Welcome back to the Dodgers Beat newsletter! What may have begun as a bad night of sleep has sidelined Will Smith for a month and a half -- and counting. The Dodgers' starting catcher last appeared in a game on June 5, one day before he was scratched from the starting lineup due to neck stiffness. The team was initially optimistic, believing that Smith could be back in the lineup the next day. When that wasn't the case, the hope was that he'd return to action during the following series in Pittsburgh. At last, Smith was placed on the 10-day injured list on June 11 with some thought that it would be a minimum-length stint. Smith remains on the IL to open the second half, and he is not particularly close to being activated. The Dodgers don't see him returning any earlier than mid-August. The Dodgers shut Smith down from baseball activities during the All-Star break, hoping that a week-long break could help his neck fully recover before resuming his ramp-up. Smith had previously been participating in some activities, including hitting in the cage, but his neck wasn't recovering well. |
"We felt that if he’s inactive, it gives it a good chance to get all the inflammation out, the soreness out, the pain, increase flexibility, all of it," manager Dave Roberts said over the weekend. "Then he has a fighting chance to work his way back. Trying to do everything -- even at a lesser dosage -- just wasn’t feasible." The Dodgers' understanding of the injury is that Smith has an inflamed disc in his neck. He received an injection a couple weeks after sustaining the injury, but it did not provide sufficient relief. The team believes that with rest, Smith's neck will be able to improve enough that his condition won't regress once he restarts baseball activities. Smith is expected back before the end of the season, but there are few specifics known about his timeline at this point. Until he's in a place where he can make concrete progress, it's difficult to map out a rehab progression. "That comes with consecutive days of feeling better," Roberts said. "But it’s going to be a slow ramp-up. Honestly, I don’t know what that really looks like. That’s hard to say." |
While the Dodgers have missed Smith during his absence, his prolonged IL stint has not necessarily created a glaring need at catcher ahead of the Aug. 3 Trade Deadline. Second-year backstop Dalton Rushing has done a solid job filling in for Smith, both at the plate and behind it, although he's been a little streaky offensively. Rushing entered Sunday with a 120 wRC+, the sixth-best mark among MLB catchers with at least 200 plate appearances. Smith had a 102 wRC+ before his injury, a tick above league average but lower than expected. Rushing has performed to the extent that acquiring a starting catcher option would be an unlikely move for the Dodgers, but they could stand to improve their depth. At the time of Smith's injury, he and Rushing were the only catchers on the 40-man roster. In the aftermath, L.A. has selected Chuckie Robinson (who has since been outrighted to Triple-A) and Eliezer Alfonzo as backups to Rushing. With Smith expected to return at some point, the Dodgers can afford to get by with their current catching group, or try to find a way to improve on the margins during Deadline season. But there's no denying that the floor for their catchers is lower than it was when Smith was healthy. |
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In better injury news, the Dodgers have three players out on rehab assignments: Edwin Díaz, Kiké Hernández and Blake Snell. Here's a rundown of what's going on with each of them: • Díaz: He's primarily pitched for Single-A Ontario. The final box he needs to check will be pitching on back-to-back days, which could happen this week and set him up for a return around the beginning of the next homestand, which starts on July 28. • Hernández: He joined Triple-A Oklahoma City on Friday. He will likely remain with the Comets through this week, then return at some point during the next homestand. • Snell: He made his first rehab start for Oklahoma City on Saturday. He should have at least three starts remaining to stretch out to the five-inning, 75-pitch threshold. |
Here are a few notable things to know about the Dodgers’ next opponent, the Phillies (55-45): • Probable pitching matchups: RHP Emmet Sheehan vs. LHP Cristopher Sánchez on Monday, LHP Eric Lauer vs. RHP Zack Wheeler on Tuesday and LHP Justin Wrobleski vs. RHP Aaron Nola on Wednesday. • Phillies' injuries of note: Since the Dodgers last saw them at the end of May, the Phillies have lost three players for the season: righty reliever Brad Keller (UCL tear) and outfielders Adolis García (right latissimus dorsi repair surgery) and Johan Rojas (right UCL surgery). • Recent history: The Dodgers took two of three from the Phillies at Dodger Stadium in late May. They'll face Wheeler for a second time this season after tagging him for a season-high four runs across six innings on May 29. • Postseason picture: After a 9-19 start to the season, the Phillies are right back in the mix. They are three games behind the Braves for first place in the NL East and are in the second NL Wild Card position. |
The Dodgers have commemorated many moments from their back-to-back championship run in bobblehead form, but one was notably missing … until the team announced a new giveaway last week. On Sept. 6, the Dodgers will give away a bobblehead depicting Andy Pages' incredible catch from Game 7 of the World Series, in which he collided with Kiké Hernández but still managed to send the winner-take-all contest to extras. For more information on this giveaway, and the promotional schedule for the rest of the season, click here. |
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