WEBVTT - Dave Roberts (8-25-26) 

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<v Speaker 1>And now, an exclusive interview with David Basset for Dodger Talk.

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<v Speaker 1>It's the managers meeting in Atlanta. Dave Roberts, three-time World

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<v Speaker 1>Series winning manager, joins us every week.

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<v Speaker 2>Thanks again for having us in your office, Dave. Appreciate it.

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<v Speaker 3>It's good to be back, Dave. Catching up with you and,

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<v Speaker 3>you know, got in yesterday night. The players flew in

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<v Speaker 3>on Sunday and They had their fantasy draft yesterday, so

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<v Speaker 3>there's a little bit of fantasy chatter going on, but yeah,

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<v Speaker 3>we've got a fun, good series. It's always fun playing

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<v Speaker 3>the Braves.

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<v Speaker 1>It was cool to have Shohei Otani join us on

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<v Speaker 1>our plane yesterday.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, it was. He opted to stick with his family

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<v Speaker 3>an extra night, get a good night's rest on Sunday,

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<v Speaker 3>then fly with us, and so that's the great thing

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<v Speaker 3>about the two planes, because you do have that option,

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<v Speaker 3>and most players certainly take the option to fly with

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<v Speaker 3>the team, but in this case, newborn baby and Extra

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<v Speaker 3>night at home.

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<v Speaker 1>We'll get to him in a little bit. But like

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<v Speaker 1>you mentioned, three-game series against the Braves. You guys are

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<v Speaker 1>in a good spot, four games ahead of them in

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<v Speaker 1>the loss column for that number two seed. How significant

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<v Speaker 1>is this series to maybe solidify your spot in the

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<v Speaker 1>top two of the National League postseason?

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<v Speaker 3>It's significant on a couple fronts. Obviously that, which you

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<v Speaker 3>had mentioned, and regardless of how this series goes, there's

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<v Speaker 3>still a lot of baseball left. But the other part

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<v Speaker 3>is that they're a postseason team. There's a chance that

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<v Speaker 3>we could see them. So kind of gathering information. And

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<v Speaker 3>they're still the same cast of characters with those guys,

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<v Speaker 3>with our team. So we're very familiar. But as we

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<v Speaker 3>get through August and into September, just kind of, again,

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<v Speaker 3>seeing how we stack up against those guys.

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<v Speaker 1>You do have a six-game winning streak. It seems like

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<v Speaker 1>the wheels are back on the track for your offense.

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<v Speaker 1>Do you feel that way?

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<v Speaker 3>Absolutely.

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<v Speaker 2>How interested are you to see how it plays against

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<v Speaker 2>the Braves?

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<v Speaker 3>I am interested to see how it plays against the Braves.

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<v Speaker 3>I think that if we continue the same mindset, relentless at-bats,

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<v Speaker 3>it doesn't really matter who we play. So I think that, yeah,

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<v Speaker 3>we're in a good spot. I think team at-bats, grinding

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<v Speaker 3>the starter. I think that coming off and off, I

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<v Speaker 3>think guys are energetic, just kind of walking through the clubhouse.

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<v Speaker 3>you know, obviously you get excited to play the Braves,

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<v Speaker 3>but we're in a good spot offensively.

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<v Speaker 1>You have Alex Call starting in left field tonight against

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<v Speaker 1>Bryce Elder. What do you like about that matchup? And

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<v Speaker 1>does Tao play the next two games?

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<v Speaker 3>Tao will play the next five games before the off day.

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<v Speaker 3>I think that this is one I just wanted to

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<v Speaker 3>give Tao the off day, an extra day, and use

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<v Speaker 3>today as a work day. And then Alex, I think

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<v Speaker 3>he's just a guy that's going to put together good

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<v Speaker 3>at-bats and You know, Elder's kind of a neutral pitcher,

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<v Speaker 3>so it's like staying on the cutter, work some at-bats,

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<v Speaker 3>work some pitches. And, you know, I just think that

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<v Speaker 3>for me it also gives me another opportunity to give

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<v Speaker 3>Alex a start.

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<v Speaker 2>Dave Roberts is our guest.

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<v Speaker 1>It's the manager's meeting presented by Downey Hyundai. We haven't

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<v Speaker 1>talked to you since the unfortunate news of Andy Pahez

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<v Speaker 1>requiring surgery on his left hand.

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<v Speaker 2>What do you see with him towards the end of

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<v Speaker 2>the season?

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<v Speaker 1>Because obviously he can come back in a month, but

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<v Speaker 1>we saw with Will Smith last year, it takes time

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<v Speaker 1>to get that strength in the hand.

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<v Speaker 3>It does take time to get strength on. Andy is

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<v Speaker 3>determined to get back as soon as possible, but, um,

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<v Speaker 3>Bones still take their due time to heal, but I

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<v Speaker 3>do know that it's not season-ending, and we're going to

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<v Speaker 3>get him back as soon as we can. And he's

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<v Speaker 3>really motivated to keep his body in shape, his legs,

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<v Speaker 3>his obliques, and kind of that left hand, whatever, the

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<v Speaker 3>right hand kind of working that top hand with the swing.

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<v Speaker 3>But he'll be back soon enough, but it does take

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<v Speaker 3>a little bit of time to get that strength back.

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<v Speaker 1>How are you looking at center field until he comes back?

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<v Speaker 1>Alec Thomas back in there again. How does Tommy Edmond

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<v Speaker 1>and Kike Hernandez and Alex Call fit in that position

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<v Speaker 1>until Pahez returns?

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, you know what? That's funny is before we got

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<v Speaker 3>to this interview, I was thinking about Thursday and sales Thursday.

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<v Speaker 3>So just trying to figure out, you know, if I'm

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<v Speaker 3>going to give Max a day off, give Tucker a

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<v Speaker 3>day off to then get I do know that Tommy

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<v Speaker 3>will be in there, I do know that Miggy Rowe

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<v Speaker 3>will be in there, and I do know Kiki will

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<v Speaker 3>be in there. So then it's kind of, how do

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<v Speaker 3>you rearrange those puzzle pieces?

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<v Speaker 1>How do you view center field itself until Pahez comes back?

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<v Speaker 3>I think Alec Thomas will take down center field with

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<v Speaker 3>the right-hander on the mound, and then with the lefty sale,

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<v Speaker 3>for example, I've got to decide if I want to

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<v Speaker 3>run Kiki out there and keep Tommy at second base

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<v Speaker 3>and keep him comfortable there, or kick Tommy out there, uh,

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<v Speaker 3>put Kiki at third and kind of then put Miggy

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<v Speaker 3>Rowe at second. So there's a little ways, a couple

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<v Speaker 3>of ways I can do it, but I just haven't

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<v Speaker 3>settled on that yet.

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<v Speaker 1>That's half of the equation, finding a guy that can

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<v Speaker 1>play defense and center field, but the offensive production by

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<v Speaker 1>Andy Pahez at the top of your lineup, that's a,

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<v Speaker 1>is that even harder to replace?

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<v Speaker 3>It is.

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<v Speaker 2>It is.

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<v Speaker 3>And I think that obviously love having Alec Thomas here.

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<v Speaker 3>And I think the defense, uh, If you could argue,

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<v Speaker 3>it's even gotten better with him over Andy, which nothing

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<v Speaker 3>against Andy. But the bat is something we're certainly going

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<v Speaker 3>to miss, and that's irreplaceable given who we have behind Andy. But, yeah,

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<v Speaker 3>it's just an opportunity. It's going to be more opportunities

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<v Speaker 3>for Kike, more opportunities, obviously, for Alec Thomas, most importantly.

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<v Speaker 3>And then we've just got to kind of hold it

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<v Speaker 3>down until we.

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<v Speaker 2>Get him back.

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<v Speaker 1>Will Smith is starting rehab games tonight in Oklahoma City. Obviously,

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<v Speaker 1>he means a lot to your offense and what he

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<v Speaker 1>does behind the plate. What do you envision as far

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<v Speaker 1>as when the team returns home next week for Will Smith?

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<v Speaker 3>So I was talking to Brandon McDaniel, actually, who does

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<v Speaker 3>kind of a lot of different things in our organization.

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<v Speaker 3>And BMAC said that he's going to catch five innings today.

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<v Speaker 3>And the outlook is he'll be active on September 1st.

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<v Speaker 3>So with that, he'll probably be every other day. But

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<v Speaker 3>getting him back September 1st would be fantastic.

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<v Speaker 1>Do you foresee him being in the top four of

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<v Speaker 1>your lineup? How much does that compensate for the loss

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<v Speaker 1>of Pajas?

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, that's a good question. I think just kind of

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<v Speaker 3>looking at our lineup right now, when he comes back,

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<v Speaker 3>depending on how he looks and feels, I think three, five,

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<v Speaker 3>or six would probably be something I would kind of

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<v Speaker 3>toy with.

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<v Speaker 2>Love it.

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<v Speaker 1>See, Dave Roberts is trying to win a game tonight,

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<v Speaker 1>but he's always got his mind on the big picture

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<v Speaker 1>as well. Sunday, Dave, I know you don't believe that

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<v Speaker 1>I plan things out, but Sunday, you may need a starter.

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<v Speaker 1>And you said last week that, hey, there's a chance

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<v Speaker 1>that Shohei could pitch in a game, Lauer's in the bullpen.

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<v Speaker 2>So, you know, I was just wondering.

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<v Speaker 1>If you could share what your plans may be for

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<v Speaker 1>Shohei's next step.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, well, I do know that, you know, Lauer's going

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<v Speaker 3>to pitch a run in that game, and there's a

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<v Speaker 3>possibility that Shohei could open that game.

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<v Speaker 2>Okay, we'll take that.

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<v Speaker 3>I'll leave it at that.

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<v Speaker 2>One other thing before I let you go.

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<v Speaker 1>When Freddie Freeman first joined the Dodgers, there obviously was

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of fanfare of him returning to Atlanta.

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<v Speaker 2>It doesn't seem like it's that big of a deal anymore.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah. You know, what's interesting is that obviously you and

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<v Speaker 3>I know Freddie as a brave, you know, from years ago,

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<v Speaker 3>but you know, the baseball world, even outside of in

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<v Speaker 3>the sports world, you know, you could argue he's a Dodger,

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<v Speaker 3>you know, with, with winning two championships with us and,

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<v Speaker 3>you know, being an all-star many times over for us. And, um,

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<v Speaker 3>you know, it's interesting is, yeah, there was a lot

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<v Speaker 3>to be made rightfully. So of him, you know, coming

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<v Speaker 3>over here and his first time back here. But I

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<v Speaker 3>think right now, you know, I certainly see him as

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<v Speaker 3>a Dodger and know that he has history with the Braves. But, man, Dave,

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<v Speaker 3>I'm just so happy to have that guy. And I've

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<v Speaker 3>said it many times, you know, he's on my Mount

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<v Speaker 3>Rushmore players because he just set a standard for us

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<v Speaker 3>to elevate play for everyone, and even myself as a manager.

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<v Speaker 3>So lucky to have him, and I don't think we're

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<v Speaker 3>going to see any emotions tonight.

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<v Speaker 2>Okay, sounds good. Dave, well said as always.

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<v Speaker 1>And thank you again for allowing this time every week

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<v Speaker 1>for us and getting more insight on what is to

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<v Speaker 1>come for the team that has the second best record

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<v Speaker 1>in baseball. Thanks a lot for the time.

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<v Speaker 3>Appreciate you, Dave. Let's go get a win tonight.