Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts held a press conference on July 2, 2026, confirming that Mookie Betts is expected to return to the lineup the following day after being held out due to wrist soreness, and announcing a roster move involving Charlie Barnes and Jervis.
Roberts said he learned of Betts's wrist issue at approximately 1:00 PM and the team attempted treatment before deciding to hold him out, with Miguel Rojas stepping in defensively. Roberts noted that Betts responded well: "He said with treatment he felt better, felt a lot of relief. So our expectation is tomorrow he'll be back in there."
On the roster move, Roberts stated the team will option Barnes and call up Jervis the following day to add a fresh arm before the four-game Padres series. He acknowledged the difficulty of delivering demotion news to a player, adding, "Unfortunately, I've had a lot of practice. And it's not a good conversation." Roberts explained that roster flexibility is a necessary part of managing depth: "A lot of these guys understand that there's stop gaps right now and that's part of having options."
Roberts praised Barnes for his seven-inning outing — the longest of Barnes's big-league career, according to Roberts — saying it preserved the bullpen heading into the series. Roberts also mentioned that Freddy was removed after the fifth inning to give him an abbreviated day, explaining, "You do have to take the long view at times, but it doesn't always feel good in the middle of it."
Roberts assessed the overall road trip positively, stating, "We played good baseball. I thought we pitched really well. We were fundamentally sound," and noted the team is in the midst of 13 consecutive wins. He framed the upcoming home stand against division rivals as a key opportunity, saying the goal is to "finish playing well going into the break."