Eight-six, the series is ours — and somehow the box score reads like a triage report. This is the Dodgers Daily Podcast. Two starters leave hurt in one game, a catcher already on the IL — we'll walk through every name on that list. I got my exhale yesterday and somebody snatched it right back. Ohtani AND Wrobleski limp off in the same night? And Roberts gives us a two-word Ohtani update. Let's start right there, Joey. Same pattern — encouraging, but worded to dodge the next question. I don't think he's lying; I think he's choosing every word. Right, brief enough that nobody can pin a timeline on it. And this fanbase has earned the right to read the small print. Then there's Will Smith — officially on the IL with neck inflammation, retroactive to June 8. That answers the question we'd been chasing for two episodes. Retroactive to the eighth means they KNEW. Chuckie Robinson's been the answer this whole time and they just hadn't told us. Robinson's contract gets selected — and it's the same emergency fill-in role he played last September when Smith's hand went. Same fire extinguisher, second alarm in nine months. Now Wrobo's slot is stressed too, on top of catcher and DH. The depth question isn't theoretical anymore — they're living the stress test. Which is why the Glasnow math feels shakier today. 'Wait for August' only worked if nothing else broke. Last night, two more pieces did. And the internal-options argument? Wrobleski exiting is the second straight night that case got harder to make with a straight face. It gives the old Skubal conversation real teeth — not a new rumor, just new pressure on the same question. Tanner Scott can call the ninth uncomplicated, fine. But they were up six-three when Shohei left and the eighth almost ran away again. One clean inning doesn't erase that. And for the bookkeepers — Tyler Fitzgerald was released, which clears up those murky 40-man moves. Win the series, count the casualties. We'll have the injury follow-ups Monday. Here's Dodgers Digest:
The series against the Pirates had so far had a blowout win and blowpen loss, and tonight they closed the series with an offensive battle that was close late. Thankfully, the bats came through enough to build a lead and then get insurance, and the pen … well they didn’t blow the game at least. Tanner Scott looked great in a four-out save at least. 8-6 win.
Final was 8-6, series in hand against Pittsburgh. Shohei homers in the third — back-to-back nights deep — and then both he and Wrobleski walk off hurt in the same game. The win goes in the book with an asterisk I can't pretend isn't there. Man, I got my exhale yesterday and they yanked it right back. Two exits in one night, and Smith's already on the shelf? This stopped being a one-guy thing. That's the real shift. We spent Tuesday on rotation depth, Wednesday on catcher depth, and now one ballgame coughs up two more bodies. The Glasnow-in-August math looked patient last week — it looks exposed now. And don't tell me internal options cover this. Wrobo WAS the internal option. The arm that was supposedly holding the fort just limped off the field. Credit the pen, though — Tanner Scott, four-out save, clean. A night after they handed back a five-run lead and lost 9-8, that steadiness was the response they needed to a mess they made themselves. One clean inning from Scott doesn't erase the eighth where they were up 6-3 and the whole thing started wobbling again. I saw it. Don't paper over it. From Rexwell Villas at ClutchPoints:
The reigning National League Most Valuable Player was not able to finish the contest at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, due to left knee inflammation. However, Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts revealed after the game that the team's level of concern about Ohtani's injury is “not high,” according to Jack Harris of the California Post.
Two words from Dave Roberts on Ohtani last night: 'not high.' That's the team's level of concern, per Jack Harris of the California Post. Not high. Where have I heard the Roberts minimalism before? Oh right — 'okay' on Glasnow, and we all know how that aged. Roberts also floated that Ohtani could be available for the White Sox opener Friday. Encouraging, sure — but it's still a very careful answer. No timeline, no detail, same playbook. And it's left knee inflammation, which is a completely different thing than Smith's neck. So we're juggling two marquee bodies in the shop at once now. Before he left, Ohtani was 2-for-2, two walks, two RBIs, 391-foot homer in the first. That points more toward precaution than a guy laboring. I'll take the optimistic read until a roster move says otherwise. Here's MLB.com:
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Dodgers have selected the contract of catcher Chuckie Robinson and placed catcher Will Smith on the injured list with neck inflammation, retroactive to June 8. Robinson, 31, played one game for the Dodgers last season, scoring a run on September 15 against the Phillies. He has been in the Majors parts of three season with the Cincinnati Reds (2022), Chicago White Sox (2024) and Dodgers, batting.131 with two homers and five RBI.
It's official now — Smith on the IL, neck inflammation, retroactive to June 8. The when-does-this-become-official question we kicked around the last two episodes is closed. And here's what gets me — retroactive to June 8. That means they knew. Chuckie Robinson's been the answer this whole time and we were all sitting here pretending Smith might walk it off. Robinson's a career .131 hitter across three orgs. Per MLB.com, you're talking about an emergency body behind the plate, not an upgrade — and they've leaned on him before. Same September fill-in role last year when Smith's hand went. Twice in nine months we're calling the same guy up off the bench. And it lands the same night Ohtani and Wrobleski walk off hurt. One game, three problems. So now a starter's spot gets added to the catcher and DH strain. The week opened on rotation depth, moved to catcher, and somehow ended with everything stressed at once. Dodgers Beat writes:
With the Dodgers trying to protect a two-run lead in the eighth inning, Dave Roberts turned to Scott with two outs and a runner on third. The Pirates had already scored twice in the inning and had the tying run coming to the plate. Scott needed one pitch to end that threat, getting Brandon Lowe to fly out to right field.
Tanner Scott calls it 'one out at a time' — cool, but he walked into a two-run lead with a runner on third and the tying run at the plate after Henriquez gave up a triple and a double to open the eighth. We were up six-three when Ohtani left and the bullpen nearly handed it right back. Scott's one clean inning shouldn't paper over how close that eighth came to last time. He got the four-out save, Joey. After Wednesday's collapse, the closer calming down a tense eighth is the bullpen actually giving you something for once. Two outs, runner on third, one pitch to Brandon Lowe — flyout. Then he punches out Reynolds and O'Hearn in the ninth. That's a clean stop on a night with very little clean about it. Fine — the ninth was filthy. I'll give Scott the save. I just can't fully exhale when the inning before it nearly came apart again. From Sebastian Abdón Ibarra at DodgerBlue.com:
The decision to release Fitzgerald appears to be in advance of putting Will Smith on the 10-day injured list and needing to call up a catcher from the Comets. Another option would have been to transfer a player to the 60-day IL, but that would’ve caused other factors down the line.
So the Fitzgerald move finally makes sense in context — they released him Wednesday to clear the 40-man for the Smith IL placement and the Chuckie Robinson call-up we covered earlier. Yeah, and look at what they gave up to do it. The guy hit .293 with six homers in 24 games at Oklahoma City. They DFA'd a real bat to plug the catcher hole, not some dead weight. Their other option was transferring someone to the 60-day, which Roberts said would've caused complications down the line. So they ate a productive depth piece instead. That's the depth tax adding up across the roster. And here's the part that gets me — they grabbed a former Giant off Toronto's scrap heap, he rakes, and then he's gone. San Francisco's gonna feel real smug about that one. Or they won't think about it at all, Joey, because cash considerations rarely keep anyone up at night. If you follow the Dodgers, you probably care about the city around the team, too. Check out Los Angeles Politics and Urbanism Daily: City Hall, housing abundance, homelessness response, Metro, public safety, and small-business permitting. Find it wherever you listen to podcasts.
You'll find links to all the stories we covered today in the show notes. If something stuck with you, take a minute to read a little deeper there.
That's it for Dodgers Daily Podcast this Friday, June 12th. This is a Lantern Podcast.