Dodgers Team News

Dodgers News: Dave Roberts Reveals Expected Return Date For Injured Will Smith

Dodgers catcher Will Smith has been sidelined for over two weeks now with a concussion he suffered in San Francisco. Smith took a few foul balls off the mask, and ended up waking up feeling pretty unwell.

Smith had some lingering headaches, and was ultimately diagnosed with a concussion, and placed on the seven-day injured list.



Smith hasn’t played since April 12, but has slowly been improving and inching closer to a return.

On Wednesday, Smith was working in the bullpen, catching relievers under the bright lights at PNC Park during the game. He also said he’s been symptom-free for about five or six days.

So, on Thursday, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was asked for another update on Smith, and it was another positive one:

“Today he feels good,” Roberts said. “I think just, kind of, symptomatic, I think he could get in there today.”

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That’s great news. But that leads us to our next question

When Could We See Smith Back in the Lineup?

Fortunately, Roberts answered that question, too, and had even more positive news:

“Right now, the plan of him taking those light at-bats tomorrow to then be in the lineup on Saturday still holds,” Roberts said.

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That’s even better news, as the Dodgers lineup has greatly missed Smith’s bat in the three-hole.

The Dodgers catchers — Austin Barnes and Austin Wynns — have struggled mightily on both sides of the ball, and Smith was playing like the best catcher in baseball before going down with an injury.

Barnes, including his 1-for-2 stat line to start Thursday’s game, is an atrocious 3-for-37 on the year. Wynns, in a much smaller sample size, is 2-for-11.

Smith was slashing .333/.417/.641 with three home runs, three doubles and 12 RBIs through 11 games. His OPS was an incredible 1.058.

Fortunately, those stats will still be there when he returns. And hopefully, he picks up right where he left off — because the Dodgers could really use him right now.

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Noah Camras

Noah is an Editor for Dodgers Nation. He graduated from USC in 2022 with a B.A. in Journalism and minor in Sports Media Studies. He's been a Dodger fan his whole life, and his all-time favorite Dodgers are Matt Kemp and Russell Martin.

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