Advertisement

Forgotten Dodger just became frustratingly crucial after Dalton Rushing injury shuffle

The Dodgers are now...quite thin.
Adam Weinrib
Adam Weinrib

Dodgers Way

Los Angeles Dodgers Photo Day / Christian Petersen/GettyImages

Any Los Angeles Dodgers fans who raged when Dave Roberts let a rally fizzle out in Pittsburgh by prematurely removing Dalton Rushing for Ben Rortvedt really aren't going to enjoy the next few weeks of Dodger baseball.

Rortvedt went from a looming taxi squad possibility to an in-game target of frustration when Will Smith hit the pine with a bone bruise in his hand. The situation became more dire over the weekend when Roberts acknowledged that, even without a break, Rushing's shin issue had reached the point where it necessitated an IL stint.

And so, on Saturday, the Dodgers placed Rushing on the shelf, too, promoting Chuckie Robinson to the backup catcher role. Bullpen Carousel Member and occasional sacrificial lamb Matt Sauer was DFA'd to make room for him on the 40-man roster.

That means Rortvedt has been elevated into the starter's role for the weekend while Smith rests in Baltimore. Robinson could receive reps as well, but the Dodgers were forced to sacrifice an arm in order to carry him as an emergency cog. For at least the weekend, the Dodgers will be without any sort of familiar stabilizing force behind the dish. It's not what you want, coming off a feckless walk-off loss.

Dodgers replace Dalton Rushing with Chuckie Robinson as Matt Sauer is DFA'd

In 65 at-bats this season, Rortvedt has a hard-to-believe six hits for an .092 average, -0.6 bWAR, and -17 OPS+. That means he's 117% worse offensively than the league average.

While Smith avoided an IL stint (for the time being), the reality is he'll be compromised when he returns, and plans to play through something painful for the remainder of the Dodgers' season, however long it lasts.

Robinson is more of a handcuff than a crucial piece, but Rortvedt? He's been elevated into the spotlight as the Dodgers continue to struggle to find their footing. There's no way to sugarcoat it; a player most fans wish were elsewhere will be taking up a spot in the lineup for the time being, and will attempt to shepherd Yoshinobu Yamamoto through a not-quite-a-must-win-but-also-kind-of-a-must-win on Saturday evening.

Adam Weinrib

Adam Weinrib

Adam Weinrib is a Content Director on the FanSided network, and has been the co-editor at Yanks Go Yard and Dodgers Way for 4 years. He also co-hosts The Baseball Insiders Podcast twice weekly, alongside FanSided MLB insider Robert Murray, as well as the Yanks Go Yard Podcast. Previously, he was a Senior Editor at 12up.com, and has been covering MLB and NFL for eight years. Previously, he was a headline and features contributor at ClickHole and Onion Sports, as well as the Associate Producer of the ESPN 30 for 30 film "Believeland". An avowed fan of the New York sports teams -- specifically the Yankees -- as well as the North Carolina Tar Heels, you can find Adam complaining mid-game on Twitter, as well as on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn if the game goes really poorly.