When Dodgers left-hander Julio Urias struck out Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Willy Adames for the final out of the 2020 World Series, several Dodgers immediately became free agents. Arguably, the most noteworthy was (then) 35-year-old Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner, who celebrated his 36th birthday exactly 30 days later, on November 23. As of this writing, the extremely popular Long Beach, CA native who grew up a Dodgers fan remains unsigned; understandable considering that he and his agent, Greg Genske of VaynerBaseball Agency, are seeking a four-year deal that will take him through his age-40 season.

But there was another Dodger who became a free agent on that fateful and glorious night – 29-year-old super-utility Kiké Hernandez.

Although some Dodger fans never cared for Kiké’s occasional silliness, he was, by far, liked by most of them.

Was.

On Friday afternoon, it was reported that the San Juan, Puerto Rico native and a sixth-round draft pick in 2009 by the Houston Astros out of the American Military Academy in Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, had agreed to a two-year / $14 Million contract with the Boston Red Sox.

In his six seasons with the Dodgers, Hernandez posted a rather pedestrian slash line of .240 / .312 / .425 / .737; not horribly horrible, but not exactly good either. Unfortunately, his slash line during the World Series was horribly horrible at .200 / .273 / .300 / .573.

To be fair, Kiké had only 11 plate appearances during the Fall Classic, in which he went 2-for-10, with a single in Game-1, and a two-RBI double in Game-4. Unfortunately, he also struckout three times, while walking once.

Again to be fair, Hernandez was never really given a chance to prove himself as an everyday player with the Dodgers – something that he will (hopefully) get to do in Boston. That being said, he did occasionally have his moments of greatness, especially defensively, regardless of what position he played. He also came up with an occasional clutch hit during his six seasons in LA that included 68 home runs.

Whether you were a Kiké Hernandez fan or not, there is no doubt that he will be missed by many.

Godspeed to you, Kiké!

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