Red Sox: Kiké Hernández is hitting again and that’s bad for the AL East

Kiké Hernández’s slump is broken and that’s good for the Red Sox

Things have been pretty rough for our lovable centerfielder. Much like last season, Kiké Hernández has been ice cold to start the season but the charismatic Red Sox outfielder may have finally broken loose. All it took was a sunny day in the Motor City for him to put his slump behind him and move back into production.

Now, I don’t want to get too ahead of myself but it’s hard to not get excited about what we saw from Hernández yesterday afternoon. He went 2-4 at the plate with a pair of doubles, two runs, a walk, and an RBI. For me, that’s a damn fine day at the dish and one that should instantly put him into a good mood going forward.

“It felt really good. It was only four games,” he said. “I got home and told my wife, ‘I think I should be a little bit more frustrated than I am right now.’”

Once again the Red Sox were down and fighting to keep pace with the rest of the division and once again a late-inning surge propelled them to victory. In fact, it was Hernández’s double that knocked in Boston’s first run and a follow-up single from Rafael Devers would bring him home. It was far more stressful than it needed to be considering the quality of pitcher Detroit had on the mound but a win is a win.

So, now that Kiké is back on the hitting trail what’s next for him? I don’t think he’s going to jump right back into being the hottest hitter in the game as we saw back in October, but I do think he’ll be very productive for this Red Sox side. Boston’s lead-off man spoke about not being overly frustrated since the season had just begun and they only had a fraction of spring training to prepare. He knew it was just a matter of time before he found his swing again.

“It’s a matter of growing up and understanding that that’s three or four games and there’s 158 more,” he said. “It was just a matter of time.”

The Red Sox are known for their offense, oftentimes being one of the absolute best in all of baseball, but that hasn’t been the case so far in 2022. It hasn’t been just Kiké that has been silent and the team has mostly been carried by Devers, Xander Bogaerts, and J.D. Martinez. While those three are the powerhouse of the Boston lineup, this team’s success relies on those around them also contributing.

As the lead-off man, we all know it’s beyond important for Kiké to get on base whether by hit or free pass. It adds even more to his plate that those three instantly follow him in the order. In years past, we’ve seen Alex Cora put a little buffer between his first man up and the big three but that’s no longer the case. AC isn’t wasting any time getting to his big guns and feels that everyone is as important, and Kiké fully knows his job.

“I’m just glad I was able to get on base a couple times,” Hernández added. “If I get on base, good things happen because the guys hitting behind me are really, really, really good.”

Kiké Hernández is one of the most important members of this team. Looking at it just from a batting order perspective he’s the one that sets the tone for the entire game. While the leadoff man may only hit first once a game and may only be up first here or there entirely, he gets things cooking.

After yesterday’s performance, I’m thinking the old Kiké is going to be showing his smile around the ballpark a little more and we’re going to start seeing some fireworks. If he continues to warm up as the April temperatures do, I expect him to get this Red Sox offense back to where we know it can be. If the fellas start raking and burying the scoreboard in runs, that means some bad bad things for the division and the American League as a whole.