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Kiké Hernández wasted no time making his presence felt. In his first game back from the injured list, Hernández collected two hits and the Dodgers rallied with a seventh-inning surge to beat the Colorado Rockies 5-3, per the Los Angeles Times staff. It was the kind of return you draw up in your head but rarely see play out on the field.

Hernández has been through it. We already knew he played through significant issues during the 2025 season, and the early part of 2026 was spent grinding through a rehab assignment to get right. The fact that he stepped back into the lineup and immediately looked comfortable — two hits in his first game — tells you a lot about where he is physically and mentally. This is a veteran who has been a part of some of the biggest moments in Dodgers history, from his three-homer NLCS performance in 2021 with the Red Sox (against us, no less) to his return to LA and steady contributions as a super-utility presence. He’s not a star in the traditional sense, but he’s the kind of player winning teams need. The kind who shows up, does the job, and lifts the guys around him. The emotional weight of this comeback was clearly real, and his teammates fed off it.

The seventh-inning rally was the difference. The Dodgers trailed and needed a spark, and they found one. We’ve seen this team grind out wins all season — the bullpen has been historically dominant, as we covered with that franchise-record 36 consecutive scoreless innings — and the offense has shown an ability to flip a switch in the middle innings. This game fit that pattern. Down against Colorado, the lineup came alive when it mattered, stringing together enough to pull ahead and hand it to the relief corps to close out.

Colorado isn’t the measuring stick for October, obviously. But games like this matter for different reasons. Getting Hernández back into the flow of the lineup gives Dave Roberts more options, especially with his ability to play multiple positions. He slots in as a right-handed bat off the bench, a capable defender at second, short, center, or a corner outfield spot, and a guy who simply knows how to play in big moments. With Max Muncy dealing with the aftereffects of that hit-by-pitch and potentially missing time, Hernández’s return couldn’t have come at a better time from a roster flexibility standpoint.

I liked what I saw here. Two hits, energy in the dugout, and a win. Hernández doesn’t need to carry the offense — that’s not his role. But if he can give us what he gave us Sunday, solid at-bats, competitive plate appearances, and reliable defense wherever Roberts puts him, this lineup gets deeper and harder to navigate. That’s the whole point. We’re building toward something, and having everyone available and contributing is how you get there. Good day for the Dodgers, great day for Kiké.

Source(s): Staff (Los Angeles Times) | First reported: May 26, 2026 4:41 AM UTC

God Bless and Go Dodgers