Speaker 1: And now an exclusive interview with David Bassey for Dodger Talk.
Speaker 2: Anyway, Thank you to everybody that stopped by. Wait a minute,
Speaker 2: kill the music. We're going over.
Speaker 3: We're going overtime. Kill the music. Kill the music.
Speaker 2: When you've got a three time World Series manager with
Speaker 2: the Dodgers and a man that is synonymous with winning
Speaker 2: who just is fresh off coming from Augusta, you have
Speaker 2: got to end the show with him and that is
Speaker 2: the one and only Dave Roberts. Dave, great to see you,
Speaker 2: and men, we're going overtime with you now.
Speaker 1: Yeah, no, this is good. Thanks for going overtime with me, Dave.
Speaker 1: Great turnout today and I'm sure you've got to catch it.
Speaker 1: With a lot of our players. It's been a crazy,
Speaker 1: fun short offseason. But you know, just seeing the guys
Speaker 1: now today, everyone's got a smile on their face, ready
Speaker 1: to get back to work, and it's good to see
Speaker 1: that energy today with our fans.
Speaker 2: Have you got the sense from your players that they
Speaker 2: are now addicted to winning?
Speaker 3: Yeah? I have absolutely.
Speaker 1: And you know what's interesting is that we've had two
Speaker 1: very short and off seasons and no one is really
Speaker 1: complaining or saying I need more time, everyone is chomping
Speaker 1: at the bit to get back to work to then
Speaker 1: win another championship. So we got that addiction absolutely.
Speaker 2: I'll give you a sneak peek on a meeting with
Speaker 2: Freddie Freeman that you will have. He says that he's
Speaker 2: going to kick and scream when you ask him for
Speaker 2: a day off. He just said, be ready, I am
Speaker 2: going to be upset in the moment, but obviously do
Speaker 2: whatever Dave Roberts wants.
Speaker 3: So that's what he's saying.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know what, And I think that we have
Speaker 1: that relationship where you always want.
Speaker 3: Players to be in there every single day.
Speaker 1: But I do think that, you know, there's a point
Speaker 1: of diminishing returns, and so I don't know Dave as
Speaker 1: we talk right now, how many games he is going
Speaker 1: to play, but I do think that, yeah, there's going
Speaker 1: to be times in this season where I do got
Speaker 1: to kind of get him off his feet, let him
Speaker 1: rest his mind. But yes, he's going to be kicking
Speaker 1: and screaming, but I'm prepared for that.
Speaker 2: This is not the first time you have managed teams
Speaker 2: that went to back to back World Series. You're now
Speaker 2: the back to back champions. What is the early part
Speaker 2: of the season looking for you when you come out
Speaker 2: of spring training, because you have been able to have
Speaker 2: the approach of winning today but still not compromising October.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think that's a great question. It's very nuanced.
Speaker 1: I think that you know some of it. Most of
Speaker 1: it is certainly getting the guys, your core guys the rest,
Speaker 1: getting them, keeping them healthy, getting keeping them as I
Speaker 1: like to say, interested for the whole season, to get
Speaker 1: them ready for the run late.
Speaker 3: But the other part I think that we've seen.
Speaker 1: In our playoff runs, our World Series runs, is there's
Speaker 1: a lot of people that you don't know are going
Speaker 1: to make impacts early, but then they end up making
Speaker 1: big impacts late. So making sure that the river Ryans,
Speaker 1: the Gavin Stones, you know, the Free Lens, the different
Speaker 1: guys that might make an impact later, because you know,
Speaker 1: this year we saw Emmett Shehan, you know, you saw
Speaker 1: Robleski and a lot of guys at pitch.
Speaker 3: Huge innings for us this year.
Speaker 1: So getting those guys prepared for big spots as well.
Speaker 2: Last spring training, you are obviously you have the finger
Speaker 2: on the pulse of your team more than anybody. You
Speaker 2: said it, Emmitt Sheen was going to be the sleeper
Speaker 2: of the second half. Is River Ryan that version this season?
Speaker 1: You know what, he's right there. I want to see
Speaker 1: him in spring training. I know he's physical right now.
Speaker 1: He's had a great spring offseason. Gavin Stone is a
Speaker 1: guy I really have a lot of respect for us,
Speaker 1: so I want to see him as well. I'm not
Speaker 1: gonna it's a little too early for me to have
Speaker 1: my pick to click. Yeah, but yeah, Dave, let's revisit
Speaker 1: that one when we get into spring training.
Speaker 2: I know, speaking of spring training, Dave Roberts is our guest.
Speaker 2: You get the group the pitchers first, and then the
Speaker 2: entire you know, guys in camp position players, and you
Speaker 2: preach always be ready that each one of them will contribute.
Speaker 2: Is that message easier to land this year because of
Speaker 2: the unexpected countrys from so many guys as late as
Speaker 2: Game seven of the World Series?
Speaker 1: It is, But I think it's still dovetails into last
Speaker 1: year two or two years ago in the sense of
Speaker 1: how we used our bullpen. But yeah, I think it
Speaker 1: more cemented. You know, my messaging on every player's got
Speaker 1: to be ready because as it plays out, we've shown
Speaker 1: and prove that you don't know who's going to be
Speaker 1: the guy who has to be the guy, but every
Speaker 1: guy might have a chance to impact a big World
Speaker 1: Series game or playoff game, and that's kind of proven true.
Speaker 1: So my messaging certainly hasn't landed on deaf ears, which
Speaker 1: is great.
Speaker 2: I know you got to worry about twenty twenty six,
Speaker 2: but I did see a report and your quotes that
Speaker 2: you would love to be here at Dodger Stadium for
Speaker 2: the Summer Olympics in twenty twenty eight to manage Team Usay.
Speaker 2: I couldn't think of a better guy than you to
Speaker 2: do that. What inside of you is telling you you
Speaker 2: want that.
Speaker 3: You know what?
Speaker 1: It would be the biggest honor for me. My father
Speaker 1: served our country in the Corps for thirty years. I
Speaker 1: played for the PanAm team in ninety nine to qualify
Speaker 1: the US baseball team for the Olympics in two thousand.
Speaker 1: You know, I managed a Dodge in Los Angeles, went
Speaker 1: to college here in LA and it would just be
Speaker 1: a huge honor. So obviously it's a ways out there,
Speaker 1: but I was asked the question and I just said, yeah,
Speaker 1: it'd be a huge honor, and for me to consider it,
Speaker 1: it's a no brand for me.
Speaker 3: To consider that.
Speaker 2: Do you think there's a chance major league players could
Speaker 2: play in the summer Olympics with a World Series winning
Speaker 2: major league manager?
Speaker 3: I do, I do, you know what?
Speaker 1: I think that and not to kind of, you know,
Speaker 1: put pressure on baseball or but I do think that
Speaker 1: if you're talking about the biggest stage possible to kind
Speaker 1: of promote our game, showcase our game, there's no bigger
Speaker 1: stage than the Olympics. So to have an opportunity to
Speaker 1: have major league players play against their cohorts from different
Speaker 1: countries in the Olympics in the middle of a season,
Speaker 1: butting up against the Allstar Game, there's an opportunity. So
Speaker 1: hopefully the powers that be can make it happen.
Speaker 2: Hey, when Dave Robert speaks, we listens before I let
Speaker 2: you go. You just came back from Augusta. You told
Speaker 2: Petro some money you were going to play at Augusta.
Speaker 2: How did you do?
Speaker 3: I did well. I shot eighty three the second day.
Speaker 3: Humble brag. Yeah, that's a humble brag.
Speaker 1: And I took Mookie and Freddie out there, and you know,
Speaker 1: our good friend Pat Hayden, you know, the former sc
Speaker 1: Gray was our host and we had a great time
Speaker 1: and it was just a friendly thing and Pat was
Speaker 1: so gracious, so we had.
Speaker 3: A great time. So how did they fare? They much
Speaker 3: better than I did. Dave.
Speaker 2: It's not FanFest without the voice, the guy that really
Speaker 2: makes things go for the Dodgers each and every night.
Speaker 2: Congratulations on managing an incredible World Series last year, managing
Speaker 2: incredibly back to back championships, and just really being the
Speaker 2: guy that we turned to for all things Dodgers.
Speaker 3: So thank you, Thank you, Dave.
Speaker 1: I love the Dodgers and I'm so proud of this
Speaker 1: group and so proud of the fans and happy for
Speaker 1: the fans. So thank you. Thanks for everything you do.
Speaker 1: And here we go again. We getting ready run it back?
Speaker 3: Oh yeah, three?
Speaker 2: Pete in the mix. Dave Roberts is ready to go.
Speaker 2: Thanks for stopping by. And I think they want to
Speaker 2: take a picture with us, so we'll do that live
Speaker 2: on the radio. Here Dave Roberts joining us. The World
Speaker 2: Series manager. LA certainly appreciates him. Now if they don't,
Speaker 2: I will remind him. All those people over there didn't
Speaker 2: give this guy a Manager of the Year vote, but
Speaker 2: they all say he's a Hall of Fame manager.
Speaker 3: Explain that to me.
Speaker 2: Yeah, Thanks Dave.
Speaker 3: Appreciate it. Thanks Dave,