The Reds announced that catcher Ben Rortvedt has been claimed off waivers by the Dodgers. Cincinnati designated him for assignment when they signed Eugenio Suárez earlier this week. The Dodgers have a full 40-man roster and will need to open a spot for Rortvedt.
The Dodgers clearly like Rortvedt as a depth catcher. They acquired him at last year’s deadline and he got some playing time down the stretch when Will Smith was hurt. After the season, he and the Dodgers avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $1.25MM salary for 2026.
They then tried to sneak him through waivers, hoping that the salary would be enough to make other clubs pass, therefore allowing Rortvedt be in the minors as non-roster depth. They tried a similar move with infielder Andy Ibáñez, signing him to a $1.2MM deal and then putting him on the wire. It didn’t work in either case. The Reds claimed Rortvedt in November and the Athletics claimed Ibáñez today.
The Dodgers are taking this chance to bring Rortvedt back again. For now, he appears to be the clear #3 catcher behind Smith and Dalton Rushing. They could option Rushing to the minors but seemingly don’t think he has anything left to prove there, which is why they called him up last year and moved on from Austin Barnes.
Assuming Rortvedt is indeed third on the chart, he could be bound for the waiver wire again in the future. He is out of options and would have to be nudged off the 40-man if he’s not going to be on the active roster.
Time will tell how that plays out. For now, he’s back with the champs. His performance has been up and down in recent years. With the Rays in 2024, he posted a .228/.317/.303 line in 328 plate appearances. His 87 wRC+ indicated he was 13% below league average but that’s not bad for a part-time catcher. Thanks to some solid defense, FanGraphs credited him with 1.4 wins above replacement in that role.
Things turned sour in 2025. He slashed .095/.186/.111 and got outrighted to the minors. As mentioned, he was traded to the Dodgers and got some time filling in for Smith. In his 58 plate appearances, he hit .224/.309/.327, somewhat similar to his 2024 production. Teams clearly view him as a useful depth catcher but what remains to be seen is if he can hold onto a roster spot or if he can be passed through waivers.
Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images
Yes! Dude was clutch for LA down the stretch.
yep
That’s a familiar face for LA.
Ben stepped up big late in the season when Will was injured. Glad to have him back.
It’s deja vu all over again as a great philosopher once said.
Expected this!! KIKE NEXT once ST begins
Surprised he made it all the way down to the Dodgers on the waiver claim priority list.
Probably because every organization has guys like him and don’t need him and that jello bat
only jelly here is jealousy
A career OPS+ of 57 says otherwise …
The return of the king!
Not all heroes wear capes
Let’s go!
Welcome back to Ben Rortvedt, World Series Champion.
Maybe this means the Dodgers will finally make the move they should have made last year: trade Rushing.
Exactly what I was thinking. Skubal?
Yeah, it seems Rushing and Banda will be moved in a trade. Maybe for Abreu? Boston would probably rather move Duran.
There would probably be more involved in that deal than those 3
I believe Banda has to clear waivers before he can be traded. But if they do move Rushing it seems they would probably look for non-roster prospects as a return, given the roster situation.
If the Dodgers can’t give Rushing regular playing time he has to go to AAA or be traded. Him playing twice a week does him zero good.
Seems like the Dodgers prever to have a true backup catcher.
Heard this transaction actually took place 3 days ago when he was originally DFA’d, but the news was deferred until today.