Dave Roberts' ominous Will Smith injury update should have Dodgers fans worried

Are the Los Angeles Dodgers going to have their All-Star catcher at full health as they look to repeat as World Series champions this fall? Right now, Dodgers fans are just hoping that Will Smith returns to the lineup at all, although new comments from manager Dave Roberts don’t make the situation sound rosy.

With rookie catcher Dalton Rushing also recently injured (recalled Tuesday), Los Angeles has been relying on Ben Rortvedt to keep things afloat, and he’s performed admirably. 

Still, fans are concerned about Smith as he continues to recover from a bone bruise on his right hand that sent him to the 10-day IL on Sept. 13, and Roberts didn’t do much to assuage those worries this week.

Dave Roberts provides not-so-great update on Dodgers catcher Will Smith

Without specifying a planned activation date for Smith, Roberts provided a good amount of info about the catcher's ongoing recovery this week, per Dodgers Nation’s Gabe Smallson, but none of it sounded overly optimistic.

“There might be some one-handed swings,” Roberts said, per Smallson. “I don’t know if he’s going to be using his top hand. As far as the throwing, I’m not sure about that. It’s kind of a day-to-day thing with that.”

“I think as the days get closer it’s going to be contingent on what he’s doing,” Roberts continued, per Smallson. “If two days out from the potential activation if he’s taking lives (live batting practice) then it’s more plausible, right? If he’s not then probably not (on Saturday). Each day hopefully will be better … (he’s) trying to keep his body moving.”

Per Smallson, Smith has continued catching bullpen sessions. Even so, the fact that Smith has to avoid fully throwing or hitting for a sustained period this late in the season is far from ideal. As the playoffs approach, you want your key players to be establishing momentum, not being forced to rev things back up from level zero on a potentially rushed timeline. 

Smith has had another really good year overall. He made his third-straight All-Star squad this season and has tallied an impressive .296/.404/.497/ (.901 OPS) line in 2025 with 17 homers. However, he has struggled lately (before missing time), batting just .190 over his late 25 games for Los Angeles.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers held a slim, two-game lead over the San Diego Padres atop the National League West standings entering Thursday. Los Angeles was set to begin a four-game series at home against the San Francisco Giants.

After a day off on Monday, the Dodgers will end their regular season with two, three-game sets on the road against the Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners. At this point, it's anyone's guess if Smith will be back on the field by then.