Dalton Rushing had surgery Wednesday to repair a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. The Dodgers catcher was set to undergo an internal brace procedure, per MLB Trade Rumors, which cited Maddie Lee of the L.A. Times. MLB Trade Rumors reported that the procedure carries an approximate nine-month recovery window before Rushing can return to catching. Its summary says he would be cleared to do something sooner, but the feed text cuts off before it says what.

Yahoo Sports adds that the UCL tear came on top of a difficult year. Rushing filled in for an injured Will Smith and had two stints on the injured list with a flexor strain in his right forearm. Yahoo's second item says the surgery leaves his 2027 role unclear. It doesn't say what that role might be, and neither do the other outlets we have, so we won't guess.

Rushing's production when he played was solid. Our data has him hitting .246 with a .788 OPS, 12 home runs and 36 RBI in 80 games. That is a clear step up from 2025, when he hit .204 with four homers in 53 games. His 2026 slugging percentage was .460, and he struck out 74 times in 253 plate appearances. He last played on Sept. 27, so the elbow problem and the forearm issues limited him late in the year.

Yahoo compared his case with that of Shohei Ohtani, who avoided surgery after his injury-plagued 2026 season. Ohtani still hit 30 home runs with an .889 OPS in 139 games.

The club finished 100-62 and won the NL West. Our data shows them losing their last three games listed against Milwaukee: 7-4 at MIL on Oct. 12, then 6-2 and 6-4 on Oct. 14 and 15. The same data also lists a W3 streak, and those two entries conflict. We can't say from our archive where that leaves the Dodgers' season. Two scheduled games at Milwaukee, on Oct. 18 and 19, show as not started in the archive.

What comes next is Rushing's rehab. If the nine-month estimate holds, it would run well into the 2027 season before he can catch again. How the Dodgers cover the backup spot behind Smith is a question none of the reporting answers yet.