Kike Hernandez’s comeback lasted 48 hours. After spending 53 games on the injured list recovering from offseason elbow surgery, he entered the field again on Monday. However, by Tuesday night, he was back in the IL with a left oblique strain.  In the 15-6 win over the Rockies, the Dodgers had to pull Kike Hernandez in the fourth inning after looking uncomfortable.

“I’ve never done an oblique… minimum a couple of weeks… I’m hoping that it’s the best-case scenario, it’s a grade 1 and at least 2-3 weeks, and I’m back,” said the Dodgers star after the game.

This is a massive blow for the Los Angeles Dodgers as they try to protect their National League West lead. With starting third baseman Max Muncy already hurt, losing Hernández leaves the Dodgers without their best utility infielder when they need him most.

Hernández looked amazing before his injury. He went 4-for-4 with two RBIs and a home run across his first two games against the Rockies. This proved exactly why the Dodgers let Santiago Espinal go to make room for him. Fans cheered loudly during his first at-bat on Monday, but the excitement quickly faded.

Hernández admitted that the pain actually started on Monday during batting practice.

“I was pretty embarrassed about it,” Hernández admitted, explaining he originally believed discomfort remained minor and he could play through it. He was wrong. “The homer swing felt awful,” he said, describing immediate pain following the homer in the third inning. And it only got worse.

“When I hit the double, it didn’t just hurt to swing; it also hurt running,” Hernández explained.

An oblique strain is terrible for an infielder because it hurts to swing, run, and move around the field. Earlier this season, Dodgers star Mookie Betts missed 36 days with a similar oblique injury, which sets a grim timeline for Hernández.

When they pulled him out in the 4th inning, he became very emotional because he knew this was going to be another IL stint. Hernández later said he felt “pretty defeated” while discussing the recovery timeline for his return.

“I told him I was sorry too for not being able to post and just play the rest of the year,” said Hernanadez after he revealed the conversation between Dave Roberts and himself after the manager sat on the bench with Kike and consoled him.

“It’s not a season-ending thing,” Roberts explained, while still calling Hernández’s frustrating injury a complete “bummer.”

But while Hernández’s injury hurts the Dodgers, another player now gets an unexpected second chance. Before Hernández returned on Monday, reports suggested that infielder Hyeseong Kim could potentially lose his position after his struggles. Kim has been struggling for the past many games with only 6 hits across 40 at-bats.

Roberts admitted that Kim has started chasing pitches again amid the struggles and is looking desperate to get a hit. But with this injury, Kim now has the chance to prove himself and make sure that he doesn’t get sent to the minors.

But the Dodgers have another major injury scare that is hanging over their heads.

The Dodgers are on the edge with Shohei Ohtani’s injury scare

Missing Kike Hernandez is one thing, but if the Los Angeles Dodgers lose Shohei Ohtani, it will be chaos throughout the team.

Dodger Stadium fell silent twice during Tuesday’s game against the Rockies: first when manager Dave Roberts pulled Kiké Hernández, and again when a pitch hit Shohei Ohtani and left him wincing in pain.

In the fourth inning, Kyle Freeland’s pitch clipped Ohtani’s right pinky on a fastball inside. Ohtani immediately shook his hand in pain before walking slowly to first. Although Ohtani stayed for a few more moments, the Dodgers removed him in the fifth inning. With Los Angeles already leading comfortably, the Dodgers didn’t want to risk anything and cause further damage to their superstar.

“I think it clipped his pinky a little bit, but we’re in a good spot,” Roberts said after the game, calming down the worried fans.

Roberts confirmed the ball hit Ohtani’s protective padding instead of his hand, making X-rays unnecessary. With no major damage, Ohtani will still start on the mound on Wednesday. This brings massive relief to the Dodgers, as Ohtani currently dominates as their best pitcher. He boasts a 0.73 ERA and 54 strikeouts across 49 innings, recently pitching five scoreless innings in a 4-0 win over the Padres last week.

Those numbers explain exactly why LA prioritized protecting Ohtani after Tuesday’s injury scare.

But Ohtani with the bat is still an uncertainty. In recent games, he has been effective with his bat, getting four hits in his last five games with three RBIs.

But the question is, are the Los Angeles Dodgers ready to risk his batting after he got hit in his throwing arm, or are they going to take a rest day offensively?