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Three Dodgers who advanced to Phase 2 of 2026 MLB All-Star Game voting — Mookie Betts, Teoscar Hernández, and Will Smith — did not make the final roster, per staff at Dodger Blue. All three had cases working against them: Hernández and Smith have each spent multiple weeks on the injured list this season, and Betts has dealt with a slow offensive start that made it difficult to justify a selection over healthier, more productive candidates.

Betts remains one of the most decorated players in baseball. The former MVP and multi-time All-Star came into 2026 with a résumé that speaks for itself — Gold Gloves, Silver Sluggers, a World Series ring with the Dodgers in 2020 and another in 2024. But production matters for All-Star voting, and Betts simply hasn’t hit at his usual clip this year. His early-season struggles at the plate — a topic we’ve discussed here several times — kept him from earning what would have been another well-deserved midsummer classic nod. When he’s right, he’s one of the five best players in baseball. He just hasn’t been fully right yet in 2026.

Hernández, who re-signed with the Dodgers after his strong 2024 campaign, has been electric when healthy this season. The problem is the “when healthy” part. His stint on the injured list cost him games and at-bats that voters and selection committees weigh heavily. When Hernández is in the lineup, he changes the complexion of our offense — he’s a legitimate middle-of-the-order threat with power to all fields and a knack for delivering in big moments. But availability matters, and the IL time worked against him here.

Smith’s absence from the roster is the least surprising of the three, given the timeline of his neck injury. He’s been working through a rehab progression that includes throwing and hitting — something we covered earlier this week — but he hasn’t been on the field contributing at the major league level for a stretch now. Smith is one of the best offensive catchers in the National League when healthy, a switch-hitter with pop who has developed into a complete player behind the plate. Missing this much time made an All-Star selection a long shot regardless of his talent level.

The Dodgers still landed five All-Star representatives this year — Andy Pages, Max Muncy, Freddie Freeman as starters, plus Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the pitching staff. That’s strong representation for any club. But I think the Betts omission stings the most in terms of what it says about where he’s been offensively. We need him to find his swing in the second half, full stop. Hernández and Smith missing is a product of circumstance more than performance — get them healthy and back in the lineup and nobody will be thinking about All-Star snubs come October. The roster is deep enough to absorb these absences right now, but the sooner all three are contributing at full strength, the better our chances of running away with this division look.

Source(s): Staff (Dodger Blue) | First reported: July 5, 2026 12:26 AM UTC

God Bless and Go Dodgers