Dodgers Outfielder Drilled by Line Drive in Pregame Warmups Before Nationals Game

Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Alex Call was on the unfortunate end of an errant line drive ahead of Saturday's game against the Washington Nationals.

The Dodgers were doing some on-field stretching a couple hours before Saturday's game while the Nationals were taking batting practice on the field.

Call was drilled by a line drive off the bat of Nationals infielder Brady House and went down in pain, per Jack Harris of the California Post. Call was hit in the upper chest area, per David Vassegh of AM570 radio.

It was a scary moment but Call was able to get up and was smiling afterwards, which is a great sign.

Man, as the Dodgers were doing their pregame stretches along the third base line just now, Alex Call got drilled by a ball from a Nationals hitter taking BP

Went down for a minute, but got up smiling & seems to be OK. He’s in the lineup for his first start of the season tonight
— Jack Harris (@ByJackHarris) April 4, 2026

Call is getting set for his first start of the season as he's batting ninth and playing left field with Teoscar Hernández on the bench.

Call said he's fine after the incident and will remain in the lineup for Saturday's game, per Vassegh.

Alex Call got hit by a batted ball during stretch in his upper chest area.

Former teammate Brady House was in the cage taking BP.

Call said he is fine and is remaining in starting lineup. #Dodgers
— David Vassegh (@THEREAL_DV) April 4, 2026

Call made his season debut on Friday night, entering the game as a defensive replacement in the bottom of the sixth inning. He got one plate appearance in the top of the ninth inning, drawing a walk and later scoring on a Shohei Ohtani sacrifice fly.

Call made the Dodgers' Opening Day roster as a fourth outfielder behind Hernández, Andy Pages and Kyle Tucker. He hadn't yet made an appearance in a game until Friday against the Nationals, his former team.

The Dodgers acquired Call from the Nationals ahead of last season's trade deadline in exchange for right-handed pitchers Eriq Swan and Sean Paul Liñan. Call had been with the Nationals since midway through the 2022 season.

Across 38 games with the Dodgers last season, Call hit .247 with two home runs, five runs batted in and an OPS of .717. He also appeared in seven postseason games, going 4-for-11 (.364) with an OPS of .897.

Call figured to get opportunities against left-handed pitching this year. However, with Tucker's ability to hit both right- and left-handed pitching, the Dodgers don't have any clear platoon for Call with Hernández and Pages both being righties.

Hernández is getting the day off on Saturday to get Call into the game. He'll likely get sporadic playing time as the Dodgers outfield is set barring any injuries.

Call will look to take advantage of his first real opportunity on Saturday against his former team with the right-handed Jake Irvin on the mound.

Alex Call Expected to Play on Sunday vs Nationals

Call is also expected to play on Sunday against the Nationals, giving him three straight days of playing time.

Tucker is scheduled to get the day off on Sunday against the left-handed Foster Griffin. It will be Tucker's first off-day of the season.

The Dodgers are traveling to Toronto after Sunday's game for a World Series rematch against the Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre. It should be a raucous environment, which makes this weekend a good time to get Tucker and Hernández off their feet.