You knew the moment you saw it that something was wrong … seriously wrong when Dodgers outfielder Andrew Toles remained down on the ground – on his back, no less – after making a valiant effort to preserve Dodgers phenom left-hander Julio Urias‘ no-hitter in the top of the seventh inning on Tuesday night. And even though Toles managed to walk off the field under his own power with trainers at his side and favoring his right knee, there was an uneasiness among the 47,720 on hand at Dodger Stadium and the hundreds of thousands of television viewers across the country hoping to witness history.

You could tell immediately that Toles landed awkwardly while trying to make a running catch to preserve Urias’ no-hitter. Although a very valiant and courageous effort, the Dodgers will now be without their extremely popular outfielder for the remainder of the season. (Photo credit – Josh Barber)

But late Wednesday afternoon the Dodgers reported that the results of an MRI on the soon-to-be 25-year-old (on May 24) Decatur, Georgia native revealed that he had torn the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee and would require season-ending surgery.

The devastating news prompted the Dodgers to immediately place Toles on the disabled list – presumably the 10-day DL for now but undoubtedly and eventually on the 60-day DL – along with left-hander Adam Liberatore (groin strain), whom they had just recalled on Monday. Toles and Liberatore were replaced on the Dodgers 25-man roster by outfielder / first baseman Scott Van Slyke and outfielder Brett Eibner, both of whom were recently optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told the media on Wednesday afternoon that the short-term plan is to move rookie sensation Cody Bellinger into left field to fill in for Toles and have Van Slyke and veteran second baseman Chase Utley fill in at first base until Dodgers regular first baseman Adrian Gonzalez returns form the DL himself for what is being called a mild disk herniation in his neck, a condition that has reportedly been troubling the 35-year-old / 14-year MLB veteran for quite some time.

Just last week Roberts told the media that they were in no hurry to rush Gonzalez back from the DL but acknowledged that the Toles injury now changes that plan significantly.

Roberts added that although there had been some discussions about calling up Dodgers top outfield prospect Alex Verdugo, those discussions were short-lived.

Stay tuned…