Kiké Hernández has perfect response to reporter questioning his "resume"

Kiké Hernández has spent time at nearly every position on the field throughout his nine-year career in the majors. His versatility has been a tremendous asset but this season, the Boston Red Sox will be counting on him to take over as their primary shortstop.

With Trevor Story expected to be sidelined for a significant amount of the upcoming season and Xander Bogaerts bolting to San Diego, the Red Sox have a void at the shortstop position that Hernández will get the first crack at filling.

Kiké Hernández has fully embraced his role as a clubhouse leader of the Boston Red Sox

When Chaim Bloom met with the media in Fort Myers this week, one question directed at the Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer raised some eyebrows. WCVB-TV's Duke Castiglione questioned if Kiké had the "resume" to fill the shoes of Bogaerts, a four-time All-Star who locked down the shortstop role for a decade in Boston while serving as the leader in the clubhouse in recent years.

To Bloom's credit, he admirably provided a response that dodged the negative implication behind the question that attempted to point out the decision to let their star shortstop get away and replace him with a less established veteran. Bloom showed his support for his player by stressing that Hernández doesn't need to be anybody other than himself.

Hernández took to Twitter to fire back with his own clever response to the disrespectful question.

Kiké Hernández isn't Xander Bogaerts. Nobody should be expecting him to be. What was the point in asking Bloom that question? Was the reporter implying that any shortstop without Xander's track record isn't worthy of filling his shoes? Hernández doesn't have the All-Star appearances or Silver Slugger awards on his resume. That doesn't mean that Hernández isn't a key asset to the Red Sox in 2023.

Bogaerts is one of the best hitters in the majors at the shortstop position. Hernández isn't likely to match his offensive production but he's no slouch at the plate when healthy. In his first season in Boston, Kiké hit .250 with a .786 OPS and 20 home runs. He was comfortably above average with a 108 OPS+ during the 2021 season.

We also saw him get ridiculously hot in the postseason that year when he hit .422 with a 1.282 OPS and five home runs in 10 playoff games. He may not have the consistency of Bogaerts, as few hitters do, but we know Hernández is capable of going on a hot streak.

Hernández hasn't spent much time at shortstop since joining the Red Sox but the modest sample throughout his career suggests he'll be an upgrade over Bogaerts, who has rated below average in the field for most of his career. Hernández has produced 9 defensive runs saved in 100 career games at shortstop. He has 4 DRS in 18 games at the position in his two seasons with the Red Sox.

The leadership void created by the departure of Bogaerts is arguably as important as the loss of production in the lineup. Xander never officially wore a C on his chest but he was widely viewed as the captain of this team over the last few years. David Ortiz passed the baton to Mookie Betts following his retirement but the former MVP was a somewhat reluctant leader during his tenure that ended with a trade to Los Angeles. It was Bogaerts who stepped up to take command of the clubhouse.

Kiké is playing the same position as Bogaerts but it would be unfair to task him with the responsibilities of being the team's unofficial captain. That being said, Hernández is a respected veteran who has a voice in this clubhouse.

The Red Sox aren't going to replace Bogaerts with one player. It needs to be a collaborative effort. Hernández probably won't hit at the level that Bogaerts did but the Red Sox upgraded at other positions to ensure their lineup remains strong. A full season of Triston Casas will be an improvement over the sub-replacement level production the Red Sox received at first base for the majority of last year. Adam Duvall and Masataka Yoshida strengthen the outfield. Rafael Devers is expected to grow into a leader now that his massive contract extension ties him to the franchise for the foreseeable future. The addition of Justin Turner will be a positive for clubhouse chemistry.

No position player on this Red Sox roster has the resume of Bogaerts but that has nothing to do with whether Hernández can suitably play his position or be a presence in the clubhouse. Suggesting that Kiké Hernández is an insufficient replacement because he lacks All-Star appearances is disrespectful and wildly misses the point.

At least Hernández has a good sense of humor about it. More importantly, the Red Sox have confidence in his ability to provide value to this team.