Will Smith (neck) nearing on-field batting practice

With both Dalton Rushing (elbow) and Will Smith (neck) on the injured list, Feduccia and Ben Rortvedt are the two catchers on the Dodgers’ active roster. Both hit left-handed, and today’s start is against a left-handed pitcher, so it’s still unclear who will see the majority of starts against righties. This will likely remain a muddled situation that we don’t want to chase in fantasy leagues.

No surprise after Rushing was scratched from Sunday’s series finale against the Red Sox. It certainly explains why the Dodgers went out and acquired both Ben Rortvedt and Hunter Feduccia at the trade deadline. They’ll need to cobble things together behind the plate until Will Smith (neck) is ready to return in a couple weeks.

A little additional catching depth can’t hurt, right? The Dodgers are dealing with some razor-thin margins at the position while Will Smith works his way back from a neck injury. Dalton Rushing is also banged up at the moment. Feduccia began his career in Los Angeles and broke into the majors with the Dodgers back in 2024. He’s merely a depth addition.

The 27-year-old Hicks, who won’t be a free agent until after 2030, is probably overachieving some at .282/.363/.432 as a sophomore this year, but he’ll still provide a nice lift over the Rays’ catching duo of Hunter Feduccia and Nick Fortes. Since Hicks and Feduccia are lefty hitters and Fortes is a righty, it’s Feduccia who would seem to be in line for a demotion. No official word yet on whether the Marlins will promote Agustín Ramírez. They already had Brian Navarette up as a third catcher with Hicks often DHing, so they could pick someone else if they don’t see Ramírez getting enough playing time as a DH and backup to Joe Mack.

Technically, there are games happening shortly after Monday’s trade deadline. The Dodgers picked up backup catcher Ben Rortvedt from the Mets in a small deal, which seems to signal that Rushing could be headed to the injured list. The 25-year-old was scratched from Sunday’s series finale against the Red Sox with a minor arm issue. There should be some clarity on his status in the coming days.

Brayden Taylor is one of three prospects Miami is getting back, says Will Sammon. The New York Post’s Joel Sherman says Adrian Santana and Jacob Kisting are the other two. The Marlins didn’t have a dire need for Hicks as a catcher following Joe Mack’s emergence, so this makes a ton of sense. The Rays will probably send down fellow left-handed-hitting catcher Hunter Feduccia and keep Nick Fortes as Hicks’ backup. The Marlins could recall Agustín Ramírez to DH and play behind Mack.

Dalton Rushing is dealing with minor arm irritation, whatever that means, and Eliezer Alfonzo struggled behind the dish on Sunday Night Baseball, so the Dodgers are bringing back an old friend. Rortvedt has not appeared in the big leagues this season and is hitting .234/.319/.414 in 167 plate appearances in Triple-A. McDermott was a former intriguing starting pitching prospect for the Orioles who the Dodgers designated for assignment on July 31st.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters Smith is finally asymptomatic after dealing with a lingering neck issue since early June. The 31-year-old is likely to require a couple weeks to ramp up from a physical standpoint following the extended layoff. He remains without a definitive return timetable, but it seems reasonable to anticipate Smith making it back to Los Angeles at some point in August.

It’s merely a procedural move as Smith is still without a return timetable and remains shut down from baseball activities due to an ongoing neck issue. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has reiterated multiple times that they expect their franchise backstop to return this year, but they’ve declined to offer any additional details. The 31-year-olds has been out with neck inflammation since June 11.

The 31-year-old backstop will be shut down completely for the next week before beginning to ramp back up as he continues to deal with a nagging neck injury. Dalton Rushing will continue to see the bulk of the action behind the plate for the foreseeable future.