On Saturday, the Los Angeles Dodgers placed Will Smith on the 10-day injured list due to a right hand contusion and recalled Chuckie Robinson.
Smith’s IL stint is retroactive to Sept. 10 because he has not played since the day prior. He was penciled into the Dodgers’ lineup that night, but was scratched just before the game due to hand swelling.
The backstop has now played in just one game over the past 10 days. That would have completed a full-stint on the IL, but the Dodgers decided against it up until now.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said looking back, they would have made the decision to IL Smith earlier, rather than keeping him active, had they known he would be out this long, via Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic:
“I think in hindsight we would have definitely (put him on the IL),” Roberts said. “But that’s not what we had at that point in time. The information we had at the time was, he could play a game, which he did. That’s what we knew. And then when he comes up sore the next day and the following days, then we made a decision.”
Smith first injured his hand on Sept. 3 when he took a foul ball off it. That kept him out five days until he returned to the lineup for one game.
Since getting back for that one game, Smith has now missed three games in four days.
Roberts previously said Smith would need to play through a bone bruise for the remainder of the season, and it could be something they have to manage.
Prior to placing him on the IL, the Dodgers hoped that the three days off from Sept. 10-12 would give him enough time to heal and get back in the lineup.
Will Smith received testing on hand
Smith previously had an X-ray and CT scan on his hand, which both came back negative for any fractures. He then underwent an MRI on his hand which also came back clean, but his hand has still been bothering him.
He remained available off the bench as the backup to Ben Rortvedt, although hitting has been the primary issue affecting him.
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
