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The Dodgers remain without several key players as the All-Star break approaches. Per a staff report at DodgerBlue, Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell, Will Smith, Edwin Díaz, and Kiké Hernández are all still sidelined, even as the club continues to pace the rest of baseball in wins this season. The team has recently welcomed back Tommy Edman, Teoscar Hernández, and Evan Phillips from the injured list, providing some reinforcement to a roster that has managed to thrive despite the absences.

Glasnow has been one of the Dodgers’ most important pitching acquisitions of the last two years. When healthy, he’s an elite arm — his fastball-slider combination is among the nastiest in the sport, and he showed that in flashes during his time with the Dodgers. His absence from the rotation has been significant, and his timeline for return remains one of the biggest questions hanging over the second half. Losing a pitcher of that caliber forces the front office to get creative, which they’ve done, but nothing truly replaces what Glasnow gives you when he’s right.

Snell, the former Cy Young winner, was brought in to provide exactly the kind of depth and upside that a contender needs deep into October. His injury has kept the Dodgers from deploying what would be a devastating rotation at full strength. When Snell is on, he can dominate entire lineups — we saw that during his historic stretches with San Diego and Tampa Bay. Getting him back healthy would be a massive boost, essentially functioning as a midseason acquisition without giving up any prospects.

Smith’s absence behind the plate has been felt both offensively and defensively. He’s been one of the better hitting catchers in the National League over the past several seasons, and his rapport with the pitching staff is something that doesn’t show up in a box score. Losing your everyday catcher is never easy, and the Dodgers have had to piece things together at the position during his time on the shelf.

Díaz, acquired to shore up the back end of the bullpen, hasn’t been able to fill that role yet due to his injury. His electric arm and closer pedigree were supposed to give the Dodgers a weapon they could deploy in high-leverage spots during the postseason. That plan is on hold until he’s healthy.

The good news: this team has proven it can win without these guys. The returns of Edman, Teoscar Hernández, and Phillips have helped stabilize things, and Phillips in particular looked sharp in his season debut (as we covered earlier this week). But the second half is where depth gets tested, and getting even two or three of these players back would transform an already deep roster into something truly imposing. We’re watching a team that’s built for October — the question is whether the pieces will all be in place when it matters most.

Source(s): Staff (DodgerBlue) | First reported: July 9, 2026 5:26 PM UTC

God Bless and Go Dodgers