DENVER -- Coming off the high of sweeping the rival Padres to reclaim first place in the National League West, the Dodgers traveled to the Mile High City with designs on extending their first three-game win streak in six weeks before returning to the West Coast for another showdown with San Diego.
Awaiting them were the Rockies, owners of the worst record in the Majors and a club that the Dodgers had beaten in each of their previous 10 meetings.
Then defense became the focal point in a 4-3, walk-off loss to Colorado that manager Dave Roberts said was “a hard one to kind of put into words.”
More precisely, it was defense in right field that was magnified on this night, as two hits that fell in front of Teoscar Hernández proved pivotal in the Dodgers’ first loss to the Rockies since Sept. 21, 2024.
With the Dodgers leading in the third inning, 2-0, Rockies rookie Kyle Karros drew a leadoff walk against starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The next batter, Brenton Doyle, lofted a fly ball to shallow right that Hernández played on a hop. Karros rounded the bag at second and beat Hernández’s throw to third, which enabled Doyle to move up to second.
The next batter, Ryan Ritter, followed with a two-run single to tie the game.
“I don't know if he would've had a play on that one,” said Roberts of the Doyle single. “I know it shouldn't have been second and third. ... So the base hit scores two right there. [Hernández] has got to get better out there. There's just no way to put it.
“I know there's effort -- it's not a lack of effort. But the thing is, we've just got to get better. We do. I don't know what else to say.”
Hernández said that he thought it would’ve been risky to try to make the catch. According to Statcast, the ball had an expected batting average of .680.
“It’s one of those where you have to make an expert type of play,” he said. “I didn’t. I don’t think if I would have dived I would have made it. I think that was a clear hit.”
In the sixth, the Dodgers got a go-ahead double from pinch-hitter Alex Freeland -- the first extra-base hit of his career -- to go back in front, 3-2.
But in the seventh, Ezequiel Tovar launched a game-tying solo homer over the wall in right-center off Yamamoto.
That set the stage for a forgettable bottom of the ninth for the Dodgers. Reliever Justin Wrobleski got the first batter of the frame, Jordan Beck, to fly out to Hernández. But then Tovar stepped to the plate again and blooped one toward shallow right.
Hernández got a poor jump -- according to Statcast, it was -8.5 feet vs average -- and as he raced in, it was too late. The ball found grass and bounced away. By the time the second baseman, Freeland, retrieved it, Tovar was already in with a hustle double. Per Statcast, the xBA was just .060.
Tovar then came around to score the game-winning run on Warming Bernabel’s single to center.
“We were playing no-doubles,” Hernández said. “It’s a big outfield. I was playing pretty far [back]. I tried to make the play. I didn’t. It came off my glove, unfortunately. Things happen. I just have to wash it. This game is over with.”
The game was over with, but at the forefront was the question of whether Hernández’s defense in right field -- he entered the contest with -8 outs above average, which ranked 37th of 39 qualified right fielders -- could be costly come October.
Hernández’s offensive production is valuable. After he belted a career-best 33 home runs last year, he has 20 more in 2025 to go along with a .749 OPS. When asked about how he might handle the situation moving forward, Roberts reiterated the need for improvement when the club needs Hernández in the field.
“I mean, he's going to be in the lineup,” Roberts said. “… He's up third in the top half [of the 10th], so I'm not going to take him out of the game. It's just one of those things that, the defense is a big part of postseason baseball and winning baseball. So yeah, he's just got to continue to get better.”