Andy Pages injury update gives Dodgers some hope despite more pitching concerns

The Los Angeles Dodgers offense took its worst blow of the year when Andy Pages went onto the IL with a hand fracture on August 22. Although he had settled down after the breakout April and May that had some Dodgers fans betting on him for MVP way too prematurely, he was hitting .288 with an .802 OPS on the month before getting hurt, making him one of the only working bats in LA's lineup.

Since Pages got hurt, the Dodgers are 3-6, with four consecutive losses by just a single run. While there's no telling if Pages could've salvaged some of those for LA, there's no question that he would've made them a more formidable offense, especially with Shohei Ohtani in his worst slump of the season and maybe even IL-bound.

Hand fractures are tricky; sometimes, you just have to wait them out. However, the Dodgers got some good news on Pages ahead of their finale against the St. Louis Cardinals. David Vassegh reported Pages is pain free and will begin swinging a bat "in the next couple days."

It's the good news the Dodgers needed after — surprise! — Eric Lauer went onto the IL with elbow inflammation. Will Klein was transferred to the 60-day IL, and Blake Treinen was reactivated.

Dodgers get hopeful update on Andy Pages after surprising Eric Lauer IL move

There had been no indication that Lauer was injured, apart from the fact that he was shelled by the Cardinals on Tuesday, giving up seven runs in three innings. Klein was initially moved to the IL on August 1 with elbow discomfort.

With Lauer injured and Ohtani shut down from throwing, the Dodgers are back to a standard rotation. It's still nothing to turn your nose up at — Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tarik Skubal, Tyler Glasnow, and Roki Sasaki make up one of the most formidable rotations in baseball — but the Dodgers could move Justin Wrobleski back into the rotation to continue giving all of their very injury-prone starters an extra day of rest.

The Dodgers only really need Pages to be ready for the postseason where, hopefully, he'll be able to redeem himself after a historically bad showing in 2025, but they would certainly like to pass the Atlanta Braves in the standings (Atlanta is half a game ahead) and clinch a bye.

LA's offense is waking up a little, even during losses, but having Pages back could give them the extra jolt they need through these last three weeks.

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