SAN FRANCISCO -- Catcher Will Smith remained out of the Dodgers' starting lineup Friday night in the series opener against the Giants, two nights after being scratched minutes before first pitch due to lingering soreness from a bone bruise in his right hand.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Smith would be available "in some capacity" Friday and could catch in an emergency situation, although his status for Saturday remains unclear. Smith has gotten X-rays, a CT scan and most recently an MRI on his hand, all of which came back clean.
"I think,” Roberts said, “after his first game back and just feeling with all the tests we’ve done to come up negative and the swelling has dissipated … we’d be in a better spot. But at least there’s improvement each day."
Smith's right hand was struck by a foul tip on Sept. 3 in Pittsburgh. He returned to the starting lineup on Tuesday after missing five games in the wake of sustaining the bone bruise. Because imaging came back clean, the Dodgers kept him on the active roster rather than placing him on the injured list.
On Wednesday, as Smith was beginning to warm up, his right hand began to swell up. With 15 minutes until game time, backup Ben Rortvedt was informed that he would be starting behind the plate -- and he guided the pitching staff through a shutout of the Rockies.
"It started to compromise [Smith] a little bit as he was getting loose,” Roberts said on Wednesday. “So we decided to just have him down today, potentially to pinch-hit if needed. We gave Ben the call late, and he really stepped up. Ben did a fantastic job, as he has every opportunity that he’s gotten."
Roberts said on Wednesday that the Dodgers needed to be confident that Smith would be able to catch two out of three games this weekend for him to be in the lineup on Friday. The team wants to avoid a situation like Wednesday, where Smith's regression led to a last-minute change of plans.
With rookie backstop Dalton Rushing sidelined with a right shin bone bruise, the Dodgers can ill afford to put another catcher on the IL. But the team is not ruling out an IL stint for Smith if he does not improve.
"We’re not there yet," Roberts said. "But there is talk as far as potential downside, how long we can wait to see if he can potentially get back to playing."
Roberts has acknowledged that Smith, who has been arguably the Dodgers' steadiest hitter this season, will likely have to manage the bone bruise in his hand for the rest of the regular season and beyond. The 30-year-old entered Friday batting .296 with a .901 OPS in 110 games.