Dodgers’ outfield defense figures to improve after Kyle Tucker signing – Dodgers Digest

Dodger Stadium’s outfield is 113,349 square feet, most of which was covered by Andy Pages in 2025. The NL West has five of the Top 12 biggest outfields by square footage in baseball. Improving the defense was important — just as important as improving the offensive output.

The eye test would tell you as much. By bringing Kyle Tucker in — who, let’s be real, was brought in because of his bat — the Dodgers have done that. While Tucker isn’t the fleetest of foot outfielder anymore, his improvement over Teoscar Hernandez should be apparent next season.

Defensive runs saved would tell you Hernandez played relatively well in right field over the last two seasons. In 1,542 innings since signing with the Dodgers, he has a 6 DRS. However, outs above average and the eye test tell a different story. In that same time, his -10 OAA is fifth-worst among MLB right fielders (minimum 1,000 defensive innings), and his arm doesn’t do a ton to make up for the deficiency. His Fielding Run Value — which takes into account arm, throwing and range — is 7th-worst at -8. He played mostly left field in 2024 because Mookie Betts had yet to cement himself in the infield.

The Dodgers’ No. 9 ranking in defensive runs saved in right field defense looks good, but it’s propped up by Pages, who accounted for 7 defensive runs saved and 3 outs above average in just 243 innings. Their 6th-worst ranking in left field was mostly due to Michael Conforto‘s -5 DRS in 1,010 innings. Again, Pages had 2 DRS in just 153 innings, while Alex Call had 2 DRS in 120 1/3 innings.

The thing is, despite what happened in Philadelphia in the 2025 NLDS, Hernandez tends to take really good routes to the ball. Routes being defined as comparing “… feet covered in any direction to feet covered in the correct direction over the full three seconds.” He has been in near the top of all outfielders in route since 2022 and was the 9th-best in the majors (among qualified outfielders) in route. That makes some sense since, once Hernandez is underway, he has better-than-expected speed. It’s getting there that has been the issue for him, as his reaction and burst are definitely not top-tier.

Here is how the Top 3 projected Dodger outfielders fared last season, defensively, in terms of ground covered.

The biggest takeaway here is I think we’ve been underestimating Pages’ defensive ability, World Series-saving catch notwithstanding. Dude was everywhere, even if his routes aren’t always the prettiest.

In terms of average feet covered versus the average, arm value (percentile ranking) and sprint speed, here’s how the trio fared.

In some ways, Hernandez grades out better than Tucker, who has regressed a bit defensively the last couple years. However, he has a stronger track record than Hernandez does defensively, and he hasn’t played any other position than right field since 2020. Hernandez figures only to regress as he ages while Tucker is still in his prime and can — at worst — maintain his current level of defensive production.

The arm values speak volumes in terms of who should be playing where. Yes, Pages’ arm profiles better in right field, but everything else screams center fielder. Tucker’s arm value is exponentially better than Hernandez’s, whose most famous defensive play as a Dodger (or as an MLB player) is throwing out a runner (even if it was cement-footed Giancarlo Stanton) in Game 3 of the 2024 World Series to keep the Yankees off the board. Moving Hernandez to left field not only improves the right field defense, but it helps to hide Hernandez’s defensive deficiencies.

——

The Dodgers’ outfield defense needed a bit of a rework. If they hadn’t brought in Tucker, there’s a non-zero chance Hernandez would be starting in right field on Opening Day. Conversely, they would have brought in someone in the outfield. It could have been a starting-caliber player, it could have been a platoon guy. It could have been a center fielder, it could have been a left fielder. But they went out and got the best bat who just happens to be about an average defender in right field. Moving Hernandez to left field should help him and the outfield defense overall.