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Andy Pages fractured his left hand after being hit by a pitch in Friday night’s series opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates, per staff at Dodger Blue. Manager Dave Roberts confirmed the injury after the game, saying Pages “will be out for a while” and that the Dodgers expect to be without their center fielder for roughly four to five weeks.

This is a significant blow. Pages has established himself as the Dodgers’ everyday center fielder this season, earning that role through a combination of defensive versatility and an increasingly dangerous right-handed bat. He’s been a fixture in the lineup for months now, and his presence in center has allowed the Dodgers to deploy their outfield corners with flexibility. We already covered Pages exiting Friday’s walk-off win — now we know the full extent of the damage, and it’s worse than anyone hoped.

A four-to-five week timeline puts Pages’ return somewhere in the neighborhood of late September, right as the regular season winds down. That means he’ll miss most of the remaining schedule and will be racing to get back for the postseason. Hand fractures are tricky for hitters even after they heal — grip strength, bat speed, confidence against inside pitches — all of that takes time to come back. There’s a real question about whether Pages will be fully himself even if he does return before October.

The Dodgers now have a hole in center field that needs filling. Alex Call figures to see more playing time immediately, and Alek Thomas is down at Triple-A Oklahoma City and could be a candidate for a call-up if the front office wants a left-handed-hitting outfielder with center field experience. Tommy Edman has logged some time in center this year as well, though that pulls him away from his primary role. Enrique Hernández can play just about anywhere, but center field isn’t his strongest position at this point in his career.

There’s also the possibility the Dodgers look externally, though with the trade deadline long past, the waiver wire and free agent pool are thin. More likely, this gets handled internally — and the depth the front office has built into this roster is about to be tested in a real way.

I won’t sugarcoat it: losing Pages for a month-plus heading into September is a problem. He’s been one of our most consistent everyday players, and replacing his production and defense in center isn’t as simple as plugging in the next man up. The Dodgers have the roster depth to survive this, but “survive” is different from “not miss a beat.” We’ll feel this one.

Source(s): Staff (Dodger Blue) | First reported: August 22, 2026 6:25 AM UTC

God Bless and Go Dodgers