The Los Angeles punched tickets to the postseason, but there’s quite a bit to deal with before the road to October.
The bullpen situation, which lost another game in LA following a runless outing by the starting pitcher on Tuesday, has never made fans more tense than what the blown out in September showed. Another obvious issue that September brought on is that All-Star catcher Will Smith is currently on the injured list and there is a risk that he is not prepared for the start of the postseason.
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“I want that,” Smith said when asked if he would be revitalized by then. “I’m doing everything I can to get ready.”
Smith’s timeline for returning to baseball is “like pain tolerance” as he recovers from a hairline fracture that hit a foul ball earlier this month.
Smith seemed confident when he spoke about what he still needs to achieve before he could return to his place behind the cooking, reminding the world of baseball how close his team was to the promised land.
“At some point, I definitely get some live abs, not a game,” he said. “But it’s crunch time. You have to go. I’ll go back there whenever I’m ready.”
In the meantime, rookie catcher Dalton Rushing has increased his workload. Plus, I overcame my stint earlier this month.
Rortvedt was one of the less talked-about deals at the deadline, thrown in with several prospects in exchange for Triple-A Catcher Hunter Feduccia, but hit his first home run of Tuesday night, hitting .275 with .741 OPS in 15 appearances at Blue.
The catching room is not ideal for the postseason within a week, but we hope Smith can make a quick recovery. It will be the worst case scenario. The appearance of the Rothveda can at least provide fans with a relive sliver until the All-Stars can wear catcher gear again.
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Photo credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Image
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