Will the Dodgers Be Rushing Dalton to Catch?

NOTE: I wrote this BEFORE the Dodgers announced that Will Smith was going on the IL,

Will Smith has been one of the best, if not THE best, catchers in baseball for the past few years. But Will Smith is not a big guy – he is on the smallish side, while Dalton Rushing is a little “burly.” I’ll get right to the point: Will Smith is experiencing what happens to your body when it starts to break down as you age. I think Will needs to go to a less demanding position or risk sitting out half the games. Will’s bat (when healthy) is valuable. I have suggested in the past that he should move to 3B, but now I think that 2B is a better solution. The reasons why:

1. He has a little experience there;
2. 2B is likely easier to learn than 3B;
3. Max is signed for another year and can platoon with Freeland, Edman, or whoever; and
4. Rushing is ready!

Some say, “Well, Rushing is a hothead!” OK, maybe, or maybe he is just the guy you want to go to war with! I’d rather rein in my lions than teach my sheep to hunt! It’s also said, “It’s better to live 1 day as a lion than live a 1,000 days as a sheep.” A lineup with BOTH a HEALTHY Will Smith and Dalton Rushing would be a better lineup:

1. Ohtani DH
2. Pages CF
3. Freeman 1B
4. Rushing C
5. Smith 2B
6. Muncy 3B
7. Betts SS
8. Teo/Ward LF
9. Tucker RF

If you don’t like where you are hitting… then hit your way out of it!

Last night’s game – Never happened! Write it off, but take note. Don’t worry… Be Happy! This is the same bullpen that went about 40 shutout innings earlier. Pitchers pitch well and then sometimes get out of sync. It happens all the time. Vesia, Hurt, and Dreyer didn’t have it last night. It happens. They just weren’t executing their pitches. You are going to win 50 games accidentally and lose 50 games accidentally. The other 62 determine your fate.

Case in point: Kyle Hurt – In 6 games in April, he had a 1.50 ERA. In May, he appeared in 12 games and sported a 0.75 ERA. So far in June, he has 4 appearances and a 21.60 ERA. So, let’s throw the baby out with the bathwater? Maybe he needs a tweak, or maybe he needs to go back to OKC to tweak more. The Dodgers know best. I’ll leave it to them. Games like last night are sometimes going to happen. DON’T WORRY ABOUT IT!

MiLB GAME SUMMARY REPORTS

OKC Comets 10 – Charlotte Knights 1

This was not RHSP River Ryan’s finest start, but it was not bad either.  He pitched 4.0 shutout endings with stress, but in the 5^th he allowed 2 leadoff singles and was lifted for RHRP Paul Gervase.  Gervase got a forceout at 2^nd, but then surrendered a RBI single, a run charged to Ryan.  Gervase finished the inning with 2 walks and 2 K.

RHRP Evan Phillips continued his rehab assignment.  He competed 1.0 shutout inning, allowing 1 hit, 1 BB, and 1 HBP, with 1 K.  This was his 3^rd rehab game.

LHRP Ronan Kopp allowed 2 singles, but struck out the side.  RHRP Griff McGarry and RHRP Keynan Middleton also pitched a scoreless inning each, but each walked one.

OKC took the lead in the 5^th.  With one out, LF Ryan Fitzgerald singled.  With 2 outs, SS Hyeseong Kim singled.  The duo pulled off a double steal and scored on the catcher’s throwing error.

After the Knights pulled within 1, OKC put up 5 in the 6^th.  RF Zach Ehrhard reached on a fielding error and stole 2B.  Ehrhard moved to 3^rd on a 2B Tommy Edman ground out.  1B James Tibbs III singled to score Ehrhard.  DH Jack Suwinski followed with his 15^th HR.  CF Alek Thomas started it up again with a single.  With 2 outs, 3B Noah Miller walked and Kim doubled (3) both home.

In the 7^th, 3 walks and balk brought home another run.  In the 9^th, the first two batters made outs.  JTIII walked, Suwinski singled, and Thomas walked to load the bases.  R. Fitzgerald singled home a pair to finish the scoring.

• Jack Suwinski – 3-4, 1 BB, 2 runs, 2 RBI, HR (15)
• Hyeseong Kim – 3-4, 1 run, 2 RBI, double (3)
• Ryan Fitzgerald – 2-5, 1 run, 2 RBI

Box Score

Tulsa Drillers 5 – Wichita Wind Surge (Minnesota) 2

RHSP Payton Martin continues to grow.  He now has two consecutive starts with 6.0 completed innings.  In April, Martin pitched 12.0 innings with a2 11.25 ERA.  For May and June (to date), Martin has pitched 36.1 innings and has compiled a 2.97 ERA over those 36.1 innings.

Remember, Martin was a high school SS with some mound time.  He was committed to play SS for East Carolina.  Dodgers liked his pitching prospects and drafted him in the 19^th round, giving him a way above slot of $125K bonus.  He reached #18 with BA in 2025.

On Wednesday, Martin’s first 4.0 IP were scoreless with 1 hit and 1 BB to go with 4 K.  In the 5^th, the leadoff hitter doubled and scored on a single.  It was déjà vu again in the 6^th with a double and single scoring a second run.  He exited the game with a 3-2 lead.

RHRP Carson Hobbs pitched 2.0 scoreless innings while RHRP Cam Day pitched a scoreless 9^th for the save.

In the first inning, DH Josue De Paula led off with a BB, stole 2^nd , and moved to 3^rd on the catcher’s throwing error.  CF Mike Sirota continued his mastery of reaching base safely with his 49^th consecutive game.

After Wichita tied the score in the top of the 5^th, Tulsa retook the lead in the bottom of the inning.  With 2 outs, RF Zyhir Hope drew a BB and scored ahead of 2B Jake Gelof’s 11^th HR.  Gelof has been on a HR tear of late, with his 5^th HR of June.

In the 7^th, SS Sean McLain led off with a BB, and JDP (21) and Sirota (7) each doubled to plate 2 runs, giving Tulsa a 5-2 lead.

• Josue De Paula – 1-2, 2 BB, 2 runs, double (21)
• Mike Sirota – 2-4, 3 RBI, double (7)
• Jake Gelof – 1-4, 1 run, 1 RBI, HR (11)

Box Score

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Milwaukee) 5 – Great Lakes Loons 0 – Game 1, 7 innings

It was 0-0 for the first 5.0 innings.  Great Lakes did not score in the top of the 6^th, but Wisconsin put up 5 off RHRP Dilan Figueredo, including a 3-run HR.

RHSP Aidan Foeller pitched the 1^st three innings facing just 10 batters.  The only base runner was a single.  Foeller struck out 4. 

RHRP Robby Porco pitched 2 scoreless innings.

With 5 hits and 5 BB, GL had more baserunners than Wisconsin (10-7).  But nothing to show for it.

Box Score

Great Lakes Loons vs Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Milwaukee) – Game 2 Postponed – Makeup Game Thursday

Lake Elsinore Storm (Padres) 6 – Ontario Tower Buzzers 1

RHSP Mason Estrada started and completed 4.0 IP.  In the first, after a one out BB, there was a two out RBO double giving  the Storm a 1-0 lead.  In the 4^th, Estrada walked the leadoff batter and back to back WP put the runner on 3^rd, where he scored on sac fly.

Even with the offense not showing up, the team was still in OK position going into the bottom of the 7^th.  RHRP Jose Cabrera entered in the 7^th as relief for RHRP Angel Cruz.  Cabrera walked the 1^st batter.  He struck out batter two, and threw a WP allowing the runner to reach 2^nd.  He struck out the next batter as well, but it was on a WP so the batter reached base and the runner moved to 3^rd.  Next batter walked to load the bases. His third WP scored one run with the runner on 2^nd moving to 3^rd.  The runner on 1^st stole 2B.  Next batter doubles to score two.  The runner steals 3rd and scores on a sac fly.

In the 9^th, 1B Easton Shelton doubled (13) and scored on SS Joendry Vargas’ RBI single to break up the shutout.

• Easton Shelton – 2-4, 1 run, 2 doubles (13)
• Joendry Vargas – 2-4, 1 RBI
• Bryan Gonzalez Garcia – double (1)

Box Score

ACL Royals 15 – ACL Dodgers 9

The ACL Dodgers had leads of 3-2 and 5-2, before the Royals scored 3 in the 6^th to tie the score.  Then everything went south.  The Royals scored 10 runs in the 7^th…4 singles, 2 HBP, 2 BB, 2 errors, 1 fielders choice, and 1 WP.

The Dodgers scored a pair in the 7^th and 9^th to close the gap.

• 1B Oswaldo Osorio – 3-4, 1 BB, 3 runs, 2 RBI, 2 doubles (4), HR (3)
• 3B Moises Bolivar – 2-4, 1 BB, 4 runs, 1 RBI, HR (6)
• C Eduardo Rojas – 2-4, 1 BB, 1 run, double (1)
• DH Daniel Mielcarek – 2-5, 3 RBI, 2 doubles (3)

The ACL Dodgers are 9-21 good for 15^th out of 15 teams.  The run differential is -92.  Next closest -58.  They are half way through the season.

After winning the 2024 ACL Championship, the 2025 ACL Dodgers dropped below .500, and this year’s version is not very good. Okay, they are bad.  More on that later.

Box Score

DSL Padres Gold 9 – DSL LAD Mega 0

LAD Mega managed two hits, both doubles:  SS Yojackson Laya (2) and RF Hendry Arvelo (1).

No need to mention the pitching.

Box Score