Miguel Rojas, the Dodgers’ 37-year-old second baseman, is saying he’s good to go for Game 4 of the NLDS after a nasty scare where he left Game 3 with lower back pain. Talk about a quick turnaround, or maybe just some serious grit? Rojas believes he’ll be available, but it sounds like manager Dave Roberts is hitting the pause button, waiting to see how things really shake out.
The Scare That Had Everyone Holding Their Breath
The whole thing went down in the eighth inning during Rojas’s fourth at-bat. He was facing Braves lefty Brent Suter with a 1-1 count when he fouled off a pitch and immediately grimaced, reaching for his lower back. You could just see it, the pain written all over his face. The trainer was out there in a flash, and eventually, the veteran had to leave the game. Tommy Edman took over mid-at-bat, and, man, he popped out on the first pitch. Rojas was seen favoring his lower left back in the dugout, and the team officially announced he left with low back pain. Later, Rojas clarified that the tightness surfaced from a diving stop back in the fifth inning. That’s a double whammy, fouling a ball *and* a previous diving play. Rough.
Rojas’s Gutsy Stand Versus Roberts’s Caution
After the game, Rojas was all fire, telling the media he fully expects to be ready for Game 4, no matter what they need him for. He said, “I’m looking forward to being ready to go tomorrow if they need me and obviously trying to end this one and get some rest and meds and stuff and get back in there.” You gotta respect that fight! But Roberts, as any good manager would, is being a bit more pragmatic. He’s going to wait and see how Rojas feels on Wednesday. Plus, with righty Tyler Mahle likely starting for the Braves, Rojas probably wasn’t going to get the start anyway. Roberts put it simply: “I think it’s how he comes in tomorrow. He probably won’t be in tomorrow against Mahle, but hopefully he feels better tomorrow. I give him credit for concediting that at-bat, so hopefully he got it treated up and feels better heading into tomorrow.”
So, even if Rojas is fired up, it looks like Game 4 against Tyler Mahle might see him riding the pine unless a lefty shows up for a pinch-hit situation. Roberts is playing it smart, waiting to see how that back actually feels. It’s all about getting that W and moving on, right?
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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