Rushing went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run in Sunday's 8-2 win over the Padres.
Rushing was 0-for-9 with four strikeouts over his previous four games. He broke the slump in the seventh inning, putting the Dodgers ahead for good when he took Jeremiah Estrada deep. Rushing is up to three homers, 19 RBI, 12 runs scored and three doubles while slashing .187/.246/.299 over 118 plate appearances. He continues to serve as the backup to Will Smith behind the plate.
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Dodgers' Dalton Rushing: Hits second homer
Rotowire
Rushing went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run in Tuesday's 7-6 extra-inning loss to the Angels.
Rushing had gone just 3-for-30 (.100) with no extra-base hits and 11 strikeouts over his previous 12 games. Despite the struggles at the plate, he continues to get semi-regular playing time as the backup to Will Smith. Rushing is slashing .202/.269/.298 with two homers, 15 RBI, 11 runs scored and three doubles over his first 34 major-league games.
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Dodgers' Dalton Rushing: Unlikely to be dealt, per manager
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Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Monday that Rushing isn't a candidate to be moved ahead of the trade deadline, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports. "I just don't see a world in which he's moved anyway, and I think he's smart enough to realize that," Roberts said.
The caveat, of course, is that the team's front office -- not Roberts -- is the entity responsible for making any trade decisions on Rushing. That said, Roberts' confidence about Rushing remaining with the club past the deadline isn't all that surprising, given that the rookie backstop entered the campaign as one of baseball's top catching prospects. Rushing has struggled at the plate since getting called up to the majors May 14, posting a .200/.270/.275 slash line with one home run, 11 RBI and a 40.4 percent strikeout rate over 89 plate appearances. That said, Roberts pointed out that a learning curve is understandable since the 24-year-old is having to adjust to sporadic playing time.
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Dodgers' Dalton Rushing: Reaches base four times Sunday
Rotowire
Rushing went 2-for-2 with a double, two walks and three runs in a 13-7 win against Washington on Sunday.
Rushing reached in all four of his plate appearances to help set the table from the No. 9 spot in the lineup for leadoff hitter Shohei Ohtani, who racked up five RBI. Rushing notched his third multi-hit game of the campaign, but it was his first such performance since he accomplished the feat in each of his first two MLB contests May 15 and 17. The 24-year-old has settled in as the Dodgers' backup catcher behind Will Smith and has posted a .689 OPS with one home run, nine RBI and eight runs through 51 plate appearances.
Dodgers' Dalton Rushing: Slugs first big-league homer
Rotowire
Rushing went 1-for-2 with a three-run home run in Saturday's 18-2 rout of the Yankees.
Things got so out of hand score-wise that Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts brought in Rushing to pinch hit for reigning NL MVP Shohei Ohtani in the sixth inning. The Yankees essentially waved the white flag when they called upon position player Pablo Reyes to pitch in the eighth, and Rushing took advantage by blasting a three-run home run for his first long ball as a major leaguer. Since being called up from the minors May 14, Rushing has been routinely starting every third game behind the plate, and he's compiled a .273/.304/.455 slash line with seven RBI through 23 plate appearances.
Dodgers' Dalton Rushing: Behind plate for MLB debut
Rotowire
Rushing is making his MLB debut Thursday night against the Athletics, starting at catcher and batting seventh.
With Will Smith getting to rest Thursday, Rushing will get his first major-league action. Rushing was called up Wednesday with Austin Barnes being designated for assignment. While Rushing will serve as the backup catcher, he may also find some time at first base or left field. The left-handed batter is set to get his first plate appearances against A's right-hander Osvaldo Bido.
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Dodgers' Dalton Rushing: Gets on base three times in debut
Rotowire
Rushing went 2-for-4 with a walk and three runs scored in Thursday's 19-2 win over the Athletics.
Rushing got a fun first taste of major-league action in this lopsided win in his debut. He didn't look out of place, striking out just once and scoring each time he got on base. The 24-year-old was slashing .308/.424/.514 over 31 games with Triple-A Oklahoma City prior to his call-up Wednesday. He slots in as the backup to Will Smith at catcher, but Rushing can also push the struggling Michael Conforto for playing time in left field since Smith is likely to catch 4-to-5 games per week.
The Dodgers selected Rushing's contract from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Wednesday.
With Austin Barnes having been designated for assignment in a corresponding move, Rushing will pick up some starts at catcher on days that Will Smith has off. However, most of his playing time could come in the outfield, where Michael Conforto has struggled and Teoscar Hernandez (groin) and Tommy Edman (ankle) are currently out of the mix. Rushing is also capable of playing first base, but at-bats will be hard to come by at the position with Freddie Freeman entrenched atop the depth chart. Rushing has slashed .308/.424/.514 with five home runs and a 29:21 K:BB over 132 plate appearances this season with Oklahoma City.
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