Dave Roberts said on August 12, 2026 that the Los Angeles Dodgers "dodged a bullet" after Freddie Freeman suffered a scary fall that left him sore and will be evaluated day-to-day.
Roberts said Freeman was sore in his hand, knee, foot and shoulder following the fall, describing it as "just kind of total body soreness right now" and adding that it will be day-to-day. He noted that Freeman's left hand and left shoulder took the brunt of the impact, explaining that "the left hand uh the left shoulder kind of that's how he fell to sort of brace himself." Roberts said he received an update on Freeman's condition by text from Thomas. Tommy took the at-bat in Freeman's place during the game.
Asked whether the Dodgers would call up a player as a precaution, Roberts said, "No, I don't think so," adding that he would check on Freeman's status the following day.
Roberts praised Eric Lauer for recalibrating after a rough start and providing needed length with the bullpen mostly unavailable, noting that Landon Knack pitched in relief behind Lauer to cover much of the workload. He said Lauer threw the most pitches he has thrown for the Dodgers in the 2026 season. Roberts also noted that Knack, who had struggled during his time in the majors but pitched well in his last two Triple-A outings, will require the team to make a roster move, stating, "we're going to have to uh you know, make a move, but uh he he came up big for us."
Roberts previewed an upcoming four-game series, calling the opponent fundamentally sound and athletic and describing it as "a really good test for us." He noted the opponent was coming off losing three games to the Padres. Roberts also evaluated Shohei Ohtani's season, saying his stat line is good but that he gives away at-bats by being too pull-conscious instead of using the whole field, adding that Ohtani is on pace for about 36 home runs in 2026, roughly 20 fewer than in each of the last two seasons. Roberts additionally pointed to a baserunning mistake in the seventh inning, explaining that a player "just didn't have the awareness that uh, first base was unoccupied."
Roberts said he plans to check on Freeman's status the day after the press conference, with no roster move planned for Freeman's spot in the meantime.