It's been rough sledding for the Los Angeles Dodgers and the occupation of their catcher's spot. So much so that the Dodgers have called up catching prospect 26-year-old Eliezer Alfonzo Jr., from Triple-A Oklahoma City to back up Dalton Rushing, according to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. 

Alfonzo Jr. is slashing .313/.392/.422 in 49 games played for OKC. He is not on the Dodgers' 40-man roster at the moment, so Los Angeles will have to make an official move towards their roster to fit him in. 

Chuckie Robinson, who was initially called up to back up Rushing, will be optioned as the corresponding move. Robinson batted .086 in his short stint with Los Angeles (2-for-23). 

The Dodgers signed the 26-year-old, switch-hitting catcher from Venezuela to a minor-league contract in November 2025 that included an invite to Spring Training. 

In 15 Cactus League games, Alfonzo Jr. hit .250 (9-for-36). 

Since June 6, three-time All-Star Will Smith has been absent from the starting lineup with neck stiffness. Since then, it's been a never-ending cycle of unanswered uncertainty on how to build Smith back up to 100%.

Smith's lack of progress on his neck gave the Dodgers no other choice than to place him on the Injured List on June 11 (backdated to June 8) and the reins were handed off to Rushing. 

Despite their best efforts, skipper Dave Roberts told the media on July 1 that he does not expect Smith to return before the All-Star break. 

"It's certainly longer, I know, than all of us expected," Roberts told the media, according to Dodgers beat reporter Sonja Chen of MLB.com. "But I don't think it's anything real, affecting-the-season type thing." 

Though Roberts and Co. believe that Smith's prolonged neck injury is not a season de-railer, the notion to call up yet another catcher from the minors indicates that the Dodgers are prepared to remain without Smith for an even longer extended period of time. 

For most teams, being without their main anchor at catcher would be a difficult task to navigate through, especially with the All-Star break looming.

Fortunately, the Dodgers have some leeway, given that they have a 14-game lead over the San Diego Padres in the National League West Division and the rest of the West has a record under .500.

Don't miss out on our ROUNDTABLE community and the latest news!

It's completely free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.

Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!