It's certainly warranting an IL stint, but I don't really know as far as the time to return." The team announced the roster move on Wednesday, and recalled Alex Freeland to take Hernández's roster spot.
Hernández suffered the oblique injury while taking batting practice before his season debut on Monday. He was activated off the 60-day injured list that day after missing the first 53 games of the season following left elbow surgery. Hernández played two games after being activated and finished 4-for-4 in those appearances — he had two hits in his season debut Monday and homered on Tuesday after receiving treatment. He also hit a fourth-inning double on Tuesday while playing through significant pain in his left side.
Hernández did not hide his disappointment. "I feel pretty defeated right now," he said.
The immediate roster answer was Freeland, who started at second base on Wednesday as the Dodgers beat the Colorado Rockies, 4-1. The box score displayed the dodgers score as 4-1, with Freeland filling the infield role the club suddenly needed. Freeland had been optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City on May 11 and returned to the active roster after hitting.265/.345/.592 with four home runs, two triples, 16 RBI and 11 runs scored in 11 games there. He had already led the Dodgers in the majors this season with 33 games, 31 starts and 262 defensive innings at second base before the demotion.
Roberts framed the injury as a blow to a player who had worked hard to get back. "It’s a bummer. He’s missed a lot of time and worked hard to get back, and added that spark that we had hoped," Roberts said, noting that the club had seen the spark in Hernández's brief return.
Context makes the decision sharper: Hernández spent the first two months of the season rehabbing his elbow after surgery that followed the World Series, and the Dodgers already had limited infield depth because Tommy Edman has been out all season recovering from ankle surgery. Edman began a rehab assignment at Oklahoma City last night, but he is not currently available for the major-league roster.
The tension is clear between the short-term loss and a possible longer-term payoff. Roberts said Hernández "would likely return for the stretch run of the regular season if he can help the Dodgers in the playoffs," but also cautioned there is uncertainty around timing. He reiterated, "It’s not a season-ending thing, so that’s something to be hopeful with, but yeah it’s just a bummer."
For now the Dodgers will lean on Freeland's recent Triple-A form and his familiarity with the major-league club, while Hernández begins what the team expects to be a lengthy recovery. The club's hope — that Hernández can rejoin them for the stretch run or in time to contribute in the postseason — is the clearest outcome supported by the manager's comments; until the oblique heals, the roster will move ahead without the veteran infielder.
