Teoscar Hernández contract demands revealed as Dodgers drag their feet

The Los Angeles Dodgers have signed Blake Snell and Michael Conforto and re-signed Blake Treinen, putting the 40-man roster at full capacity and leaving the Dodgers with just one more problem to solve: the outfield. With Mookie Betts' move back to shortstop (cue a long-suffering sigh), Conforto and Andy Pages will be next year's corner outfielders as things currently stand.

However, Dodgers fans are waiting with bated breath to find out where Teoscar Hernández ends up going in free agency. Pages posted a respectable rookie season and would be a decent replacement for left field, but he couldn't possibly endear himself to fans as much as Hernández did in his one year in LA.

It's been reported that conversations between Hernández and the Dodgers have been taking place behind the scenes, but they've struggled to bridge a gap in negotiations. It's been hard to figure out what the problem might be, given that the Dodgers were prepared to hand over $600 million to Juan Soto, and it's made even more confusing by Mark Feinsand of MLB.com's recent reporting.

He writes that Hernández is looking for a three-year deal with $22-24 million per year. That's pretty much the range that everyone expected for him to begin with, so what gives?

New Teoscar Hernández details make the Dodgers' holdup even more confusing

Predictions for Hernández's new deal have pretty much universally fallen in the world of three years and $24-25 million (Spotrac predicted $24.33 million/year and The Athletic predicted $25 million), though MLB Trade Rumors made a more conservative estimate at $20 million (which never really made sense, as it would mean a pay cut after 2024 despite Hernández having a career year). If the range Hernández is looking for is actually less than what most insiders speculated ahead of the offseason, and the Dodgers clearly have the money, what's the problem?

It could be the amount of years he's looking for. Hernández just turned 32 in October, and even though he looked like his best self as a Dodger, there could be worries about a potential regression as he gets older. The two sides could be quibbling about an optional third year.

We probably sound like a broken record, but the longer the Dodgers wait, the longer competitors are going to have to cobble together a contract that fits Hernández's requests. The Red Sox and Yankees are both out there and still have gaps to fill in their outfields. He's still prioritizing the Dodgers, but he's not going to wait forever.