The past week has been one full of reunions for the Los Angeles Dodgers, beginning with claiming Ben Rortvedt off waivers from the Cincinnati Reds and continuing with re-signing both Evan Phillips and Kiké Hernández.
The Dodgers announced Phillips’ return on Wednesday, as the right-hander agreed to a $6.5 million salary for 2026. Then on Thursday, Hernández suggested in an Instagram post that he too was re-signing.
“What else did you expect?!!! 3 in a row has a nice ring to it! #WeBack,” Hernández wrote in the caption.
Less than two hours later the Dodgers announced the re-signing of Hernández to a one-year, $4.5 million contract for the 2026 season. That was followed by a social media video in which Hernández playfully poked fun at Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman.
He’s baaaaaack. pic.twitter.com/rW9Yq5s19C
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) February 12, 2026“What up, Dodger fans? Plain and simple, I’m back. Again.
“Sorry it took so long. That wasn’t up to me… Andrew. But yeah, there’s no other place I would rather be than here.
“So, let’s go for three in a row.”
Hernández is entering his 13th MLB season and 10th with the Dodgers that has come over multiple stints. He is the all-time Dodgers postseason leader in games played (92), and ranks highly in hits (60, fourth place) and home runs (11, tied-fifth).
What did Kiké Hernández mean about Andrew Friedman?
The purpose of Hernández mentioning Friedman’s name presumably is in reference to going the entire offseason before re-signing.
Similar scenarios unfolded in each of the last two offseasons as well, and Hernández has joked about Friedman in those instances. This now marks a third time Hernández has returned to the Dodgers on a one-year contract since he was traded back to the team in 2023.
Hernández needed to wait until February to sign all three of the aforementioned contracts but it was the expected outcome each time.
That was particularly true in this case, as earlier in the offseason Hernández suggested it was simply a matter of timing as to when he would re-sign with the Dodgers. In essence, the Dodgers’ roster planning had Hernández on a February timeline, when they could begin to utilize the 60-day injured list.
Hernández himself is a candidate to land the 60-day IL at some point due to still being in the midst of recovering from left elbow surgery. He underwent the procedure on Nov. 14, 2025, and is projected to miss the first two months of the 2026 season.
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