BALTIMORE – It was one of the harder balls Dalton Rushing has hit all season.
“Yeah, 103 (mph),” Rushing said Saturday. “I barreled it right into my leg.”
The foul ball during his sixth-inning at-bat Friday night left Rushing on the ground in pain. But X-rays that night and a CT scan Saturday revealed no fracture, just a significant “bone contusion to my tib-fib,” Rushing said.
The rookie catcher was prepared to be told more bad news than that.
“Watching the video, I’m surprised. The initial feeling – yeah, I’m surprised,” he said. “It numbed up pretty quick. Couldn’t really put any pressure on it. There was pain up and down my leg. Thank God I’ve got a strong tib-fib. I guess I drank a lot of milk as a kid. It sucks, though.”
Rushing was officially placed on the injured list by the Dodgers Saturday, and journeyman catcher Chuckie Robinson was promoted from Triple-A Oklahoma City. Robinson, 30, has been with five organizations during his career but has only 51 games of big-league experience (25 with the Cincinnati Reds in 2022 and 26 with the Chicago White Sox last season). He joins Ben Rortvedt as the only healthy catchers on the Dodgers’ roster.
Will Smith remains on the active roster and might be available to pinch-hit as soon as Sunday. He has a bone bruise in his right hand after taking a foul tip off the hand during Wednesday’s game.
GLASNOW UPDATE
Right-hander Tyler Glasnow returned to Los Angeles Friday after being scratched from his start with back stiffness.
“He went and saw the docs back in Los Angeles, and nothing came of it,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “So I think we dodged a bullet. He was playing catch today. So we expect to pencil him in soon. But we dodged a bullet, so we feel good about that.”
The Dodgers do not have a starter for Monday’s game against the Colorado Rockies. It could be Glasnow or Emmet Sheehan (on four days’ rest).
SLUMP BUSTER
Roberts said, “there were conversations that were had” with some team members about breaking out of the offensive malaise that has gripped the Dodgers for weeks now.
“I think that when you’re mired in something, you have to kind of sometimes step back or have somebody allow you to step back and look at what’s going on,” Roberts said. “I think that we’ve done that.”
Roberts said he didn’t want to give any specifics about those conversations. But he gave a hint.
“There’s an approach, a mental part. I think that right now it seems like guys are trying to be a little too careful, trying to be perfect and trying not to fail,” Roberts said. “That kind of mindset doesn’t bode well when you’re trying to not make a mistake or be perfect.
“I think those are things, the conversations I’ve had with the guys as far as giving them the freedom to just play freely. With that, the hope is you’ll see some more smiles and some more sunflower seeds and the energy. … There’s a balance between urgency and focus and being too tight. So just trying to find that fine balance where I do think that the conversation we all had, we found that balance.”
REHAB ROUNDUP
Left-hander Alex Vesia pitched a hitless inning for the second time for OKC, striking out two of the three batters he faced on Friday night to complete his rehab assignment. Roberts said Vesia will join the Dodgers in Los Angeles on Monday and be activated from the injured list.
Max Muncy and Tommy Edman continued their rehab assignments with OKC Saturday. Both are expected to join the Dodgers and come off the IL during the three-game series against the Rockies.
Roberts said the Dodgers have decided to have right-hander Roki Sasaki make another rehab start with OKC on Tuesday. Sasaki has a 7.07 ERA with 17 hits and eight walks in 14 innings over his first four starts for OKC.
“Again, I think the main thing for Roki is just performance. Increasing his velocity and command. Just pitching well,” Roberts said. “We’re in a playoff race. So he’s got to continue to raise his level to be here.”
ALSO
To clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Robinson, right-hander Matt Sauer was designated for assignment. Sauer had a 5.86 ERA in 83 innings for OKC and a 6.37 ERA in 10 appearances with the Dodgers.
UP NEXT
Dodgers (LHP Clayton Kershaw, 9-2, 3.28 ERA) at Orioles (RHP Tomoyuki Sugano, 10-7, 4.41 ERA), Sunday, 10:35 a.m., SportsNet LA, 570 AM