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Dodgers Place Will Smith On Injured List

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The Dodgers announced this evening that they’ve placed catcher Will Smith on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to September 10, due to a right hand contusion. Catcher Chuckie Robinson was recalled to replace Smith on the active roster.

Smith, 30, has enjoyed a career year with the Dodgers this season as he’s hit .296/404/.497 and landed his third consecutive All-Star appearance. Unfortunately, he was struck by a foul ball on his throwing hand on September 3. He sat out for nearly a week before he returned on September 9, but he hasn’t appeared in a game since. Manager Dave Roberts had previously described the issue as a matter of pain tolerance for Smith, as his ailing hand won’t heal before the end of the year at this point.

That seemed to suggest that Smith and the Dodgers were ready to have him play through the injury while talking days off when possible, but Roberts today told reporters (including Sonja Chen of MLB.com) that “not enough improvement”  has occurred in Smith’s ability to play at this point to continue giving him a spot on the roster and playing without a true backup catcher. Dalton Rushing is already on the injured list due to a shin contusion, which meant that third-string catcher Ben Rortvedt was the only option on the roster who was available in recent days.

Now that Smith has been placed on the shelf, there was room to get Rortvedt some help in the form of Robinson. Robinson has just 51 games in the big leagues to his name, and in that time has hit just .132/.170/.194 with a career wRC+ of -3, meaning he’s 103% worse than a league average hitter. It’s hardly a robust offensive profile, but he’s a very well-regarded defender and his right-handed bat could pair with Rortvedt’s lefty bat to form something of a platoon behind the plate, though neither player is offering much with the bat from either side of the plate.

Solid as Robinson and Rortvedt are defensively, it goes without saying that another week without Smith is a major blow to the Dodgers. He’s arguably been second only to Shohei Ohtani as the team’s most important player this year, and without him impacting the club on both sides of the ball everyday it’s been difficult for the Dodgers to lock up the NL West this September even while the Padres have gone 6-12 over their last 18 games. Surely, L.A.’s lead would be much larger than 2.5 games at this point if they had Smith in the middle of the lineup alongside Ohtani and Freddie Freeman.

That makes losing Smith for at least another week a tough pill to swallow, but at this point the Dodgers seem to view it as a necessary sacrifice in order to get Smith as healthy as possible in time for the start of the postseason. The Dodgers have just a 6.8% chance of clinching a bye through the Wild Card series according to Fangraphs, which means that Smith won’t get a substantial break between the regular season and the postseason to rest. The remaining regular season games are far less important than that three-game Wild Card set coming up in October, so it’s understandable that the Dodgers would be prioritizing getting Smith ready for that series at all costs at this point.

Given the nagging, day-to-day nature of Smith’s injury, it wouldn’t be a shock to see him activated after a minimum stay on the injured list. With that being said, it’s possible the Dodgers will want to give him as much time to heal up as possible over the final two weeks of the regular season, so perhaps they’ll take a more careful route with him and wait to bring him back until it’s time for him to tune up ahead of the postseason.

Dodgers Release Matt Sauer

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The Dodgers released right-hander Matt Sauer yesterday, according to the transactions tracker on Sauer’s MLB.com profile page. He had been designated for assignment by Los Angeles last week.

Sauer, 26, was a second-round pick by the Yankees back in 2017 but didn’t make his major league debut until last year as a member of the Royals after being plucked from the Yankees in the Rule 5 draft. He made 14 appearances for Kansas City last year but struggled to a 7.71 ERA in that time. He walked (11) more opponents than he struck out (9) and surrendered three homers in just 16 1/3 innings of work. That lackluster work led the Royals to return Sauer to the Yankees in May of last year, and he split the remainder of the season between the Double- and Triple-A levels before electing free agency during the offseason.

That led him to join the Dodgers on a minor league deal back in December, and despite long odds to make the Opening Day roster given Los Angeles’s crowded bullpen mix, he actually managed to grab a seat on the plane to Tokyo for the club’s opening series against the Cubs after striking out eight batters during Spring Training against just one walk. Sauer did not appear in the Tokyo Series but went on to serve in an up-and-down role with the Dodgers this year, shuttling between the majors and Triple-A Oklahoma City when the Dodgers were in need of an extra arm.

He looked quite good in that role through the end of May, with a 3.05 ERA and 4.21 FIP in 20 2/3 innings of work across seven appearances, but things took a turn for the worse when he rejoined the club in June. Sauer was shelled to the tune of nine runs on 13 hits and three walks while striking out six in 4 2/3 innings of work against the Padres on June 10. That disastrous outing ballooned his ERA to 5.68, and he’s gone on to pitch just two more times for the Dodgers this year after that as he allowed five runs in 4 1/3 innings of work. In 29 2/3 innings of work across ten games total in the majors this year, he posted a 6.32 ERA despite solid enough peripheral numbers, including a 4.24 xFIP and a 4.02 SIERA.

Sauer’s lackluster strikeout rate in the majors this year and tendency to allow home runs limited his effectiveness in the majors, but he did show the ability to be a competent long reliever with three-, four-, and even five-inning relief appearances where he was generally effective. Given that Sauer has options remaining and has shown the ability to pitch in all sorts of roles over the years, perhaps another team will give him a chance and see if they can help him unlock the sort of consistency he wasn’t able to find with the Royals, Yankees, or Dodgers.

Dodgers Activate Tommy Edman From Injured List

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6:22pm: Manager Dave Roberts tells reporters (including Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times) this afternoon that Edman, who is in center field today, may be on the grass on a regular basis going forward against left-handed pitching. He added that Edman could also see time at second base depending on how he looks running full-speed following his ankle injury.

5:39pm: Dodgers utility man Tommy Edman is being activated from the injured list today, the club announced today. Rookie center fielder Justin Dean was optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding move to make room for Edman on the roster.

Edman, 30, joined the Dodgers in a three-team trade with the White Sox and Cardinals last year. In 123 regular season games since then, Edman has slashed .231/.285/.403 with 18 homers, nine steals, and a 17.9% strikeout rate in 485 plate appearances. That’s good for only a wRC+ of 90, although it’s worth noting that Edman hit .328/.354/.508 during the Dodgers’ World Series run last year and even earned NLCS MVP honors for his work against the Mets.

The switch-hitter was signed to an extension during the offseason that guaranteed him $74MM over five seasons. That might seem like a hefty price to pay for a player who is typically below average offensively, but Edman makes up for his less than impactful bat by being a Gold Glove caliber defender capable of playing virtually any position on the diamond. He’s primarily played second base and shortstop throughout his career, but also has more than 600 innings of work both in center field and at third base over the course of his career.

After splitting time fairly evenly between shortstop and center field last year, Edman has mostly played second base with semi-regular reps in center and at the hot corner during the 2025 campaign. That’s when he hasn’t been on the injured list, as the Dodgers have needed to get through much of the season without him on the roster due to a pair of ankle injuries. The most recent occurred in early August and has left him shelved for just over a month. Now that he’s healthy, he joins a Dodgers lineup that also recently saw Will Smith and Max Muncy some back from injuries of their own.

With both Edman and Muncy back in the fold to handle regular duties at second and third base, that could leave rookie Hyeseong Kim without a regular position in the lineup. The Dodgers have at times in recent weeks suggested that Kim could get looks in left field over struggling veteran Michael Conforto. Perhaps that will come to pass now that Edman has returned to bump Kim off the keystone, given his 78 wRC+ on the year and similarly mediocre performance in recent weeks. Regardless of what sort of domino effects Edman’s return from the injured list might have on the Dodgers’ lineup down the stretch, it can only be a good thing for Los Angeles to have a deeper cache of options from which to work as they look to stave off the Padres in the NL West and defend their 2024 World Series championship in October.

As for Dean, the 28-year-old rookie has appeared in 18 games with the Dodgers this year. That work has almost exclusively been as a pinch runner and defensive replacement, as Dean has just two MLB plate appearances to his name that saw him go 0-for-2 with one strikeout, though he is 1-for-1 on the basepaths in the majors. A 17th rounder plucked by the Braves organization during the 2018 draft, Dean has parts of four seasons at Triple-A under his belt where he’s slashed .233/.340/.350 with 57 steals in 69 attempts. He’ll head back to the minor leagues for the time being, but could still be an option for the Dodgers off the bench later this year if the need for a speedster arises.

Braves Claim Alexis Diaz

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The Braves have claimed Alexis Diaz off waivers from the Dodgers, according to David O’Brien of The Athletic. Atlanta has space available on its 40-man roster, so no corresponding move is necessary to bring Diaz into the organization.

Diaz, 29 later this month, was traded to the Dodgers by the Reds earlier this year after surrendering eight runs in six innings of work prior to the deal. Los Angeles stashed Diaz at Triple-A to try and get him right, but he struggled to an 8.10 ERA in 11 appearances with Oklahoma City and posted a 5.00 ERA in nine outings for the big league club before being designated for assignment last week to make room for Ben Rortvedt on the 40-man roster. In all, Diaz has made 15 appearances in the majors this year with a 7.80 ERA, a 16.9% strikeout rate, and a 9.9% walk rate across 15 innings of work with the Reds and Dodgers.

Those lackluster numbers are a major fall from grace for the right-hander, who burst onto the scene with Cincinnati back in 2022 when he posted a dazzling 1.84 ERA in 59 outings and finished fifth in NL Rookie of the Year voting. He followed that up by making an All-Star appearance and recording 37 saves as the Reds’ primary closer in 2023, and after two seasons in the big leagues Diaz had an exceptional 2.47 ERA with a 3.42 FIP, a 31.2% strikeout rate, and a 12.8% walk rate. Despite that shaky control, Diaz’s overpowering strikeout stuff was enough to blow past hitters and get elite results.

All of that made him one of the most impressive young relievers in the sport during the first few years of his career, but cracks began to show last season. Diaz surrendered three runs while recording just one out in his first outing of the year, and things didn’t improve much from there as he posted an 8.68 ERA in the month of May. A strong September where he did not allow an earned run helped to salvage his overall season numbers, and he finished the year with a 3.99 ERA and 4.28 FIP. Even that final month of the year saw him strike out just 24.2% of his opponents, however, and his season-long strikeout rate of 22.7% suggested a real step backwards in terms of raw stuff.

Given the question marks raised over the past two years, it’s fair to wonder whether the right-hander will eventually be able to turn things around and live up to the promise he showed in his first years with the Reds. The Braves will try to unlock that previous form through he rest of the year ahead of the offseason, when Diaz will be eligible for arbitration for the second time after making $4.5MM last season. Perhaps Diaz will wind up being a non-tender candidate, though it’s also certainly possible that Atlanta will be intrigued enough by his track record to keep him in the organization. Atlanta has been quite active on the waiver wire this year as they look to add talent in the midst of a lost season, with Ha-Seong Kim standing out as their most notable addition by far.

Davey Johnson Passes Away

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Longtime Major League manager and infielder Davey Johnson passed away on Friday at age 82.  A four-time All-Star during his 13-year playing career, Johnson went on to manage five different teams over 17 seasons as a manager, capturing a World Series with the Mets in 1986.

Breaking into the majors with the Orioles in 1965, he emerged as Baltimore’s everyday second baseman the following year, and finished third in AL Rookie of the Year voting.  Johnson also won his first World Series ring that same season, adding a second with the Orioles in 1970.  Such superstar teammates as Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson, and Jim Palmer drew most of the headlines during this golden age of Orioles baseball, but Johnson provided excellent glovework (three Gold Gloves) and above-average offense while locking down the keystone.

Johnson delivered one more All-Star season with the Braves in 1973, hitting 43 home runs in what stood as the single-season record for a second baseman until Marcus Semien went yard 45 times with the 2021 Blue Jays.  Johnson’s production then declined in 1974, and he spent the 1975-76 playing in Japan with the Yomiuri Giants.  It was something of a tumultuous two-year run that saw Johnson fight through some injuries to ultimately help the Giants reach the 1976 Japan Series, and Johnson then returned to the majors for his final two MLB seasons with the Phillies and Cubs in 1977-78.

Regarded as a future manager even early in his career, Johnson indeed turned to minor league managing almost immediately after retiring as a player, and started managing in the Mets’ farm system beginning in 1981.  This led to a promotion as the Mets’ big league skipper in 1984, and Johnson immediately led New York to a string of five straight seasons with at least 90 wins.  This excellent run included a pair of NL East titles in 1986 and 1988, highlighted by the 108-win team in 1986 that remains the most recent Mets club to capture a World Series title.

Things eventually soured between Johnson and Mets GM Frank Cashen, leading to Johnson’s firing in 1990.  This essentially set the tone for the rest of Johnson’s managerial career — he would lead a team to success, yet would be dismissed relatively quickly due to clashes with ownership or upper management.  Johnson’s next four stints as a skipper saw him never stay with a team for longer than three seasons, even though Johnson had a sub-.500 record in just one of his eight final full seasons as a manager.

For instance, Johnson’s feud with infamous former Reds owner Marge Schott saw Johnson dismissed after the 1995  season, even though he led Cincinnati to the NL Central title and a NLDS victory over the Dodgers that remains the Reds’ most recent postseason series win.  Johnson then returned to his old stomping grounds and led the Orioles to postseason appearances in both 1996 and 1997, but even winning AL Manager of the Year honors in 1997 didn’t smooth over a dispute between Johnson and O’s owner Peter Angelos.

Johnson managed the Dodgers to a 163-161 record in 1999-2000, marking the only time Johnson didn’t lead a team to at least one postseason berth as a manager.  He spent much of the next decade managing in international baseball, while also working for the Nationals in a consulting role (beginning in 2006) that paved the way for his final managerial job in 2011, when Johnson took over as interim skipper following Jim Riggleman’s resignation.  Johnson was made the full-time skipper following that initial year in Washington, and won NL Manager of the Year honors for leading the Nats to their first NL East crown in 2012.  Johnson was 70 years old during his final season in Washington, however, and the Lerner family didn’t view him as a long-term manager, so Johnson retired after an 86-win season in 2013.

Known for his brash personality, Johnson’s outspoken ways may have hurt him in terms of keeping steady employment, yet it certainly aided his ability to manage a clubhouse.  Johnson was viewed as being somewhat ahead of his time in terms of running a team, being one of the first skippers to use some analytics to help in formulating his game plans.  A mathematics major during his college days, Johnson’s reputation for using analytics to gain an edge on the field earned him the ironic nickname of “Dum-Dum” from his Orioles teammates.

Johnson’s career managerial record was 1372-1071 over parts of 17 seasons.  His resume as a player includes 136 homers and a .261/.340/.404 slash line over 1435 games and 5465 plate appearances during his 13 MLB seasons, good for a 112 wRC+.  Though Johnson has fallen short of Hall of Fame induction on multiple veterans’ committee ballots, his overall body of work in baseball would certainly seem worthy of Cooperstown, and it can be argued that Johnson could deserve a HOF nod based on his managerial work alone.

We at MLB Trade Rumors express our condolences to Johnson’s family, friends, and peers.

Dodgers Place Dalton Rushing On 10-Day Injured List

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The Dodgers placed catcher Dalton Rushing on the 10-day injured list this evening due to a right shin contusion, per a team announcement. Rushing’s spot on the active roster will go to catcher Chuckie Robinson, who the Dodgers have selected from Triple-A Oklahoma City. Robinson will take the 40-man roster spot of right-hander Matt Sauer, who was designated for assignment.

Rushing, 24, appeared likely to get some runway behind the plate with L.A. while Will Smith is out of commission due to a bone bruise in his throwing hand. After Rushing fouled a ball of his leg earlier this week, he too found himself sidelined. Rushing told reporters (including Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times) earlier today that a CT scan revealed that he had avoided a fracture in his shin, but is still suffering from a deep bone bruise. While Smith’s bone bruise is something the club has felt they could avoid placing him on the IL over, that did not end up being the case for Rushing, who will now head to the IL for at least the next ten days. Depending on the severity of the bruise, he could of course be sidelined for much longer than that.

While losing Rushing from the roster would be unfortunate, it’s not the massive blow that losing a top prospect might normally be expected to be. The 2022 second-rounder hasn’t hit much in his first taste of the majors this year, with a lackluster .190/.254/.298 (54 wRC+) slash line across 45 games. That poor performance has come with a massive 38.8% strikeout rate, though it of course must be acknowledged that taking to the majors is easier said than done for any rookie, much less one stepping into a backup catcher role that has afforded Rushing only 134 plate appearances across his first three-and-a-half months in the majors.

Regardless of Rushing’s results, however, the injury only serves to compound the issues L.A. is facing behind the plate with Smith not presently available. Ben Rortvedt was called up to serve as a third catcher on the roster while Smith is unavailable, and he’ll now step into regular catching duties for the short-term, with Robinson now poised to be his backup. Rortvedt’s .092/181/.108 slash line in the majors between the Rays and Dodgers this year is nothing to write home about, but he was a passable (87 wRC+) hitter while working behind the plate for the Rays last year thanks to a solid 10.7% walk rate. That’s more success than Robinson has had in the majors, offensively speaking. Robinson has 51 games in the big leagues to his name and in that time has hit just .132/.170/.194 with a career wRC+ of -3, meaning he’s 103% worse than a league average hitter.

Now in his age-30 season, Robinson’s value comes entirely from his ability as a quality defender behind the plate, and with Rortvedt’s own strong resume in that regard the Dodgers should have a solid defensive tandem at catcher even if the duo won’t offer much of anything in terms of offense. L.A.’s bats have been slumping, and their 193 runs scored is a bottom-ten figure since the All-Star break. Smith’s 154 wRC+ exiting the lineup for the time being is the most significant loss, of course, but downgrading from Rushing’s below-average numbers to the pitcher-level offensive production offered by Rortvedt and Robinson surely won’t help matters either. It’s hard to say for sure which of Robinson and Rortvedt will stick around on the roster once Smith is fully healthy and can resume primary catching duties, and perhaps if one or the other shows signs offensively over the next few days that could be a deciding factor.

As for Sauer, the right-hander made his big league debut with the Royals last year but struggled to a 7.71 ERA in 14 appearances. Now with the Dodgers, he’s pitched 29 2/3 innings of work in ten games at the big league level but has struggled to a 6.32 ERA in that time despite solid enough peripheral numbers, including a 4.24 xFIP and a 4.02 SIERA. He’ll now be available on waivers to be claimed by another club, and if he goes unclaimed the Dodgers will have the opportunity to outright him to Triple-A as non-roster depth.

Dodgers Notes: Glasnow, Smith, Rushing

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Tyler Glasnow was initially supposed to start for the Dodgers in tonight’s series opener in Baltimore. Los Angeles instead pushed Shohei Ohtani up from his scheduled start on Monday. Manager Dave Roberts told reporters that came about after Glasnow reported back stiffness this afternoon (link via Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register).

Roberts framed it as a precautionary measure and suggested they’re hopeful the righty can take the ball in a few days. That’d line him up for a home start against the Rockies early next week. The Dodgers will stick with Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Clayton Kershaw for the final two games of the Orioles series. Swapping Glasnow into what would’ve been Ohtani’s spot on Monday would be the simplest solution if the back issue subsides.

Glasnow missed a couple months in the first half with shoulder inflammation. He has been healthy since his activation on July 9. He has worked to a 3.41 ERA while striking out 29% of opponents across 14 starts. He had a minimal injured list stint related to back tightness last season, though that came around the All-Star Break and allowed the Dodgers to keep his innings in check.

The Dodgers have a more pressing injury situation behind the plate. Will Smith has missed the past two games after taking a foul ball off his throwing hand on Wednesday. Roberts said before tonight’s game that he’s dealing with a bone bruise that he’ll need to manage for the remainder of the season (via Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic). The Dodgers hope Smith can avoid the injured list but don’t expect him to play this weekend.

That already spurred one roster move. The Dodgers selected Ben Rortvedt yesterday to get a third catcher on the active roster. Rortvedt was to back up Dalton Rushing as long as Smith was unable to play. Rortvedt will temporarily occupy the top spot on the depth chart now. Rushing was forced out of tonight’s game after fouling a ball off his right leg in the sixth inning. He needed to be helped off the field. The Dodgers announced the injury as a right lower leg contusion.

Initial x-rays came back negative. That doesn’t mean he’s out of the woods for a serious injury. Roberts said Rushing will go for a CT scan (relayed by Jack Harris of The Los Angeles Times). He may need an injured list stint and has already been ruled out for tomorrow’s game. That’ll force the Dodgers to make another move to bring up a catcher who can work behind Rortvedt.

That’s probably going to be Chuckie Robinson, a May waiver claim who was outrighted off the roster a few days later. The only other catcher on the Triple-A active roster, 21-year-old Carlos Avila, has 12 games above rookie ball and was just assigned there yesterday to replace Rortvedt. Robinson has not played in the big leagues this year but has 51 games of MLB experience. He’s a career .132/.170/.194 hitter who has a .264/.349/.368 line with Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Smith’s injury already cost Alexis Díaz his 40-man roster spot; he was designated for assignment to make room for Rortvedt. They’ll need to drop someone else from the roster tomorrow, assuming they’re still hopeful of getting Brock Stewart back and don’t want to move him to the 60-day injured list.

Dodgers Designate Alexis Díaz For Assignment

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The Dodgers announced that they have selected the contract of catcher Ben Rortvedt, a move that was previously reported. In corresponding moves, they optioned infielder Alex Freeland and designated right-hander Alexis Díaz for assignment.

Díaz, 28, was Cincinnati’s closer not too long ago but has fallen on hards times lately. In 2023, he racked up 37 saves for the Reds. He posted a 3.07 earned run average over his 67 1/3 innings. His 12.6% walk rate was too high but he struck out 30.1% of batters faced. He kept it going in 2024 but with some signs of worry. He added another 28 saves with a 3.99 ERA but his strikeout rate dropped all the way to 22.7%.

Despite the trend lines moving the wrong direction, the Reds still tendered him a contract. He had qualified for arbitration for the first time going into 2025, with exactly three years of service. He and the Reds avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $4.5MM salary.

Things have gone from bad to worse this year. He started the season on the injured list due to a hamstring strain. He was reinstated by mid-April but the Reds had Emilio Pagán closing games and didn’t commit to Díaz retaking the ninth inning job. Díaz then allowed eight earned runs in his first six innings with just three strikeouts but five walks, in addition to hitting two batters.

The Reds optioned him to the minors at the start of May. Things didn’t get much better down on the farm. In 13 2/3 innings for Louisville, he had a 22.9% strikeout rate but walked 12 opponents, a 17.1% clip. He hit another two batters and also uncorked two wild pitches. The Reds then traded him to the Dodgers in what was essentially a salary dump deal. The player they got back, right-hander Mike Villani, was a 22-year-old with just two professional innings under his belt at the time.

The Dodgers initially sent Díaz to their Arizona facilities to try to get him back on track. His small sample of major league work since then has been decent enough. In nine innings, he has allowed five earned runs via seven hits, two walks and hitting two batters while striking out nine. But he has also thrown ten Triple-A innings, allowing nine earned runs via seven hits, eight walks and hitting three batters while striking out ten.

It seems that the Dodgers have seen enough and are willing to risk losing Díaz to another club. It will be interesting to see if there’s any interest in a claim. The short-term benefits would be minimal. Now that it’s September, Díaz wouldn’t be postseason eligible with a claiming club. He’s a likely non-tender candidate, given this year’s struggles.

On the other hand, there is theoretical upside. Due to spending most of this year in the minors, Díaz can still be controlled for another three years after this one. It also means he won’t be able to command a notable arbitration raise for the 2026 season. If some club out there sees a path to getting him back on track, perhaps they would consider grabbing him now. Tendering him a contract for $4-5MM next year would be akin to signing someone like Ryne Stanek or Jonathan Loáisiga, who signed one-year deals in that range last offseason.

Though if the Dodgers can’t figure him out, that doesn’t leave a lot of hope for other clubs. And he is still owed about $580K this year, which is a decent amount for a struggling reliever who can’t even help in the postseason. If he passes through waivers unclaimed, he will almost certainly stick with the Dodgers as non-roster depth. Since he has three years of service, he will have the right to elect free agency. But since he has less than five, he would have to forfeit that remaining money in exercising that right.

Freeland came into the year as one of the club’s top prospects. He got called up in late July as several infielders were dealing with injuries. He slashed just .190/.292/.310 in his first 97 plate appearances and a few infielders have come off the IL in the interim. He’ll make way for the club to carry three catchers, at least for as long as Will Smith is injured. It’s not uncommon for prospects to struggle when first promoted, so Freeland could still be a big part of the club’s future, but he’ll head back to the minors for now.

Photo courtesy of Aaron Doster, Imagn Images

Dodgers To Select Ben Rortvedt

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The Dodgers are going to select catcher Ben Rortvedt to their roster, reports Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. That’s to give the club another catcher for the next few days as it’s unlikely Will Smith will play this weekend. Ardaya noted earlier that Dalton Rushing will start tonight, so Rortvedt will presumably back him up while Smith rests. Corresponding moves will be required to add Rortvedt to the active and 40-man rosters.

The issue stems from last night, when Smith was struck by a foul ball on his throwing hand, as seen in this video from MLB.com. Per Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times, Smith is getting a CT scan today which will determine if he needs to go on the injured list. Even if he avoids the IL, he’s going to miss a few days. The Dodgers naturally don’t want to play with Rushing as their only catcher, so they are adding Rortvedt to give them a bit of cover.

Losing Smith for any amount of time is a blow. He has a .296/.405/.497 batting line and 153 wRC+ this year. His glovework isn’t particularly well regarded but he has nonetheless been credited with 4.1 wins above replacement this year by FanGraphs. Naturally, the Dodgers will be hoping he can be back after a few days. At this time of year, anything longer than a day-to-day issue runs the risk of pushing through the end of the regular season.

Rushing will try to make up some of the slack. He has only hit .190/.256/.293 in his first 129 big league plate appearances but in sporadic playing time while backing up Smith. He has far better minor league numbers and it’s possible he could get into a better groove with more reps. Though if Smith is back in a few days, that may be a moot point.

Rortvedt, 27, seemed to establish himself as a legit big league catcher with the Rays last year. He got into 112 games and slashed .228/.317/.303 in 328 plate appearances. His 87 wRC+ indicates he was 13% below the league average hitter, but backstops are usually about 10% below par, so that’s decent enough for a backup. Given his solid defensive grades, he was credited with 1.4 fWAR last year.

Unfortunately, he didn’t carry that over into 2025. Through late May, he had a .095/.186/.111 slash line. He was designated for assignment and no club claimed him off waivers. A couple of months later, the Dodgers picked up him as part of a three-team trade with the Rays and Reds. The Dodgers subtracted some catching depth in that deal by sending Hunter Feduccia to Tampa but got back prospect Adam Serwinowski and reliever Paul Gervase.

Rortvedt effectively replaced Feduccia as the Dodgers’ #3 catcher. He hasn’t been having a good season in the minors either, with a combined .205/.299/.333 line and 66 wRC+ between the Triple-A clubs of the Rays and Dodgers, but he’s a competent defender who’s been in the big leagues for a few years. If the Dodgers want to cut him from the roster later, he is out of options.

Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images

Poll: Will Anyone Get To 60 Home Runs This Year?

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It’s been a great year for power hitters in MLB, as five different players slugged their 40th home run of the season before the end of August. It’s not often that so many hitters enter September with a realistic shot at the lofty threshold of 60 home runs in a season. It’s a feat that’s only been accomplished nine times, and the combination of Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire account for five of those nine 60-homer seasons. Of course, it’s an incredibly rare feat for a reason, and many promising campaigns fall short in the season’s final month. 12 seasons with between 56 and 59 home runs have been logged throughout MLB history, after all.

Will this year’s biggest power threats join that club of also-ran seasons, or will we see the tenth 60-homer season in MLB history come to fruition this year? Here’s a look at each of the top home run hitters from this season and their chances of reaching that illustrious 60-homer plateau, in order of their current home run totals for 2025:

Cal Raleigh

While everyone else on this list hit their 40th homer of the season in August, Raleigh’s 40th home run was actually slugged on July 26. The Mariners’ catcher has had a historic season this year, setting the all-time single season home run record for a catcher while sitting just four behind Mickey Mantle for the all-time single season record for home runs by a switch hitter. With 50 homers tallied so far this year, it’s hard not to see why Raleigh could have a very real shot at hitting 60 home runs this season. He’s hit at least ten homers in three of the season’s five months so far, and has never hit less than eight in a month this year. With that being said, it’s also worth noting that Raleigh has slowed down a bit in the second half of the season. In 40 games since the All-Star break, Raleigh has posted just a 112 wRC+ with 12 home runs. With just 25 games left to play on the Mariners’ schedule, he’ll need to pick up the pace if he’s going to reach 60 homers this year.

Kyle Schwarber

Schwarber is just one homer back of Raleigh in the race for the MLB home run lead after an incredible four-home run performance on August 28. Schwarber has long been one of the game’s premiere power threats and, like Raleigh, has hit at least 10 homers in three of this season’s five months so far. He’ll need to hit 11 in 25 September games in order to reach 60 homers, but one thing working in his favor is that he’s saved most of his power for the second half this year. He’s hit 12 home runs in both July and August, so if he can put up just one more month like the last two, he’ll get there. Of course, a player slugging .655 over his past 52 games also runs the risk of getting pitched around, which could damage Schwarber’s chances of making it to 60. One thing that could work in Schwarber’s favor is his home ballpark, as Statcast considers Citizens Bank Park to be the fifth-most homer friendly stadium in the majors this year.

Shohei Ohtani

With three MVP awards in the past four years, no one should put anything past baseball’s two-way superstar. Ohtani became the first player to go 50-50 last season, and with 54 homers tied with Mantle (and seven other seasons) at 22nd on the single-season home run leaderboard. With 45 home runs headed into September, he has an outside shot at not only breaking that personal record, but getting a coveted 60-homer season. 15 home runs in a single month is a tall order for any player, but Ohtani did exactly that back in May when he crushed 15 long balls in 27 games. The Dodgers have two fewer games than that in September, but Ohtani will benefit from playing his home games at Dodger Stadium, which is far and away the most homer-friendly ballpark in the majors this year per Statcast.

Aaron Judge

Aaron Judge hit his 43rd home run of the season yesterday, and that makes it a tall order for him to reach 60 homers this season. With that being said, onlookers around the game should know better than to doubt the hulking slugger’s offensive abilities at this point, with MVP wins in two of the last three seasons and a completely absurd 202 wRC+ since the start of the 2022 season. Judge is also, of course, the only active player who’s already a member of the 60 home run club after bashing 62 long balls to take the AL home run record from Roger Maris during his 2022 AL MVP campaign. Judge finished just short with 58 home runs last year, but perhaps this year will be different. In order to reach 60 on the season, Judge will need to make a different kind of history: as noted by Thomas Harrigan of MLB.com last year, the record for home runs hit in September (and October, in seasons where it hosts regular season games) belongs jointly to Albert Belle and Babe Ruth. Judge would need to at least tie that duo’s 17 homers in the final month of the year in order to crack 60 long balls this year.

What do MLBTR readers think? Will the league enjoy a 60-homer campaign for the second time in four years this season? And if so, who is most likely to pull it off? Have your say in the polls below:

Will there be a 60 homer season in 2025?
No 59.17% (2,782 votes)
Yes 40.83% (1,920 votes)
Total Votes: 4,702
If someone WERE to hit 60 home runs this year, who would it be?
Cal Raleigh 44.13% (2,001 votes)
Kyle Schwarber 42.52% (1,928 votes)
Aaron Judge 7.52% (341 votes)
Shohei Ohtani 5.82% (264 votes)
Total Votes: 4,534
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