Speaker 1: The quest for the three peat has begun.
Speaker 2: Only four teams in Major League Baseball history have won
Speaker 2: three consecutive titles. The Dodgers are the favorites to become
Speaker 2: the fifth.
Speaker 1: A Spring Training Dodger.
Speaker 2: Talk, here we go again. We're Goeta running.
Speaker 1: Back, hosted by Dodgers and sider David Basset. Oh yea
Speaker 1: three peat in the Mexican in on the show called
Speaker 1: eight six six nine eighty seven two five seven, and
Speaker 1: be sure to follow Dodger Talk wherever you catch your podcasts.
Speaker 1: Here's your host, David Basset.
Speaker 2: Welcome to Dodger Talk David Bassey, Night three at camel
Speaker 2: Back Ranch in Glendale, Arizona. Our final Dodger Talk show
Speaker 2: this week, but we have four shows next week, so
Speaker 2: we got a lot, a lot of coverage for you
Speaker 2: from camel Back Ranch in Glendale, Arizona. As your back
Speaker 2: to back World Series champion Dodgers are getting set not
Speaker 2: only for a three peat, but also in the near
Speaker 2: future Game one of the Cactus League schedule, which is
Speaker 2: coming up on Saturday against the Angels and Tempe, Arizona.
Speaker 2: Our coverage begins at twelve thirty with first pitch between
Speaker 2: the Dodgers and Angels at one ten, and then on Sunday,
Speaker 2: Game two on the road again for the Dodgers. It
Speaker 2: will be the Padres and Dodgers hooking up for the
Speaker 2: first time this spring training, and our coverage begins at
Speaker 2: twelve thirty again with first pitch at one ten. Rick
Speaker 2: Monday and Tim Neverett will be on all the calls.
Speaker 2: They are the spring training voices. Every game will be
Speaker 2: heard on Sports and at LA, and we will have
Speaker 2: our fair share of games on a five to seventy
Speaker 2: LA Sports.
Speaker 3: So looking forward to that.
Speaker 2: Kicking it off on Saturday Dodgers and Angels from Tempe
Speaker 2: Arizona and Dave Roberts did say Yoshinobu Yamamoto will start
Speaker 2: this weekend. I'm starting to believe it's Saturday, and Yamamoto
Speaker 2: pitched to hitters for two innings yesterday, which means he
Speaker 2: probably is going to turn it up a notch to
Speaker 2: at least forty five pitches on Saturday. You could expect
Speaker 2: Yamamoto more than likely starting Saturday and show hey Otani
Speaker 2: is expected to make the trip to Tempe Arizona, his
Speaker 2: former spring training home with the Angels, and he will
Speaker 2: play Saturday, and Dave Roberts also said that Otani will
Speaker 2: play on Sunday. So those two guys getting ready not
Speaker 2: only for the season, but also for the World Baseball Classic.
Speaker 2: Otani will not be pitching for Team Japan, Yamamoto will be,
Speaker 2: but he's put in a lot of work this offseason
Speaker 2: and you just hope that, like I said last night,
Speaker 2: he keeps the guardrails on himself and is honest with
Speaker 2: his body. And of course sense YadA, who certainly helped
Speaker 2: Yamamoto push himself to the limits in Game seven of
Speaker 2: last year's World Series. Lot of local TV out here
Speaker 2: at camel Back Ranch today, there they go. They are
Speaker 2: the dynamic duo. They hold it down locally no matter
Speaker 2: where they go, with a lot of style right there,
Speaker 2: no doubt, my guy Kyle and Darren right there, Fox eleven,
Speaker 2: Kekel two, k CAL nine, CBS two whatever it is
Speaker 2: they're around, and Steve Brenner certainly helping out local TV.
Speaker 2: I wish I could get that kind of service right
Speaker 2: here on Dodgers Radio and five seventy LA Sports. But
Speaker 2: we have a great show for you tonight. Two young
Speaker 2: players that got a taste of the big leagues, and
Speaker 2: certainly are better prepared to be part of this Dodger
Speaker 2: team after getting their major league debuts last year. Dalton
Speaker 2: Rushing and Alex Freeland will join us tonight on Dodger
Speaker 2: Talk coming up at the bottom of the hour and
Speaker 2: all also Alex Called, but Trek Scooble will not be
Speaker 2: joining us tonight.
Speaker 3: No matter what the ping try to make you leave.
Speaker 2: Back in December, there goes another local TV guy, David Pingalore.
Speaker 3: Nice guy, nice guy.
Speaker 2: Maybe got a little little too loose with the Twitter
Speaker 2: in December. We love you Pingalore anyway. Alex Freeland and
Speaker 2: Alex Call will join us at the at the bottom
Speaker 2: of the hour, two guys that certainly are going to
Speaker 2: get another opportunity. Rushing will be on this squad. He
Speaker 2: will catch, He will play first base. Alex Freeland has
Speaker 2: a golden opportunity to even be the Dodgers opening day
Speaker 2: second basement with the injury to Tommy y Edman, who
Speaker 2: is not going to be ready for opening Day after
Speaker 2: undergoing right ankle surgery. Eight six six nine eight seven
Speaker 2: two five seventy is the phone number, David Vace say,
Speaker 2: Dodger Talk with you until eight o'clock right here on
Speaker 2: a five to seventy LA Sports And certainly another young
Speaker 2: player that everybody's keeping an eye on is James Tibbs,
Speaker 2: the Third. The Dodgers acquired him in the trade with
Speaker 2: the Red Sox last year, acquiring him from Boston for
Speaker 2: Dustin May. He was acquired from the Giants in the
Speaker 2: Rafael Devers trade. He's a Florida State kid, college player.
Speaker 2: And we'll hear from Andrew Friedman because we're going to
Speaker 2: dedicate the bottom of the hour to some of the
Speaker 2: young players that you all care about, we care about,
Speaker 2: and the Dodgers are going to need to get through
Speaker 2: one hundred and sixty two games and you never know
Speaker 2: who could contribute in a postseason or even World Series game.
Speaker 2: So we will hear from Andrew Freeman. When it comes
Speaker 2: to the Dodgers' young outfield prospects. You will hear from
Speaker 2: young Dalton Rushing and Alex Freeland at the bottom of
Speaker 2: the hour, and coming up in our next segment, you
Speaker 2: will hear from Alex call who was acquired at the
Speaker 2: trade deadline last year and even got to start a
Speaker 2: couple of World Series games. Certainly is very excited to
Speaker 2: have made the change from the Nationals who were at
Speaker 2: the bottom of the NLS to eventual back to back
Speaker 2: World Series champion Dodgers.
Speaker 3: But before we get to all that, you heard from.
Speaker 2: Blake Trinan, the thirty seven year old veteran reliever for
Speaker 2: the Dodgers who pushed himself to the limits in Game
Speaker 2: five of the World Series and the entire twenty twenty
Speaker 2: four postseason. And if you remember last year, it was
Speaker 2: a lot of Dodger starters that were starting to come
Speaker 2: out of the bullpen for the Dodgers, and in twenty
Speaker 2: twenty four, on the way to the World Championship, it
Speaker 2: was the Dodger Dogs, aka the Dodger relievers that played
Speaker 2: a huge part for the Dodgers' run to the World
Speaker 2: Series against the Yankees. And Blake Trining was one of
Speaker 2: those bullpen dogs that pushed himself to the limits in
Speaker 2: twenty twenty four. And there obviously is going to be
Speaker 2: a residual effect in twenty twenty five. And Blake Trining
Speaker 2: seemed to battle through all those things and found a
Speaker 2: way to even pitch in postseason games. And you heard
Speaker 2: from Blake He admitted the other night that his arm slot,
Speaker 2: his body wasn't feeling as great as it was feeling
Speaker 2: a couple of years ago. And Dave Roberts said this
Speaker 2: morning that he is very encouraged about where he sees
Speaker 2: Blake tryning in twenty twenty six Latin Tank.
Speaker 4: I know that the age is one thing, but you know,
Speaker 4: for me, it's what I see and what the ball's doing.
Speaker 4: And he's healthy again. He's throwing the base all the
Speaker 4: ball's coming out really well. So I don't think it
Speaker 4: really for me, I don't care about the age. The
Speaker 4: body's moving well. He's still strong. And I saw Penn
Speaker 4: a couple of days ago and a few days ago,
Speaker 4: and yesterday it's as good as I seen him for
Speaker 4: the baseball in a while.
Speaker 2: How much can you lean on him? Is it the
Speaker 2: same type of high leverage situations or given everything that
Speaker 2: he's gone through and done is a different Yeah.
Speaker 4: I think that I certainly trust him. It's going to
Speaker 4: be high level. How much we lean on him, that's
Speaker 4: kind of, you know, depending on how he's feeling and
Speaker 4: who else we have around him and how they're throwing
Speaker 4: the baseball. But right now he's a full participant and
Speaker 4: he's throwing the baseball well.
Speaker 2: Feels good.
Speaker 4: And we'll go from there.
Speaker 2: Trinin has come into camp looking a lot more slimmer.
Speaker 2: He said that his arm slot he want to get
Speaker 2: into too many details, is in a better spot than
Speaker 2: it was last year all last year, and the action
Speaker 2: on his sweeper and his fastball, according to Dave Roberts,
Speaker 2: is in That's quite a statement by Dave that he
Speaker 2: hasn't seen Blake trying to throw the ball this well
Speaker 2: in quite some time, so that's very encouraging. Also the
Speaker 2: Morning Report with Dave Roberts, we tackled Mookie Betts, who
Speaker 2: had his worst offensive season last year with the Dodgers,
Speaker 2: and the way it's going to stack up. As far
Speaker 2: as the Dodgers' batting order, it seems like Dave Roberts
Speaker 2: is going with Shoho Tani leading off, of course, Kyle
Speaker 2: Tucker hitting second, Freddie Freeman hitting cleanup, and Mookie Betts
Speaker 2: hitting third.
Speaker 4: Yes, last year started off certainly different with kind of
Speaker 4: you know, when we were in Tokyo and how he
Speaker 4: was feeling and the weight loss and all that stuff.
Speaker 4: I think he had a great offseason. He's in a
Speaker 4: good headspace, the body's good, and I think for me,
Speaker 4: it's just getting back to being who he is. And
Speaker 4: I just think that last year was an outlier offensive season.
Speaker 4: And I'm not too concerned about Mookie at all the
Speaker 4: way he played shortstop last year, expecting him to get better,
Speaker 4: be better offensively this year. He will be in the
Speaker 4: MVP conversation this year. But again, I think speaking for Mookie,
Speaker 4: his main goal is to help us win a championship,
Speaker 4: so I think whatever falls out from there, I think that.
Speaker 2: Will happen.
Speaker 4: So I just want him to focus on just being healthy,
Speaker 4: helping us win, and then whatever happens outside of that
Speaker 4: will happen.
Speaker 2: How much do you think hitting between Tucker and Freddie
Speaker 2: at times is going to help him and whatever he
Speaker 2: sees and what changes from hitting lead off to second
Speaker 2: to guy hitting third between and behind those guys.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I think you know, lead off. I feel good
Speaker 4: with our leadoff hitter right now. I think for Mooky
Speaker 4: in particular, being lead off the mindset of getting on
Speaker 4: base versus hitting behind Showhy and the number two. I
Speaker 4: like him in the number three in the sense that
Speaker 4: I feel that there's an on base component, there's a
Speaker 4: get hits component, there's a drive and run component, and
Speaker 4: you're more of a Swiss Army knife in a lineup,
Speaker 4: so you know, I'm not beholden to it, but I
Speaker 4: like him in the three hole right now.
Speaker 2: I like the way Dave Roberts put that a Swiss
Speaker 2: army knife. That's what a number three hitter traditionally is
Speaker 2: a guy that can hit with power, get on base,
Speaker 2: and even steal some bases. And hopefully the Dodgers get
Speaker 2: that type a Swiss Army knife from their three spot,
Speaker 2: because you need a right handed hitter to be able
Speaker 2: to break up the string of lefties, those superstar lefties.
Speaker 2: But the thing is the reason why Kyle Tucker makes
Speaker 2: so much sense hitting second and Mooki hitting third. Tucker
Speaker 2: is a really good hitter against left handed pitching. He
Speaker 2: and Cody Bellinger were two of the best left handed
Speaker 2: hitters against against left handed pitching. And that's what you
Speaker 2: need hitting behind sho Hey Otani. You need a hitter,
Speaker 2: whether he's right or left, that can do damage against
Speaker 2: left handed pitching to protect Otani because you know that
Speaker 2: that rule that's in place now where a pitcher has
Speaker 2: to come in to face three batters, well, a manager
Speaker 2: is going to bring in a lefty to not only
Speaker 2: face Otani, but also try to get out the guy
Speaker 2: behind him. And if you have that type of protection,
Speaker 2: whether it's Tucker from the left side or Mookie Bets
Speaker 2: from the right side, you need it. And that's why
Speaker 2: Mooki Betts is so important as a right handed hitter
Speaker 2: to hit between Otani, Tucker and Freeman. So that's the
Speaker 2: latest from Dodger camp. It should be a bounce back year.
Speaker 2: Mookie Beds seems to have a look in determination about
Speaker 2: him since he arrived here yesterday or a couple of
Speaker 2: days ago to try to prove a lot of critics
Speaker 2: wrong that heading into his age thirty three season that
Speaker 2: last year was an aberration, and he's all about winning.
Speaker 2: He wants to win World Series championships. He has told
Speaker 2: teammates that as long as we play for each other,
Speaker 2: that's all that matters. And he certainly has done everything
Speaker 2: that Dodgers have asked of him, including moving from right
Speaker 2: field to second base to shortstop, and he's finally found
Speaker 2: a home there. That's where he's going to play, and
Speaker 2: he was a finalist for the Gold Glove at that
Speaker 2: position last year. Now the offense can take center focus.
Speaker 2: Hitting third in the Dodger lineup on opening day. When
Speaker 2: we continue from campbel Back Ranch in Glendale, Arizona, we
Speaker 2: will hear from Alex Call, who went from the last
Speaker 2: place Nationals at the trade deadline last year to become
Speaker 2: a World Series champion with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Alex
Speaker 2: Call will be our guest in his first full spring
Speaker 2: training with the Dodgers right here on a five to
Speaker 2: seventy LA Sports with you until eight o'clock. And you
Speaker 2: never know who you may see at Felix Chevrolet. It
Speaker 2: may be David Vase or it could be our guest
Speaker 2: Dodger outfielder Alex Call. Alex, thanks a lot for the time,
Speaker 2: appreciate it.
Speaker 5: Yeah, of course, always anytime.
Speaker 2: Hey, you're you and Felix the Cat gonna be driving
Speaker 2: down Figaroa together.
Speaker 5: Yeah, we're besties now, no doubt.
Speaker 2: Alex. We talked about this at fan Fest, your first
Speaker 2: spring training with the Dodgers.
Speaker 3: They have a new hitting lab that is brand new.
Speaker 2: What's it been like for you to be settled in
Speaker 2: now as a world champion and starting the year with
Speaker 2: the team.
Speaker 6: Yeah, it's it's awesome. I love being back in Arizona
Speaker 6: for spring training. I love being with the guys from
Speaker 6: the start, just get a feel for how they operate
Speaker 6: things over here in spring and going throughout the season.
Speaker 6: And yeah, everybody's excited. It's great to be back.
Speaker 5: We're feeling good and yeah, ready to go.
Speaker 2: Can you describe the feeling having your feet set with
Speaker 2: this team in particular, but coming over in the trade,
Speaker 2: but now having a chance to get through a full
Speaker 2: baseball season routine with the same guys and kind of
Speaker 2: the same program.
Speaker 6: Yeah, it's really a blessing coming to this organization in
Speaker 6: a million different ways. But to have just you know,
Speaker 6: wearing the Dodgers on your chest, we're in La on
Speaker 6: your chests, it's pretty special. And the way we operate
Speaker 6: around here, it's just a little bit different. Everything is
Speaker 6: just a little bit more one notch up you could say,
Speaker 6: and you know you can tell, and it's contagious amongst
Speaker 6: the guys, so there's no mistake. Why you know, we're
Speaker 6: back to back champs and going for a third.
Speaker 2: When you look around this clubhouse, everybody seems to have
Speaker 2: come ready for day one of spring training, and guys
Speaker 2: have been working all off season, including yourself, to be
Speaker 2: ready to go day one. What message does that send
Speaker 2: to each other.
Speaker 6: Yeah, I mean I think everybody knows that they we care.
Speaker 6: We care about what's going on, we care about, you know,
Speaker 6: running this thing back for a third time. And uh,
Speaker 6: you don't really get that opportunity very often in sports,
Speaker 6: and so we all know that it's a special task
Speaker 6: that we can do together. And you know, at the
Speaker 6: same time, you know you have to be smart with
Speaker 6: your off season. It's like, we enjoyed it, we took
Speaker 6: some time off, but then hey, this is what.
Speaker 5: We love to do.
Speaker 6: We're gonna get back in the gym, we get back
Speaker 6: in the cage, and we're gonna work what we need
Speaker 6: to do and have full focus for this year.
Speaker 2: Alex call Us our guest on Dodger Talk. Alex, when
Speaker 2: you say all those things, I would imagine last year
Speaker 2: for you was the deepest you played baseball, at least professionally.
Speaker 2: What was that like?
Speaker 6: It was awesome. I mean, that's exactly what you want.
Speaker 6: I've been enjoying the postseason from home. You know, I
Speaker 6: love baseball, so to be in it, to have your
Speaker 6: to be in the thick of things, to have your
Speaker 6: name in the lineup card in the World Series, it's
Speaker 6: I mean, it's an unbelievable experience, so much fun, a
Speaker 6: dream come true, and it's what it's all about.
Speaker 2: You know.
Speaker 6: We love baseball, we love the grind of one hundred
Speaker 6: and sixty two games, but when you get to the postseason,
Speaker 6: that's what matters. That's where the chips are all on
Speaker 6: the table and win or go home. So we want
Speaker 6: it all and there's no greater feeling.
Speaker 2: Have you watched replays or moments of Game six and
Speaker 2: Game seven?
Speaker 6: You know, intermitutely, I've actually not watched as much as
Speaker 6: I thought I would, So it's almost like I'm I'm
Speaker 6: saving it for like when i have a little bit
Speaker 6: of time to decompress.
Speaker 5: You know, our hearts is a little bit.
Speaker 6: Hectic right now with the addition of this the second
Speaker 6: girl to go along with our oldest son. So I'm
Speaker 6: kind of saving it for a time when I can
Speaker 6: really soak it in and enjoy it. When I asked
Speaker 6: some time to myself, maybe on the road this year,
Speaker 6: I'll uh, I'll bring out some of the old footage
Speaker 6: and reminisce on it.
Speaker 2: Your lockers right next to Andy Pohes, I asked him
Speaker 2: today how many times has he watched the replay of
Speaker 2: the catch of him and key K kind of colliding,
Speaker 2: and he said, he admitted a few times.
Speaker 3: Have you talked to him about that?
Speaker 6: Yeah, just in brief today we were talking about it.
Speaker 6: I was telling him like I wasn't even looking at Andy,
Speaker 6: Like I was looking at Kik the whole way. His
Speaker 6: back was turned and I'm like, oh no, that is
Speaker 6: not a high probability of a catch. And then here
Speaker 6: comes Andy, So I wasn't I told him, I was like,
Speaker 6: I wasn't even looking at you. But he just put
Speaker 6: his head down, went and got the ball.
Speaker 2: You know, one thing that he mentioned was he can't
Speaker 2: believe how much ground he covered to get to make
Speaker 2: that catch. Is that one thing that isn't talked about enough.
Speaker 2: We're talking about key K and how he may have
Speaker 2: had a beat on it, but nobody's really talking about
Speaker 2: how much ground PAHZ had to cover.
Speaker 5: Yeah, I mean, just a credit to Andy.
Speaker 6: And we were also talking about how you go in
Speaker 6: the game, the ball finds you, you know, no matter what,
Speaker 6: just like it's a baseball ism, but it almost feels.
Speaker 2: Like it's true.
Speaker 6: And we were like wondering, what would the actual numbers
Speaker 6: be if he tried to calculate it out and and
Speaker 6: he was ready. He went in there, he put his
Speaker 6: head down, he had to cover all that ground. It's
Speaker 6: it was an amazing play and boy, we were all nervous,
Speaker 6: but he made it.
Speaker 2: Everybody talks about the guy that told me to get
Speaker 2: out Miguel Rojas's home run. But the one play that
Speaker 2: I feel like I bring myself to the most is
Speaker 2: the play, the incredible play that he and Will Smith
Speaker 2: made in the ninth inning of Game seven.
Speaker 6: Yeah, I was like freaking out because the balls hit
Speaker 6: to Miggy. He's like falling down and I'm like, maybe
Speaker 6: get up, get up, Like if you don't get.
Speaker 2: Up, we lose.
Speaker 5: Like get up, this is it.
Speaker 6: And you know he had his balance and he threw
Speaker 6: a strike and then it was like, oh no, like
Speaker 6: he's out. But the replay looks kind of fifty to fifty,
Speaker 6: like is Will's foot actually on the player or not?
Speaker 6: So again you had to live through another freak out
Speaker 6: session and you know they held the play up confirmed
Speaker 6: and you know we went on to win.
Speaker 5: So just absolutely crazy play. Amazing job at Mickey ro Alex.
Speaker 2: Before I let you go you're a guy that has
Speaker 2: attention to detail baseball IQ. Before I let you go,
Speaker 2: how many push ups do you think I could do?
Speaker 6: Alex call ohh, I mean looking pretty good, So I'll
Speaker 6: go with at least thirty.
Speaker 2: Okay, thirty, Thank you, I appreciate it.
Speaker 5: Let's go thirty. Got you gotta show it up now?
Speaker 2: All right, all right, I'll do my best by June.
Speaker 2: All right, since Rojas is drifted away, you're a guy
Speaker 2: that has high baseball IQ. Talking about that play at
Speaker 2: the plate as a base runner, how important is it
Speaker 2: to have the greatest of leads in those situations? Just
Speaker 2: in general? That's an important part.
Speaker 6: Of the game certainly, And I think there's a lot
Speaker 6: of things that go into because there's one out right there, right, yeah,
Speaker 6: And so you don't want to get doubled off as
Speaker 6: a base runner with one out in that situation. So
Speaker 6: I don't know what the third base coach was telling him,
Speaker 6: but certainly you want to try to take every single
Speaker 6: step that you can, and the situation is gonna dig
Speaker 6: to I mean, you're ninety feet away from the World Series.
Speaker 6: It's tough to not be like itching and clawing for
Speaker 6: every single inch.
Speaker 5: And foot that you can get.
Speaker 6: But yeah, the attention, that's what's so beautiful about our games.
Speaker 6: It comes down to those types of things, and praise God.
Speaker 6: But came out on our side in that one.
Speaker 2: Hey, congratulations on being part of a great team and
Speaker 2: a great group of guys, even though they definitely don't
Speaker 2: believe in how many pushups I can do and definitely
Speaker 2: do not want me around. So thank you for the
Speaker 2: time Alex called. Yeah, thanks Dave, there it goes. Alex
Speaker 2: Call has been our guest. Great to have him in
Speaker 2: Dodger camp his first full season with the Dodgers after
Speaker 2: being traded from the Nationals to the Dodgers. I remember
Speaker 2: exactly where the Dodgers were when Alex Call arrived. It
Speaker 2: was in that sweltering, huge mid heat at the Yankee
Speaker 2: Spring training Stadium where the Rays were playing last year.
Speaker 2: So that was Alex Call's introduction to the Dodgers. But
Speaker 2: he certainly is a guy that embraces the technology the
Speaker 2: Dodgers used to make their hitters better, and everything's at
Speaker 2: his fingertips. And I was even watching him take live
Speaker 2: betting practice today and it was remarkable that his approach
Speaker 2: is exactly the same approach that he has in the
Speaker 2: game and why the Dodgers were so attracted to acquire
Speaker 2: him to be a fourth or fifth outfielder. He even
Speaker 2: in live betting practice, makes the opposing pitcher throw a
Speaker 2: lot of pitches and is very selective, so he is
Speaker 2: practicing as he plays. So that was impressive to see
Speaker 2: from Alex Call. And he certainly understands his role, embraces
Speaker 2: his role, and loves being a Dodger. How could you
Speaker 2: not knowing what it's like to lose year after year
Speaker 2: with the Washington Nationals at this point and then being
Speaker 2: traded to a team like the Dodgers that had a
Speaker 2: World championship season and now is looking for a three peat.
Speaker 2: So thank you to Alex Call and Miguel Rojas always
Speaker 2: seems to be there, and it feels like the pushup
Speaker 2: challenge is going to follow me all spring training long,
Speaker 2: and maybe even blake'snew When we continue from Camel Back
Speaker 2: Ranch in Glendale, Arizona, we got Dodger talk for you
Speaker 2: all the way up until eight o'clock, and we are
Speaker 2: going to hear from two of the young guys that
Speaker 2: got their first taste of big league action last year.
Speaker 2: Had some good moments, had some highs, had some lows,
Speaker 2: and had a lot of growth and they're going to
Speaker 2: be a big part of the Dodgers this year. Dalton
Speaker 2: Rushing and Alex Friedland will join us. Plus you'll hear
Speaker 2: from Andrew Freeman about the Dodgers young outfield prospects that
Speaker 2: are emerging quicker than you may expect. So a lot
Speaker 2: to get to in regards to the next wave of
Speaker 2: Dodger talented players. Continue from Camelback Ranch right here on
Speaker 2: a five to seventy LA Sports.
Speaker 3: This is Dodger Talk, David.
Speaker 2: Vase with you until eight o'clock. Thanks a lot to
Speaker 2: Alex call for taking the time out. There's a lot
Speaker 2: of media out here following the Dodgers, so the time
Speaker 2: that we get with these guys in spring training is
Speaker 2: certainly appreciated. And coming up in a moment, you'll hear
Speaker 2: from Dalton Rushing and Alex Freeland. Not to mention Andrew
Speaker 2: Friedman on the next wave of Dodger outfielders that may
Speaker 2: emerge even as soon as this season. Eight six six nine,
Speaker 2: eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. We
Speaker 2: have Dodgers Spring Training action for you this Saturday, the
Speaker 2: Dodgers will open up the Cactus League against the Angels.
Speaker 2: Our coverage begins at twelve thirty, first pitch at one ten,
Speaker 2: and it is expected that Yamamoto will start that game
Speaker 2: for the Dodgers against the Angels in Tempe Arizona, and
Speaker 2: Shoho Tani will be leading off and dhing for the
Speaker 2: Dodgers in Tempe Arizona against his former team. Now, don't
Speaker 2: be alarmed when you don't see Freddie Freeman or Mookie
Speaker 2: Bets or Max Muncy and the Dodgers starting lineup this
Speaker 2: weekend against the Angels and the Padres. Dave Roberts said,
Speaker 2: there is no injury issues. We have seen those guys
Speaker 2: out here going back to the beginning of the week
Speaker 2: taking batting practice, participating in life batting practice as well,
Speaker 2: but are going to slow play when they get into games.
Speaker 2: These are veteran guys. Muncie is thirty five, Freddie Freeman
Speaker 2: is thirty six, Mookie Betts is thirty two going on
Speaker 2: thirty three. They have played back to back World Series championships,
Speaker 2: so no need to force these guys into lineups early
Speaker 2: in spring, which means the Dodgers are going to give
Speaker 2: a lot of their young players some opportunities to leave
Speaker 2: an impression and in the case of Dalton Rushing, get
Speaker 2: a lot reps behind Will Smith, who is going to
Speaker 2: leave for the World Baseball Classic as part of Team
Speaker 2: USA's team, but also get some time at first base
Speaker 2: to give Freddie Freeman days off, and also early on,
Speaker 2: you know, get him off his feet and not start
Speaker 2: into game. So Dalton Rushing is going to have a
Speaker 2: runway to get a rhythm for his season, and it
Speaker 2: feels like he has a better understanding of what to
Speaker 2: expect and what is expected of him from the Dodgers.
Speaker 2: Here's our conversation with the very gregarious Dalton Rushing Rush.
Speaker 2: Great to see you, and man, you got a real legit,
Speaker 2: big league locker, a guy that has made, the guy
Speaker 2: that has arrived.
Speaker 7: Yeah, it's good to be here. Good to see you,
Speaker 7: David missed you. I don't like your nipples as much
Speaker 7: as Kik, but it's good to see you and looking
Speaker 7: forward to another World Series.
Speaker 2: I wore a jacket. A fan came up to him.
Speaker 2: He asked me about my nipples. I said, hey, I
Speaker 2: got to cover up in the spring. Yeah, it's cold
Speaker 2: out here. Early in the morning.
Speaker 7: Isn't it, David and I like that la Weather.
Speaker 2: Oh no, no, Hey. I could definitely feel the vibe,
Speaker 2: the energy from you. You are so excited to get
Speaker 2: this season going. What's it like to have the faith,
Speaker 2: the backup of the organization to believe in what you
Speaker 2: can do for them this year?
Speaker 7: Yeah, I think I think that's the difference.
Speaker 2: This year.
Speaker 7: I got a feel of what the big moments kind
Speaker 7: of feel like. There at the end of the year.
Speaker 7: I had a couple of big moments, and being able
Speaker 7: to know what it feels like in that moment is
Speaker 7: kind of the reason you want to get back out there.
Speaker 7: The grind of a full season, the ups, the downs.
Speaker 7: Obviously you look back at last year was a lot
Speaker 7: of things that I could look on a downside, But
Speaker 7: I personally think that I learned a lot through those
Speaker 7: tough times, wherever stretch it was in the year. And
Speaker 7: I think that's what excites me this year is because
Speaker 7: it's one thing throughout my whole career. It's if I
Speaker 7: have a down year, down month, whatever it is, I
Speaker 7: bounce back really well.
Speaker 2: It wasn't a normal year. I would imagine since high school,
Speaker 2: you've played every day, you've been the guy, knowing the role,
Speaker 2: knowing how to prepare yourself for the role. Do you
Speaker 2: feel like it is giving you a head start coming
Speaker 2: into this season.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I think it's given me a head start. And
Speaker 7: I think the other side to that is I'm gonna
Speaker 7: be able to show the production at an early time,
Speaker 7: show what I can do, the difference I can make
Speaker 7: in the box. And then I think that you kind
Speaker 7: of you push all your chips to the middle of
Speaker 7: the table there. And I've said it in the past,
Speaker 7: I don't care where I play, what my role is,
Speaker 7: as long as I play baseball. And that's I think
Speaker 7: that's what I'm most excited about this year is I
Speaker 7: can really focus on, hey, how many games can this
Speaker 7: team win? But also how many games can I get
Speaker 7: on the field and help this team win.
Speaker 2: What did you learn about when you do get those
Speaker 2: opportunities after you know, backing up or getting a spot start,
Speaker 2: what did you learn how to approach your at bats.
Speaker 7: I've learned that situational hitting is your best friend, and
Speaker 7: those those situations, learning how to control the baseball, know
Speaker 7: where to hit the baseball and what situation and that
Speaker 7: produces runs for your team. And I think if we
Speaker 7: can do that from a one to nine standpoint, it
Speaker 7: doesn't matter if you're an everyday player or if you
Speaker 7: play once a week, then we're gonna win a lot
Speaker 7: of baseball games. So we're gonna have a lot of fun.
Speaker 2: I know you're a catcher at heart, and obviously you
Speaker 2: are a catcher on this Spall club. But also we
Speaker 2: talked about this first base maybe in your future to
Speaker 2: get Freddie days off. I don't see a first basement's
Speaker 2: glove in your locker there, it's in there.
Speaker 7: No, it's I've always wanted to keep that in my
Speaker 7: back pocket, regardless of where I'm at. And obviously, due
Speaker 7: to circumstances this year, if Freddie needs a day halfway
Speaker 7: through the year, if Freddie needs a day in the
Speaker 7: first month, whatever it is, I need to be that
Speaker 7: guy that they can kind of lean on to still
Speaker 7: have a left handed bat in the lineup and give
Speaker 7: Freddie's time off.
Speaker 2: So have you taken any ground balls and work with
Speaker 2: some infielders there yet?
Speaker 7: Yeah, I've done some infield work. I try and just
Speaker 7: kind of incorporate it and the routine as much as possible,
Speaker 7: so it kind of fills second nature. And just like, hey,
Speaker 7: give me the glove, I'll go play it. And I
Speaker 7: actually had some a lot of experience in college there
Speaker 7: and early on in pro ball, so I've I've kind
Speaker 7: of got a little bit of a background in first base,
Speaker 7: but obviously I want to excel and grow as much
Speaker 7: as possible to be a guy like Freddy. You know,
Speaker 7: it's pretty cool.
Speaker 2: Dalton Rushing is our guest. He has arrived. He's gonna
Speaker 2: be a big part of the Dodgers three peete attempt
Speaker 2: in twenty twenty six. All right, let's put the catcher's
Speaker 2: gear back on. I've heard so much about Gavin Stone
Speaker 2: and River Ryan. Have you had a chance to catch
Speaker 2: any one of those guys so far? Early on?
Speaker 7: Yeah, I've got to catch both. And uh, man, do
Speaker 7: we have a lot of pictures. It's uh, not only
Speaker 7: a lot of pitchers. We have a lot of pictures
Speaker 7: that can pitch for a really long time in this game.
Speaker 7: And I think that's the beauty of what this organization does.
Speaker 7: It builds it top to bottom. The strongest organization in baseball,
Speaker 7: strongest organization in sports. And yeah, they've both they've both
Speaker 7: looked fantastic. I mean, River explosive stuff. He's disgusting, He's
Speaker 7: around the zone, he establishes the strike zone early, and
Speaker 7: it's it's almost everything you could ask for out of
Speaker 7: a pitcher. And Gavin as well. I mean, Gavin's got
Speaker 7: three plus pitches and the pitch ability is really there.
Speaker 7: He knows how to control the baseball. He knows how
Speaker 7: to control the game. And I think that's what I'm
Speaker 7: most excited to work with between the two of them,
Speaker 7: is their ability to know how to control the baseball
Speaker 7: and really navigate through seven innings.
Speaker 2: What's the difference for you catching bullpens for guys like
Speaker 2: that that are coming back trying to prove that they
Speaker 2: are back, compared to catching a bullpen for a glass
Speaker 2: Now or a Yamamoto.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I think these some of these guys coming off injury.
Speaker 7: It's our job to one like, really make sure that
Speaker 7: one the throws clean, everything's coming out smooth. But at
Speaker 7: the same time, we need to we need to incorporate
Speaker 7: a little bit of the competitive edge. We need to
Speaker 7: we need to get these guys filling like they're throwing
Speaker 7: In the fifth, sixth, seventh inning of a game in
Speaker 7: Dodger Stadium against Diamondbacks, the padres like, we have to
Speaker 7: make them feel his game ready with all the nerves
Speaker 7: and everything is possible before the season hits, because obviously
Speaker 7: it's gonna be a little bit of a different fill
Speaker 7: with fifty thousand there.
Speaker 2: Hey, speaking of edge, you got edge. You got a
Speaker 2: lot of emotion when you play. Have you learned how
Speaker 2: to play with that and how to control it at
Speaker 2: times when you need to? Yeah?
Speaker 7: I think I think last year I learned quick it's
Speaker 7: you control it as much as you can, but you
Speaker 7: don't lose it. Some of the best players I've ever watched,
Speaker 7: some of the best players that I get to play
Speaker 7: with every single day here, they hold this internal smoke,
Speaker 7: this internal heat that they know how to use it.
Speaker 7: They know when to use it and when the time
Speaker 7: is to use it. And I think me being the
Speaker 7: younger guy on the team and being able to see
Speaker 7: the other guys and how they go about their business.
Speaker 7: There's a time and a place to show emotion, There's
Speaker 7: a time and a place to say nothing. And I
Speaker 7: think that's what I'm most excited about this year, is
Speaker 7: to be able to show everyone the maturity and be
Speaker 7: the guy that can run the field from behind the play.
Speaker 2: Dalton Russian's got the entire package. First day ever talked
Speaker 2: to him, understood the pitcher catcher relationship. He's got edge,
Speaker 2: he wants to compete, he wants to win, and certainly
Speaker 2: the time is now. Thanks a lot for the time.
Speaker 2: Great to see you, smile, perfect, thanks David, Good to
Speaker 2: see you there. He is the man, Dalton Rushing and
Speaker 2: here it is. Oh, usually that doesn't happen that quick.
Speaker 2: What a handshake.
Speaker 3: Love talking to Dalton Rushing. I expect him.
Speaker 2: To have a really good sophomore season. He has a
Speaker 2: greater understanding of the role. Going back to the conversation
Speaker 2: we just had with him, he has never not been
Speaker 2: the guy, and it's taken some adjustment for him to
Speaker 2: understand what the Dodgers need from him. And it feels
Speaker 2: like he and Alex Friedland have a greater understanding of
Speaker 2: what it's going to take to help this veteran team
Speaker 2: throughout the one hundred and sixty two game season and
Speaker 2: also what is expected of them in that clubhouse as
Speaker 2: far as preparation and just the approach day in and
Speaker 2: day out. Alex Friedland got a huge lesson in the
Speaker 2: Big leagues last year, he had his opportunity. He got
Speaker 2: an opportunity basically to play for a month straight. It
Speaker 2: just seemed like the games sped up on him. And
Speaker 2: that's what Dave Roberts said. But everybody has noticed a
Speaker 2: much more mature Alex Freeland this season. And even Freeland
Speaker 2: is carrying himself better this spring. I shouldn't say better,
Speaker 2: but carrying himself more like a big leaguer this spring.
Speaker 2: And I had a chance to catch up with Alex
Speaker 2: Freeland earlier today. All right, I'm joined right now by
Speaker 2: a man that burst onto the scene last year with
Speaker 2: the Dodgers. He may not have the mullet, but he's
Speaker 2: still got the same edge and is still a baseball junkie.
Speaker 2: That's the one and only Alex Freeland. Great to see you,
Speaker 2: and I didn't recognize you. No more mullet.
Speaker 3: You got a beard, A new man in spring training.
Speaker 8: Yeah, man, it's good to be back. It's good to
Speaker 8: see you, but I've gotten that a lot. Nobody seems
Speaker 8: to recognize me right now.
Speaker 9: But no, it's cool. Different look change things up.
Speaker 2: The one word that's been used to describe you this
Speaker 2: spring is maturity. Do you feel like you learned a
Speaker 2: lot in your first taste of the big leagues last year.
Speaker 9: Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 8: I mean, all there, the season didn't go the or
Speaker 8: season did go the way that we wanted to, But
Speaker 8: for me personally, it didn't go the way I wanted.
Speaker 8: But I think there's a lot of things to learn
Speaker 8: from whether it's good or bad. So I mean just
Speaker 8: experiencing it and being in the clubhouse with the guys,
Speaker 8: like there's veterans and Hall of famers like you just
Speaker 8: learned from being around them.
Speaker 2: So yeah, I think it went the way you wanted
Speaker 2: because you got your chance to be in the big leagues.
Speaker 2: You got a chance to be around this team, a
Speaker 2: championship caliber team. So it feels like you may know
Speaker 2: the answers to the test this year.
Speaker 8: Yeah no, no, no, I kinda, I kinda have an
Speaker 8: understanding of what it's gonna be like now and how
Speaker 8: to carry myself. So I'm looking I'm really looking forward
Speaker 8: to the next year.
Speaker 2: Do you feel like the motivation started when you went
Speaker 2: back to Oklahoma City last year?
Speaker 9: Yeah, definitely. I mean it sucked, but like it is
Speaker 9: what it is.
Speaker 8: I mean, I tried to get on the earliest fight
Speaker 8: out of there to go play, And I said, I like,
Speaker 8: screw it, Like I'm gonna go down there and play.
Speaker 9: I'm gonna work my way back up.
Speaker 3: What did you like the most being around those guys?
Speaker 8: Just how to handle yourself, Like how you go about
Speaker 8: your business, like they do it in such a manner.
Speaker 9: It's like it's just very professional.
Speaker 8: So I mean, I think I think just the way
Speaker 8: I carry myself, whether I'm doing something or I'm not
Speaker 8: doing something, just just how I how I present myself.
Speaker 2: It seemed like you got bigger and stronger since the
Speaker 2: last time we saw you. How did that all come together?
Speaker 2: Did you just come up with this plan on your
Speaker 2: own or did somebody direct you, Hey, this will help
Speaker 2: you take that next step.
Speaker 8: No, I mean I thought right after the end of
Speaker 8: the season for Triple A. I mean we came back,
Speaker 8: we came back to Arizona for Stay Hot, and I
Speaker 8: never left. I've been I've been in Arizona since the
Speaker 8: season ended, and and my goal was to get better
Speaker 8: over the offseason and and preparation to this upcoming year.
Speaker 2: Is that where you came up with this beard?
Speaker 8: I didn't shave once I got options, I didn't shave.
Speaker 2: Oh, I love it.
Speaker 9: So it's been it's been like four months rocking it.
Speaker 3: How did you decide to cut the mullet?
Speaker 8: It's time to grow up. That's part of the maturity thing.
Speaker 8: I just grew up, man.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, I have not like we talked about yesterday,
Speaker 2: So we could do this on Yeah, I know, I
Speaker 2: think we could do the fun stuff on the side,
Speaker 2: but once the other players are around, obviously I'm here
Speaker 2: to lift you.
Speaker 9: Up half un goof off.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, I remember you kind of just trying to
Speaker 2: figure out pictures how they were pitching.
Speaker 9: You.
Speaker 2: Do you feel like you might have a better idea
Speaker 2: of how to make the adjustments, not only game to game,
Speaker 2: but at bat to at bat.
Speaker 9: Yeah, definitely. But like also, pictures are gonna be pictures.
Speaker 8: They're gonna do something and we're gonna learn and adjust
Speaker 8: from it. But I think it's more about me, just
Speaker 8: like I'm more confident now now that I've been there
Speaker 8: and I've seen it and I've done it. So I
Speaker 8: think just going into this year, like I'm I'm more
Speaker 8: confident in everything we do, whether it's scouting, report, tea work,
Speaker 8: drill work, whatever, like, So I just feel more confident
Speaker 8: in in everything that I do.
Speaker 9: So hopefully that.
Speaker 8: Translates and uh, and it works.
Speaker 2: But you've got a great opportunity. Tommy Edmond's not going
Speaker 2: to be ready for opening day. Uh do you feel
Speaker 2: like this opportunity is presenting itself to you because of
Speaker 2: the game rewarding the work that you've put in.
Speaker 9: Man, it sure feels like it.
Speaker 8: I mean, it's tough that Tommy's not gonna be with
Speaker 8: us to start the year. I mean, Tommy's such a
Speaker 8: good guy to to be around, and.
Speaker 9: I feel like he's a glue guy.
Speaker 8: Like, yeah, he he might be overlooked sometimes, but like
Speaker 8: he's a big part of this team. So I mean,
Speaker 8: I hope that he's back soon and I hope he
Speaker 8: gets back healthier and better. But yeah, it looks like
Speaker 8: the opportunities opening itself. So the focus is still the
Speaker 8: same to to come here and get better and make
Speaker 8: the most of my opportunities.
Speaker 2: You're an easy guy to root for. You've you've definitely
Speaker 2: put in the work since you were a kid, and
Speaker 2: here you are with the back to back World Series
Speaker 2: champion Dodgers all Freeland. Before I let you go, you
Speaker 2: said you spent a lot of time in Arizona during
Speaker 2: the off season and you were here in Stay Hot Camp.
Speaker 2: Where were you when the Dodgers won the World Series
Speaker 2: and were you watching it with any of your teammates.
Speaker 2: That's Bob garn He's back for another year.
Speaker 4: Now.
Speaker 8: I was with my family and we were watching it.
Speaker 8: We were all super excited. It was such cool.
Speaker 9: It's such a cool ending, Like yeah, like he was
Speaker 9: like in it. It's written in a story or something.
Speaker 8: Man, it just it all came together, and like, I
Speaker 8: was just so happy for them and for us, like
Speaker 8: you're getting a ring. Yeah, I know, I'm super pumped
Speaker 8: about that, but no, it was.
Speaker 9: It was definitely there's the guy that did it.
Speaker 2: I'm just asking Alex Freeland where he was when he
Speaker 2: was watching your home run.
Speaker 9: I was with my family. Man, we are also freaking pump,
Speaker 9: you're losing it.
Speaker 2: No, all good?
Speaker 3: We could we could get rid of that.
Speaker 2: Also, you know Miguel Rojas and Will Smith that play
Speaker 2: at the plate. I don't know about you. You're an infielder.
Speaker 2: You understand how tough of a play and game of
Speaker 2: inches that was.
Speaker 8: Yeah, definitely, I mean I give all the credit to
Speaker 8: Miggy Row and Will.
Speaker 9: I mean every single day.
Speaker 8: These guys work on that play, so the fact that
Speaker 8: it happened it doesn't.
Speaker 9: Blow my mind or anything like that.
Speaker 8: Like they work on it every single day because you
Speaker 8: never know when it's gonna happen.
Speaker 9: And I think that.
Speaker 8: A lot of these guys do a tremendous job of
Speaker 8: going out there and treating practice like games because, like,
Speaker 8: you never know when it's gonna happen. Like for Meggy
Speaker 8: Row it happened Game seven when it mattered the most. Yeah,
Speaker 8: you know what he came through because he works his
Speaker 8: ass off every single day and makes that play in practice,
Speaker 8: but he treats it like a game.
Speaker 2: So is Alex Freeland taking the next step to the
Speaker 2: big leagues. Look forward to seeing you on opening day
Speaker 2: because I know the game rewards guys that put in
Speaker 2: the works. So congratulations, Glad you still got that smile.
Speaker 2: The beer's looking good, and you're a new man. Not
Speaker 2: a new man, but just a more mature man, more
Speaker 2: confidence boys to men. Right here, Alexland Freeland has a
Speaker 2: great opportunity and he understands it that Tommy Edmund is
Speaker 2: not going to be on the opening day roster. The
Speaker 2: Dodgers have a spot open on the roster at least
Speaker 2: to begin the season. Miguel Rojas is certainly going to
Speaker 2: get ample time at second base, but there is a
Speaker 2: competition between Freeland and Kim to be that left handed
Speaker 2: platoon at second base because Rojas is not going to
Speaker 2: play every day. So Freeland understands he has an opportunity
Speaker 2: with Tommy Edmund slow coming back from that right ankle surgery,
Speaker 2: that he has a chance to be on this opening
Speaker 2: day roster. He's cut the mullet. He has grown up
Speaker 2: a lot, he understands, and he's hungry. Baseball is everything
Speaker 2: to Alex Freeland. And look, he took his lumps. A
Speaker 2: lot of guys don't hit the ground running. But certainly
Speaker 2: if you can take those lumps and learn from them
Speaker 2: and not let them put you down but at least
Speaker 2: allow you to grow, is certainly going to help you.
Speaker 2: There goes my biggest fan, Max Munsey, still expecting at
Speaker 2: least three pushups by the end of spring training. In
Speaker 2: case you missed our conversation with Max Munsey, you can
Speaker 2: find it on the iHeartRadio app. He joined us last night.
Speaker 2: Blake Trenton joined us on Monday. You can find all
Speaker 2: those conversations on the iHeartRadio app, and you can live
Speaker 2: stream Dodger games as well on the iHeartRadio app. We
Speaker 2: don't miss a beat here on Dodger tog as we
Speaker 2: take you up to eight o'clock. So, not only is
Speaker 2: Dalton Rushing and Alex Freeland going to get an opportunity
Speaker 2: this spring to solidify their spots and leave an impression
Speaker 2: on Dave Roberts and Andrew Friedman this spring, but also
Speaker 2: some of these young Dodger alfio prospects that we keep
Speaker 2: hearing about, whether it's host Way De Paula or Zayr Hope,
Speaker 2: or even newcomer to the organization James Tibbs, the third
Speaker 2: who was acquired from the Boston Red Sox last year
Speaker 2: when the Dodgers traded Dustin May to Boston. He is
Speaker 2: going to get a big spot, a big opportunity this
Speaker 2: camp to leave an impression and start the year in
Speaker 2: Triple A, but also leave an impression to possibly be
Speaker 2: the first man up from Triple A if the Dodgers
Speaker 2: need a position player. Had a chance to catch up
Speaker 2: with Andrew Friedman to kind of lay out what his
Speaker 2: vision is for this young outfield group that is getting
Speaker 2: so much attention in all these different minor league publications.
Speaker 10: I mean, I think there is a really talented bunch.
Speaker 10: I think it's far and away the most talented group
Speaker 10: of prospect outfielders I've ever seen. And there's a good
Speaker 10: little competition amongst them. I mean, I think, you know,
Speaker 10: Ryan Ward and with what he did last year in
Speaker 10: Triple A. I think you know, with James Tibbs and
Speaker 10: zach Arhard coming over and I mean the success they had. Obviously,
Speaker 10: if you're in Triple A, you're that much closer, So
Speaker 10: I think some of that plays in. But we've got
Speaker 10: a really talented group that's going to be in Tulsa,
Speaker 10: in a really talented group that's going to be in
Speaker 10: Oklahoma City. And as we know, injuries happen, opportunity arises
Speaker 10: in different ways, and you know, we'll see where we're
Speaker 10: at and who can kind of run and sees that.
Speaker 9: Paula what would he have to kind of work on?
Speaker 10: Posway has gotten more and more mature and is growing
Speaker 10: and learning. He's been here early, and I think defense,
Speaker 10: like really stressing the importance of defense. Really, it's one
Speaker 10: thing to stress, it's another to have deliberate work and
Speaker 10: be consistent with it. And I think he's seeing that
Speaker 10: with some of our guys, and you don't really know
Speaker 10: what that means until you see it and experience it,
Speaker 10: and so we've challenged him with that, and you know,
Speaker 10: for us, I think it increases your chances to come
Speaker 10: up and help us sooner rather than later, when you
Speaker 10: can impact the game and all facets. He is an
Speaker 10: extremely talented hitter, but it's about trying to round out
Speaker 10: his game and making him as complete of a player
Speaker 10: as we can.
Speaker 3: So there you go. That's a name to remember.
Speaker 2: I know we all love to hear about Jozwai Depaula
Speaker 2: and Zayir Hope, who have been on the radar the
Speaker 2: last couple of years. But James Tibbs the third a
Speaker 2: college baseball player from Florida State, which means he's more
Speaker 2: big league seasoned and ready for his opportunity at some
Speaker 2: point in twenty twenty six. That'll do it for us
Speaker 2: on Dodger Talk tonight, thanks to Alex Call, Thanks to
Speaker 2: Alex Freeland and Dalton Rushing for joining us. We will
Speaker 2: be back with you on Saturday at twelve thirty, a
Speaker 2: half hour ahead of first pitch. Between the Dodgers and
Speaker 2: Angels to kick off the Cactus League schedule, and then
Speaker 2: back with you on Sunday at twelve thirty as our
Speaker 2: coverage begins for Game two of the Cactus League schedule
Speaker 2: Dodge and Padres. In case you're leaving rainy Southern California
Speaker 2: to come out to Arizona, keep in mind both those
Speaker 2: games are on the road. The Dodgers are in Tempe
Speaker 2: on Saturday, the Dodgers are in Peoria, Arizona on Sunday.
Speaker 2: So we look forward to see all of you out
Speaker 2: here this weekend and throughout spring training. There's a lot
Speaker 2: of fans that already have come out to see a
Speaker 2: glimpse of their back to back World Series champion Dodgers.
Speaker 2: We look forward to seeing you out here as well.
Speaker 2: We will talk to you on Saturday and be back
Speaker 2: with you next week for more Dodger Talk shows. You
Speaker 2: can follow me on Instagram at Officiallyvassa and on x
Speaker 2: at the Real Underscore DV I'll keep you updated on
Speaker 2: the entire Dodgers spring training schedule and also the Dodger
Speaker 2: Talk schedule for next week as well. Thanks to Ronnie
Speaker 2: Fossio for all his help and thanks to you for listening.
Speaker 2: We will talk to you Saturday as we get ready
Speaker 2: for spring baseball right here on your home for the
Speaker 2: back to back World Series champion Dodgers AM five to
Speaker 2: seventy LA Sports. Coming up next, Jason Smith on Fox
Speaker 2: Sports Radio.
Speaker 3: See you