LOS ANGELES — Appearing infrequently, on a schedule that threatens to stunt his growth and limit his productivity, Dodgers rookie catcher Dalton Rushing has started to deliver in the shadows and find elbow room in the corners.
Perhaps one day Rushing will find an expanded role, but as the backup to one of the best catchers in baseball in Will Smith, the budding prospect will have to deliver among the supporting cast for now.
Since he arrived in the major leagues for the first time in mid-May, after longtime backup Austin Barnes was designated for assignment, Rushing’s role has not varied much from his predecessor’s.
“I think that it’s still kind of a learning curve for him, which we all knew once he got this opportunity,” manager Dave Roberts said. “Like I’ve said from the outset, he’s building relationships with the pitchers. I think the catching, the game calling has been fantastic, and just getting used to not playing every day is something that he’s still kind of adjusting to. But I think the at bats have been better.”
The Dodgers have Rushing essentially on a one-start-per-series schedule, save for the May 30-June 1 home matchup with New York Yankees, when he played just four innings as a mid-game replacement in a blowout.
Perhaps that was the day Rushing convinced the Dodgers that he could sustain himself on any spare scraps he can get. After he entered the May 31 game against the Yankees in the sixth inning, Rushing turned one of his two late-game at-bats into a three-run home run.
“It’s something I’ve never done before,” Rushing said of the infrequent playing time as a second-round draft pick in 2022 out of Louisville, which is where Smith also attended. “So essentially, it’s going to be different. It’s going to feel different.
“You show up with, not a different mindset but a different day-to-day look. I’m used to showing up, I’m in the lineup every night. But that’s not my role here and I embrace that. I’m finding a way to be prepared and keep doing my job.”
And even as his schedule has remained the same, Rushing just completed what might have been his most high-profile week since he arrived.
On the just-completed 10-game homestand, Rushing managed to get his typical one start per series against each of the San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres and Washington Nationals. But he also appeared midweek in a simulated game, batting against right-hander Luis Garcia, who was continuing his rehab from a groin strain.
He turned Sunday’s start against the Nationals into one inning behind the plate for Shohei Ohtani, while reaching base four times on offense, with two hits, two walks and three runs scored. Even that performance was lost in the mix as Max Muncy had a grand slam among his seven RBIs, while Ohtani added a home run and five RBIs.
“I don’t think it was anything really different that I’ve done the last few times,” Rushing said, confirming how he has normalized his new challenge. “Maybe I’m getting a little more comfortable in the role. But, yeah, good results, and allowed us to capitalize, on top of some hits, walks, with Max having a big day driving in some runs.”
And yet, perhaps the biggest sign of Rushing’s maturity and growth came in Thursday’s loss to the San Diego Padres, even as he struck out with the tying run at second base as the Dodgers fashioned a late rally.
The first pitch and the fourth pitch of his ninth-inning at-bat that day were out of the strike zone yet called strikes anyway. He still worked a full count before he struck out swinging to end an emotional night when the benches cleared in the top of the eighth inning and Shohei Ohtani was drilled in the bottom of the frame by what was deemed an intentional pitch to the back of his shoulder.
Rushing kept his emotions in check with the bad calls from home-plate umpire Marvin Hudson and the disappointment of the final outcome. Even in his youth, Rushing is wise. He knows he will be behind the plate at some point soon in need of calls for his own pitchers with Hudson working behind him.
Yet, with questions mounting on how Rushing can continue his development with infrequent appearances, while not setting back his development as one of the top prospects of the game, it is Rushing himself who is showing how it can be done.
“Certainly, I think that he’s getting experience being here; it’s better than being in the minors,” Roberts said. “Will, I think is doing a really nice job. I think that also catching, and having two really viable players offensively, defensively … the starters (behind the plate) are getting less playing time, so he’s going to get his opportunities.”
After he collected two hits in the first two games of his career, Rushing batted just .147 over his next 13 games before his two-hit, two-walk performance Sunday. Even as he wasn’t producing, he still was growing.
“Yeah, it’s understanding their attack plan, understanding what they’re trying to do,” Rushing said of opposing pitchers. “I had a pretty good understanding after my first four or five starts. And, yeah, I made a couple adjustments. I feel good right now. Ride the wave and continue to play good baseball.”
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