Smith still dealing with neck discomfort, won't return until after the All-Star break

WEST SACRAMENTO -- With 11 games remaining for the Dodgers in the first half, manager Dave Roberts confirmed that catcher Will Smith is not expected back from the injured list until after the All-Star break.

Given how Smith's neck inflammation has persisted and not yet allowed him to resume baseball activities, it had already seemed unlikely that he would be back in action in the next week and a half.

"I just can't see any world where we would have him active before the All-Star break," Roberts said before Wednesday night's series finale at Sutter Health Park.

The surprise for the Dodgers is how long it has taken Smith to recover from the injury. He was scratched from the lineup with neck stiffness on June 6. He was considered day to day at the time, and the team was hopeful that he would avoid the IL. When he was placed on the IL on June 11, backdated three days, the belief was that he could be back after a minimum-length stint.

But Smith has continued to be limited by his neck injury. He received an injection to ease the discomfort during the Dodgers' previous homestand, which has not had the desired effect.

"I think there's some restriction as far as kind of the lateral, when he does kind of try to ramp it up. It's still some soreness, maybe a little bit of pain," Roberts said. "So we just haven't been able to get to the next step to push the baseball activity."

The Dodgers still believe there's no cause for long-term concern with Smith, even as the neck issue has lingered for nearly a month. They want to get him to a point where they can feel confident that he can start baseball activities without regressing, so they have been bringing him along slowly.

Still, no one expected Smith to be out for this long.

"It's certainly longer, I know, than all of us expected," Roberts said. "But I don't think it's anything real, affecting-the-season type thing."