CHICAGO — With 7½ weeks left in the regular season, the chances of Dalton Rushing catching again this season are “very small,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. But the Dodgers are holding out hope that he can be a hitting option in a bench role down the stretch and into the postseason.
“I hope I’m wrong,” Roberts said. “He’s a tough kid, and so for him to go through this speaks a lot. So I think that would be great if he can (play catcher again this season). Certainly a possibility with the time, but we’re certainly trying to keep the bat alive for sure.”
After being scratched from the lineup Sunday, Rushing underwent an MRI on Monday that revealed a “slight tear” of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. That is the ligament repaired in Tommy John surgery. Whether Rushing has to undergo surgery to repair the tear is uncertain at this time.
“Over the next couple weeks, I think that we’ll have a better idea of how he’s responding with time,” Roberts said. “And then I think, obviously, that’s a Dalton question too. It’s an organizational (decision), but it’s a doctor, and it’s kind of laying all the variables out, and then making a decision.
“But I do think that there’s really not much cost, outside of two weeks or whatever, to kind of wait and see how he responds to some treatment and some kind of stuff that they decide to do.”
The general plan is for Rushing to rest the arm for those two weeks before resuming hitting. He is not expected to do any throwing for four to six weeks.
The Dodgers’ current bench leans right-handed (Alex Call, Miguel Rojas, Kiké Hernandez). The left-handed Rushing could help balance that if he can return as a hitter.
“That’s a part of it,” Roberts said. “Just kind of looking at the roster and having a potential left-handed bat could be really helpful.”
Will Smith’s return is still undetermined though he has progressed in his workouts recently. That leaves the Dodgers to move forward with the recently acquired Ben Rortvedt and Hunter Feduccia as their catching options down the stretch.
“I think that they’re less experienced than Will, but they’re both more experienced than who we had, Dalton included,” Roberts said. “So I think our catching floor, tandem, has been raised. And so I don’t feel that as a challenge, I really don’t. Catchers just have a unique way of getting to know pitchers. That’s kind of their DNA, right? To learn on the fly, to adapt.
“So with both those guys that have been in our system, I feel good about our catching tandem right now with the expectation that Will will be back.”
Offensively, the Dodgers will “take what we get” from Rortvedt and Feduccia.
“Both guys are going to be hitting ninth when they play, and with the talent that we have, the offense on their side is a bonus,” Roberts said. “We just want those guys to lock in on the run prevention side.”
SHO THROW
Shohei Ohtani was expected to play catch during the Dodgers’ series in Chicago, starting his throwing progression back to pitching again. But Ohtani wasn’t seen on the field throwing at all during the series at Wrigley Field.
Roberts said he isn’t sure when Ohtani will start that throwing progression and there is “not really” a target for getting him back on the mound. Ohtani hasn’t pitched since July 3 and hasn’t thrown since his bullpen session July 21 in Philadelphia. There will have to be some buildup before he can start a game again – and then to build up innings after that.
But Roberts said he is “not too concerned about the timeline” and still expects Ohtani to return to starting.
“I certainly see him as a starter, but how much he could give us, to then have somebody behind him, that we don’t know yet,” Roberts said. “That’s kind of where we’re at right now.”
Roberts would not speculate on what role Ohtani might have as a pitcher in the postseason.
“I think we’ll see about that,” he said. “We have a long way. It’s just hard to talk about the postseason right now.”
COMING SOON
The Dodgers were hoping Blake Snell would get through five innings and throw approximately 75 pitches in his fourth rehab start Tuesday night for Triple-A Oklahoma City. He threw 73 pitches in 3⅔ innings – close enough for that to be his final rehab start.
Snell will rejoin the Dodgers’ starting rotation next week.
Tyler Glasnow started his rehab assignment with two scoreless innings for Class-A Ontario Tuesday. He will make another start Sunday.
UP NEXT
The Dodgers are off Thursday.
Dodgers (RHP Roki Sasaki, 5-5, 4.64 ERA) at Diamondbacks (TBA), 6:40 p.m. Friday, SportsNet LA, 570 AM