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The Los Angeles Dodgers are more than likely out of the Juan Soto chase, but their latest signing -- announced Sunday night -- might pair nicely with the return of a fan favorite.
According to MLB's Mark Feinsand, corroborated by Ken Rosenthal, the Dodgers have signed Michael Conforto, formerly of the Mets and most recently of the San Francisco Giants, a team he joined with an eye on bouncing back.
Conforto, a slugging lefty, drilled 20 homers with a 116 OPS+ last season, and has been a league-average bat at worst during his career, when healthy.
And, given Mookie Betts' impending move to the infield, the Dodgers still have outfield slots to hand out. According to Rosenthal, this will not rule them out of former Dodger Teoscar Hernández's market, either. Hernández, a right-handed bat, could still pair nicely in the heart of LA's ridiculous order.
Dodgers still in on Teoscar Hernández, sources say. Conforto LHH, Hernández RHH
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 9, 2024
Dodgers sign Michael Conforto, can't be ruled out on Teoscar Hernández pursuit
Hernández represents a clear backup plan for both the Yankees and Red Sox, in the event they do not come to terms with Juan Soto as Steve Cohen flexes his wallet and holds it ever higher. According to Boston insider Pete Abraham, Hernández would prefer to return to the Dodgers, but remains intrigued by Alex Cora and Fenway Park, in much the same way he was last winter when LA swayed him away in the first place.
The Dodgers now have some leverage in this department, too; the 31-year-old Conforto missed the 2022 season, due to injury, but managed to scrape together 470 and 488 plate appearances the past two seasons by the Bay. He certainly put up a larger sample size than most anticipated when the deal was officially signed.
It's a one-year, $17 million deal for Conforto in Los Angeles, and after strengthening their outfield and placing Blake Snell atop their rotation (top three? five?), the Dodgers surely have more work to do. After all, they hustle harder than arguably any other MLB club in pursuit of repeated championships.