Dodgers Veteran's Status for NLCS Roster Up in the Air Due to Injury

He's battling an injury.

Aug 12, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers two-way player Shohei Ohtani (17) celebrates with second baseman Miguel Rojas (72) after hitting a two run home run against the Kansas City Royals in the third inning at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Los Angeles Dodgers have not determined whether Miguel Rojas will be on their roster for the National League Championship Series after the veteran infielder injured his lower back in the NL Division Series against the Atlanta Braves.

Rojas was forced to leave Game 3 of the NLDS when he suffered the injury on a swing. He did not appear in the Dodgers' series-clinching win in Game 4. Two days before Game 1 against the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday, Rojas' back has not fully healed.

Manager Dave Roberts said Friday he was encouraged by what he saw from Rojas, but no decision will be made until Saturday at the earliest.

“See how he comes in [Saturday] for the workout” Roberts said on Friday. “I just think that there’s no upside in announcing it yet when we still have a plane flight. There’s another workout. There’s no deadline right now. … We have time to ultimately make that decision.”

Rojas, 37, played a valuable role for the Dodgers in 2026. Only Teoscar Hernandez had a better batting average than Rojas (.293) against left-handed pitchers in the regular season, among Dodgers with at least 20 at-bats.

Rojas struck out only 18 times against southpaws this year in 147 at-bats; Shohei Ohtani, by contrast, struck out 51 times in 179 at-bats against lefties.

The Brewers' best pitchers are right-handed. Robert Gasser, Aaron Ashby, DL Hall and Jojo Romero are not. In a high leverage situation against one of them, Rojas could be useful in a pinch — but only if he's healthy.

If Rojas can't go, the primary beneficiaries of his absence would be Kiké Hernández and Tommy Edman. One of the two will start at second base. Hernández, a right-handed hitter, is the logical choice if Gasser starts Game 3 or 4. Edman, a switch-hitter, could start Game 1 against Jacob Misiorowski or Game 2 against Logan Henderson

In Game 3 of the NLDS, Rojas drew the start with the left-handed Chris Sale on the mound for the Atlanta Braves. It was his second consecutive start after he got the nod in Game 2 with the lefty Ray Kerr opening a bullpen game. After going 1-for-1 against Kerr, Rojas was 0-for-3 in Game 3.

During the regular season, Rojas appeared in 105 games and hit .267 with a .703 OPS.

More than his bat, the Dodgers might be concerned with replacing his glove. Outfielder Alex Call and infielder Alex Freeland were left off the Dodgers' NLDS roster. Call is the most similar to Rojas as a hitter; Freeland would give the Dodgers an extra layer of infield defense.

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