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.
Speaker 1: The Dodgers are the favorites to become the fifth. This
Speaker 1: is World Champion Dodger Talk.
Speaker 3: Here we go again.
Speaker 4: We're getting ready to run it back.
Speaker 1: To get in on the show, call 866-987-2570. And be
Speaker 1: sure to follow Dodger Talk wherever you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1: And now your host... Here's Tim Cates.
Speaker 5: Oh, rain, rain, go away.
Speaker 2: Come back another day as the Dodgers and Tigers. are
Speaker 2: in a rain delay at Comerica Park in Detroit. Welcome
Speaker 2: to Rain Delay Dodger Talk here on AM570 LA Sports.
Speaker 2: Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app as the Dodgers trying
Speaker 2: to get out of the Motor City and get back
Speaker 2: home to reset and start a nine game homestand on
Speaker 2: Tuesday when they welcome the St.
Speaker 5: Louis Cardinals to town.
Speaker 2: But before that, they got to finish off this road
Speaker 2: trip in Man, what a disastrous road trip it has
Speaker 2: been for this Dodgers team. There's no ifs, ands, or
Speaker 2: buts about it. This Dodgers team is struggling offensively, getting
Speaker 2: swept in Atlanta. Certainly when you run into a buzzsaw
Speaker 2: like Chris Sale on Thursday, nobody's going to have good
Speaker 2: offensive nights. And collectively, the Dodgers didn't, even though they
Speaker 2: had opportunities. against Chris Sale in that complete game shutout.
Speaker 2: But the Dodgers in the first two games of this
Speaker 2: series in Detroit have struggled still offensively. Yesterday, more opportunities
Speaker 2: left out on the base pass. Friday night, more opportunities
Speaker 2: left out there with runners in scoring position. The Dodgers
Speaker 2: that we know and love the last couple of years
Speaker 2: have been built on slug, good defense, and good pitching.
Speaker 2: And in that slug, that means they're hitting the ball
Speaker 2: in the gaps, they're producing runs with runners in scoring position,
Speaker 2: and they're hitting home runs.
Speaker 5: And Steven Nelson brought up a great step.
Speaker 2: The Dodgers, one home run in their last 229 at-bats.
Speaker 2: I didn't realize the drought that this Dodgers offense had
Speaker 2: with the long ball recently. One home run in the
Speaker 2: last 229 at-bats, and it's come from Tommy Edmond? I mean,
Speaker 2: Freddie Freeman hasn't hit a home run since they were
Speaker 2: popping off fireworks on the 4th of July at Dodger Stadium.
Speaker 2: Max Muncy has not had a home run in a while.
Speaker 2: This Dodgers team has not seen much offensive production from
Speaker 2: Teoscar Hernandez. Certainly, the struggles of Kyle Tucker are real.
Speaker 2: But this is a team built on slug. David Vasse
Speaker 2: and I mentioned it and talked about it in the
Speaker 2: pregame show just a little while ago. This isn't a
Speaker 2: team that's all of a sudden going to change their identity,
Speaker 2: who they are. I mean, I've gotten so many tweets.
Speaker 2: Everywhere I went yesterday, I had people ask me, well,
Speaker 2: why don't this team play more small ball? Why can't
Speaker 2: this team bunt him? Why don't this team put the
Speaker 2: runners in motion more? Well, you are what you are
Speaker 2: over the course of a season. And the last few
Speaker 2: off seasons, that's all the conversation has been, especially in
Speaker 2: September when the teams have struggled like the Dodgers have.
Speaker 2: And certainly they've struggled now the second half of the
Speaker 2: season here at 26.
Speaker 5: But why don't the Dodgers change who they are? Why
Speaker 5: don't they change their identity?
Speaker 2: Why don't they start buttoning? Well, you're going to ask
Speaker 2: Kyle Tucker to start button. You're going to ask to
Speaker 2: Oscar Hernandez to start button. When you get to October,
Speaker 2: you're not asking these guys to bump because they're a
Speaker 2: team built on slug to Oscar Hernandez is three run
Speaker 2: home run against the Phillies last year in the post season.
Speaker 2: Not because he bunny and the guy over and he's,
Speaker 2: you know, a hit and run or run a hit.
Speaker 5: Bless you.
Speaker 2: This is not what this team bless you. Colin, he
Speaker 2: sneezing in our studio here. Now we're all going to
Speaker 2: get sick. I hope not. Um, This is a team
Speaker 2: built on home run. This is a team built on slug.
Speaker 2: And the Dodgers need to get back to it. And
Speaker 2: when you run into good pitching, like Chris Sale the
Speaker 2: other day, it's going to happen. You're going to have
Speaker 2: a low-scoring game. When you get to October, certainly runs
Speaker 2: are at a premium. But you've got to drive in
Speaker 2: runs when they're sitting there on base. When you've got
Speaker 2: in Atlanta the other day, and this is a prime
Speaker 2: example against the Braves, when Shohei Otani in the ninth
Speaker 2: inning has a leadoff triple, And you cannot bring him in.
Speaker 2: You've got the greatest player on earth, the unicorn, right
Speaker 2: in front of you standing on third base, and the
Speaker 2: Dodgers could not drive him in in the ninth inning
Speaker 2: the other day in Atlanta. That right there is the
Speaker 2: prime example of what is wrong with this offense right now.
Speaker 5: And how did they get out of it?
Speaker 6: 866-987-2570.
Speaker 2: How does a Dodgers team that is built on slug,
Speaker 2: that is built on driving the ball into the gap zone,
Speaker 2: How do they get out of this offensive slump that
Speaker 2: they're in?
Speaker 5: How do they just flip the switch, so to speak,
Speaker 5: in September? 866-987-2570.
Speaker 2: It's Rain Delay Dodger Talk here on AM570 LA Sports.
Speaker 2: Dave Roberts talked about it. We'll get to that in
Speaker 2: a second. He's trying to figure it out. There's only
Speaker 2: so much you can do to manipulate the lineup. on
Speaker 2: a daily basis to try to jumpstart an offense. There's
Speaker 2: so many different ways you can move guys around in
Speaker 2: the lineup to try to figure out the right combination.
Speaker 2: And Dave Roberts has done that. I mean, think about
Speaker 2: the different spots that Kyle Tucker has hit in this lineup.
Speaker 2: Think about the different spots that Teoscar Hernandez has hit
Speaker 2: in this lineup. Now, Tommy Edmund, I mean, you talk
Speaker 2: about the ultimate Swiss Army knife, and the Dodgers have
Speaker 2: had a lot of good ones, including Mr. Kike Hernandez,
Speaker 2: Chris Taylor, guys that can play multiple positions, but also
Speaker 2: hit in different spots in the lineup. And in Tommy
Speaker 2: Edmund's case, I call him the super utility knife. Because
Speaker 2: he gets a switch hitter. And he can bat on
Speaker 2: both sides of the plate. But Tommy Edmund has hit
Speaker 2: in multiple spots in this lineup. Heck, Max Muncy has
Speaker 2: dipped up and down in this Dodgers lineup. So Dave
Speaker 2: Roberts has tried as best.
Speaker 5: As he can to change up the lineup.
Speaker 2: To switch the mojo around, I guess is the best
Speaker 2: way to describe it.
Speaker 5: To see if they can get a spark.
Speaker 2: From somebody, somebody's in a lineup to get this offense going.
Speaker 2: And for whatever reason, the second half of the season,
Speaker 2: the Dodgers just haven't been able to do that. The
Speaker 2: Dodgers against teams over 500. This is a number that
Speaker 2: just constantly gets talked about. The Dodgers record against teams
Speaker 2: over 500 is now at 33 and 36.
Speaker 6: Not good.
Speaker 2: The Braves and the Brewers, Both teams well over 500
Speaker 2: against teams that are 500 on their schedule. The Dodgers
Speaker 2: are three games under 500.
Speaker 5: All right. So what changes now? How do you improve
Speaker 5: that number?
Speaker 2: Well, the Dodgers don't have a lot of opportunities to
Speaker 2: improve that. And I think that's the one thing I
Speaker 2: look at is how do you get out of this
Speaker 2: offensive slump? I think September is the right month for
Speaker 2: the Dodgers to get out of this. And I say
Speaker 2: this for this reason, the schedule. The schedule lines up
Speaker 2: really nice for this Dodgers team. If they're struggling against
Speaker 2: teams over 500, if they're struggling against good pitching, and
Speaker 2: they're going to see it in October, I get that.
Speaker 2: But in order for this Dodgers team to get right
Speaker 2: before October, I think the schedule lines up perfectly for
Speaker 2: them to get right. with only one series in the
Speaker 2: entire month of September, three games set against the San
Speaker 2: Diego Padres, the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th, against a team
Speaker 2: right now that's over 500.
Speaker 5: The Miami Marlins.
Speaker 2: Are flirting right around 500. As we speak today, they're
Speaker 2: a 500 team, but they're floating right around 500 on
Speaker 2: whatever day it happens to be. But the Dodgers get
Speaker 2: the Cardinals, the Nationals, the Reds, the Marlins, the Reds again,
Speaker 2: San Francisco, San Diego, San Francisco. Only the Padres in
Speaker 2: that three-game series is a team that is over 500.
Speaker 2: That is a perfect setup for this Dodgers team collectively
Speaker 2: and individually for players like Teoscar Hernandez, Kyle Tucker, and
Speaker 2: this Dodgers offense to get right. We've got Get Right
Speaker 2: series that we talked about a couple weeks ago. Dodgers
Speaker 2: facing the Rockies after losing three or four to the Brewers. Dodgers,
Speaker 2: what do they do? They get right, sweeping the Colorado
Speaker 2: Rockies in Denver. Then they continue to get right against
Speaker 2: a Pittsburgh Pirates team winning all three games at the Ravine.
Speaker 2: This is going to be a get right month, I think,
Speaker 2: for the Dodgers. And in stacking up wins.
Speaker 5: I think we're going to see this offense turn around.
Speaker 5: That's my hope.
Speaker 2: And then going into October, whether it's the wildcard round
Speaker 2: or the DS, this Dodgers team should be clicking. 866-987-2570
Speaker 2: is the number. 866-987-2570 on this rain-delayed Dodger talk. Tim
Speaker 2: Cates with you as we now have official start time.
Speaker 5: For the Dodgers and Tigers.
Speaker 2: If you're expecting to hear first pitch, hear Rick Monday
Speaker 2: and Steven Nelson talking about this Dodger game. Final game
Speaker 2: of this series in Detroit. Well, we're in a rain delay.
Speaker 2: And as I speak, the tarp has been taken off
Speaker 2: the field. I see blue skies thanks to Sportsnet LA.
Speaker 2: And we will have a first pitch of 1135 a.m.
Speaker 2: Pacific 135 Eastern in Detroit. Is that right? No, 2.35 Eastern.
Speaker 2: Let's do the math a little bit better than that, Tim.
Speaker 5: 11.35 a.m.
Speaker 2: Pacific, first pitch, Dodgers and the Tigers. So it'll be
Speaker 2: just under a one-hour rain delay when it's all said
Speaker 2: and done.
Speaker 5: But you know what that means?
Speaker 2: We got time to take your phone calls right here
Speaker 2: on Dodger Talk.
Speaker 5: 866-987-2570.
Speaker 2: And before we do, let's hear from the manager, Dave Roberts.
Speaker 2: This is the skipper yesterday after the Dodgers 2-1 loss
Speaker 2: to the Tigers. They get walked off in the ninth inning.
Speaker 2: Kenley Jansen picks up the win against his former team.
Speaker 2: Blake Snell pitched really well for... five plus innings yesterday
Speaker 2: and did not get the decision, but let's hear from
Speaker 2: the manager, Dave Roberts, as we alluded to, he's tried
Speaker 2: a lot of things to shake up this roster and
Speaker 2: this lineup on a daily basis. Let's hear from a very,
Speaker 2: very confused manager, Dave Roberts on what to do.
Speaker 3: I don't know what's missing. Um, yeah, you know, we're,
Speaker 3: we're today. We had, you know, one opportunity, one real opportunity. Um,
Speaker 3: obviously get the big hit from freddie uh to tie
Speaker 3: the game and then uh you know he had a
Speaker 3: basis loaded situation and then uh you know pitcher induced
Speaker 3: a double play ball gets out of that um you
Speaker 3: know outside of that we really didn't threaten so uh
Speaker 3: you know right now it's been going on for quite
Speaker 3: some time obviously and so uh you know just being
Speaker 3: able to you know, put crooked numbers up and, you know,
Speaker 3: not play these one run games where, you know, every
Speaker 3: margin is so fine. Um, yeah, I mean, I know
Speaker 3: the work is there. I know the will's there. Um,
Speaker 3: I know the talent's there, but it's just, yeah, we
Speaker 3: just haven't, you know, put it together in quite some
Speaker 3: time consistently. I think that for me, I'm just, you know,
Speaker 3: right now, you know, personally speaking, I'm just trying to
Speaker 3: figure out solutions. Um, Just trying to figure out, we're
Speaker 3: all frustrated. We know we should be better. But again,
Speaker 3: now it's more of like, what are we going to
Speaker 3: do about it? And so that's kind of where my
Speaker 3: head is at. And I do know coming down on
Speaker 3: guys when I know guys are putting in the effort
Speaker 3: isn't the answer. And then you got to figure out,
Speaker 3: you know, is it a process thing? Is it an
Speaker 3: approach thing? Is it a focus thing? Those are things
Speaker 3: that I'm trying to figure out collectively, individually. Yeah, that's
Speaker 3: kind of what I'm thinking.
Speaker 2: All right, there's the manager, Dave Roberts, and I feel him.
Speaker 2: He is searching right now. He is looking for answers.
Speaker 2: And I love his comment there about, I can't come
Speaker 2: down on these guys, meaning yell, you know, pull a
Speaker 2: Tommy Lasorda, pull an old school manager move where you
Speaker 2: really lay into your.
Speaker 5: Guys because maybe the effort's not there.
Speaker 1: That's not the case.
Speaker 2: And how do you, as you said, come down on
Speaker 2: an individual or a team that That is grinding. That
Speaker 2: is trying to figure it out. That's putting in the
Speaker 2: work on a daily basis, but just not seeing the results.
Speaker 2: So he's scratching his head just like Dodger fans are
Speaker 2: scratching their head. What is the solution? I think the
Speaker 2: biggest solution is the schedule. And they're able to get
Speaker 2: right in the month of September. And I mentioned picking
Speaker 2: up wins. but also individually getting right, and maybe the
Speaker 2: numbers start to creep up, the approach is better, the
Speaker 2: results are better, and you feel better going into October
Speaker 2: as a hitter or as a pitcher or as a reliever,
Speaker 2: whatever your job is as a Dodger player. That's the
Speaker 2: hope at this point, the final month of the season,
Speaker 2: but also by stacking wins against teams that aren't even
Speaker 2: over 500 in which you've really dominated those teams. You
Speaker 2: also maybe get back in this race here and can
Speaker 2: get some separation or maybe leapfrog the Milwaukee Brewers, who've
Speaker 2: got a tough September schedule coming up. Because right now,
Speaker 2: as we speak, again, the Brewers are the best team
Speaker 2: in baseball. Milwaukee is the number one seed in the
Speaker 2: National League. And the top two seeds get a bye
Speaker 2: and not have to play in the wildcard round. Well,
Speaker 2: right now, the Dodgers and Braves have an identical record.
Speaker 2: And if the season were to end today, the Braves
Speaker 2: would be the number two seed because they own these
Speaker 2: season series. So the Dodgers have to make sure they're
Speaker 2: ahead of Atlanta and they can certainly catch the Braves.
Speaker 5: They're only four games.
Speaker 2: The Milwaukee Brewers who are four games back for the
Speaker 2: number one spot a month to do it. It could happen.
Speaker 2: But I think most importantly, this Dodgers team needs to
Speaker 2: get right. individually and collectively.
Speaker 5: All right. Terry in Ventura. Welcome to rain delay.
Speaker 2: Dodger talk as we now are about 34 minutes away
Speaker 2: from first pitch. They will start at 1135 from Comerica
Speaker 2: park with Tyler glass.
Speaker 5: Now in front of her of all days on the mound.
Speaker 5: How are you doing, Terry?
Speaker 7: Welcome.
Speaker 6: Thank you for taking my call. First of all, I'm
Speaker 6: a long time Dodger fan. Second of all, Dave Roberts
Speaker 6: is a great manager, but of all people, I mean,
Speaker 6: small balls answer when they had Otani on third with
Speaker 6: no outs.
Speaker 8: Hello.
Speaker 6: It doesn't mean Freddie Freeman has to bunt, but Beth
Speaker 6: could have bunted. Anybody could have bunted him in and get,
Speaker 6: get the run. That's number one. Number two, we got
Speaker 6: to play hit and run. We got, we all, all
Speaker 6: our guys do is hit singles other than Muncie. Teoscar
Speaker 6: Hernandez swings at pitches at his eye level. He stopped hitting.
Speaker 6: We don't hit home runs anymore because Paz is out, blah, blah, blah.
Speaker 6: So we got to play small ball, hit and run,
Speaker 6: steal bases, and bunt when a guy's on third.
Speaker 8: That's the answer.
Speaker 6: And Dave Roberts, as great a manager as he is,
Speaker 6: that was the way he was as a player. So
Speaker 6: I'm kind of surprised that he's not doing that. I
Speaker 6: know it's impossible to criticize Dave Roberts because he's a
Speaker 6: great guy and a great manager. What's your take on
Speaker 6: my thoughts?
Speaker 5: I appreciate the phone call, Terry.
Speaker 2: Just because Dave Roberts was one style player doesn't mean
Speaker 2: that's the style of team he's going to manage. We
Speaker 2: manage in a different era of baseball now. Dave Roberts
Speaker 2: certainly has a team that's built differently. So I don't
Speaker 2: put this on Dave Roberts at all. He does not
Speaker 2: build the team. The front office builds the team. He
Speaker 2: manages the team. And at the major league level, Dave
Speaker 2: Roberts has done nothing. arguably the best job the last
Speaker 2: decade plus and managing on and off the field and
Speaker 2: I say that because managing is more than just putting
Speaker 2: up a lineup card and having a feel for the
Speaker 2: game over nine innings managing a team is managing egos
Speaker 2: managing personalities manage a clubhouse and Dave Roberts to a
Speaker 2: man all you hear is how great of a job
Speaker 2: he does former players current players will all tell you
Speaker 2: that 8, 6, 6, 9, 8, 7, 2, 5, 70
Speaker 2: Allen in silver Lake. Welcome to rain delayed Dodger talk
Speaker 2: is this game will get underway in about 30 minutes
Speaker 2: from Detroit.
Speaker 5: How you doing there, Alan?
Speaker 4: I'm good, but I'm annoyed at you. You know, you've
Speaker 4: got your priorities mixed up. The only thing you said
Speaker 4: that is true is that it's good that they can
Speaker 4: probably avoid a first round by because they have this
Speaker 4: cakewalk schedule. But as far as getting right, these are
Speaker 4: major league players. You're telling me that facing crappy pitching
Speaker 4: and batting practice level garbage is going to actually prep
Speaker 4: these guys? What happens if they win all these series
Speaker 4: but they lose to San Diego and we see the truth?
Speaker 4: I'd much rather they face nothing but hard stuff and
Speaker 4: figure out how to win because they're not going to
Speaker 4: see reality.
Speaker 8: In this month.
Speaker 1: They're not.
Speaker 4: And, you know, the reality is they have to take
Speaker 4: a risk. They're taking a risk now. Gambling with these
Speaker 4: older players are going to come around. We all know
Speaker 4: the real risk they.
Speaker 8: Need to take.
Speaker 4: The real gamble is getting young now. early in the month,
Speaker 4: not later. This team does not.
Speaker 2: What's your solution then, Al? What's your solution? How do
Speaker 2: you get young when you can only add two guys
Speaker 2: to this roster? And you can't add 40 guys like
Speaker 2: you used to in the day and just let all
Speaker 2: the young dudes come up and play. Josue, DePaula, Tibbs,
Speaker 2: all these guys sitting in AA and AAA that are
Speaker 2: highly tied up prospects aren't coming up and playing in September.
Speaker 2: So what is your answer then? You have this lineup.
Speaker 2: You have an older lineup. You've got an expensive lineup.
Speaker 2: These are the guys that you're going to go with.
Speaker 4: Forget, no, forget about expensive.
Speaker 9: Okay.
Speaker 4: You have two spots.
Speaker 8: Use the two spots. Two will make a big difference.
Speaker 8: Teoscar is not going to start hitting fastballs.
Speaker 1: He's not, it's just not going to happen.
Speaker 6: So admit it.
Speaker 1: All right.
Speaker 5: Now I appreciate the phone call.
Speaker 2: I think the answer, we got to take a break
Speaker 2: and we'll come back and get more into this again.
Speaker 2: First pitch is coming up in 30 minutes from Detroit
Speaker 2: at Comerica park.
Speaker 5: The tarp is off the field. We're in rain delay.
Speaker 2: Dodger talk right now on AM five 70 LA sports
Speaker 2: live everywhere.
Speaker 5: Of course, on the I heart radio app.
Speaker 2: Um, I am with you on bringing up one young player,
Speaker 2: and that is James Tibbs III. And we'll get into
Speaker 2: that when we come back after this because we've got
Speaker 2: to take a quick timeout. I'm with you on that.
Speaker 2: But outside of Tibbs, they're adding another arm, and it's
Speaker 2: going to be Sheehan. It's going to be Robleski. It's
Speaker 2: going to be somebody like that that's going to come
Speaker 2: up and add depth to the pitching staff of this
Speaker 2: Dodgers team. They're not bringing up multiple position players. There's
Speaker 2: also a roster move that's got to be made with
Speaker 2: Will Smith coming back. So more on that. We'll take
Speaker 2: your phone calls when we come back.
Speaker 5: 866-987-2570.
Speaker 2: It's Rain Delay Dodger Talk with Tim Cates here on
Speaker 2: this Sunday as the Dodgers and Tigers wait it out,
Speaker 2: and we'll have first pitch coming up at 1135. From
Speaker 2: Bervaldez and Tyler Glass now, the pitching matchup right here
Speaker 2: on AM570 LA Sports.
Speaker 6: Hey, it's Miguel Rojas.
Speaker 10: This is Dodger Talk, AM 570 LA Sports, your home
Speaker 10: of the Dodgers.
Speaker 2: Rain-delayed Dodger talk continues on this Sunday. Yeah, you look up,
Speaker 2: you see some clouds in the sky here in Southern California.
Speaker 2: It's hot, still a little humid, even though it's supposed
Speaker 2: to cool off this week. But Dodgers in Detroit, where
Speaker 2: the rain has passed through. Seeing blue skies at Comerica
Speaker 2: Park in the Motor City. Tarp is off the field.
Speaker 2: Grounds crew is working on it as we speak. And
Speaker 2: we have a first pitch coming up at 1135. So
Speaker 2: we'll get it back out to Steven Nelson and Rick
Speaker 2: Monday coming up. at the bottom of the hour. But
Speaker 2: time for your phone calls at 8, 6, 6, 9, 8, 7, 2, 5, 7,
Speaker 2: real quick. Allen and Silver Lake was very passionate about
Speaker 2: the fact that bring up the young guys and let
Speaker 2: them help figure out this Dodger team in September and
Speaker 2: get through the woes. And if the, if the veteran
Speaker 2: guys like Teosca Hernandez aren't producing, then bring up somebody else. Again,
Speaker 2: you're limited in roster spots and doing that, but also
Speaker 2: keep in mind, this is a $ 400 million roster built
Speaker 2: around guys that are paid a lot of money, to
Speaker 2: produce and have produced and have won back-to-back world series championships.
Speaker 2: You're telling me the answer to your problems and the
Speaker 2: Dodgers problems is a 21 year old and a 23
Speaker 2: year old who have never had one at bat in
Speaker 2: the major leagues. And you're going to ask them to
Speaker 2: come up in September to save the day.
Speaker 5: Not going to happen. It's just doesn't make any sense.
Speaker 2: You ride with the guys who have gotten you here
Speaker 2: and won back-to-back world series championships.
Speaker 5: I get it.
Speaker 2: The older they get production starts to come down.
Speaker 5: Part of it. I understand it. Teoscar Hernandez struggling.
Speaker 2: So with that being said, James Tibbs III could be
Speaker 2: the answer one time as far as one player being
Speaker 2: called up. And I say that because he's an older player.
Speaker 1: He's 23.
Speaker 2: He's a college guy. He's produced the last two years
Speaker 2: in the minor leagues. He's in AAA all this year.
Speaker 2: He's knocking on the door. It's hard to argue about
Speaker 2: what he's done at the AAA level at almost 500 at-bats.
Speaker 2: He's hit 27 home runs, almost 100 ribbies, hitting near
Speaker 2: 300 and 965 OPS. And he can play multiple positions.
Speaker 2: And I think that's important for this reason. When the
Speaker 2: rosters expand on Tuesday. The Dodgers can add two spots.
Speaker 2: It's going to be a pitcher and it can be
Speaker 2: a position player. Now, keep in mind, Will Smith is
Speaker 2: coming off the injured list. David Vassey mentioned that earlier.
Speaker 2: So the Dodgers have to make a decision on Ben
Speaker 2: Rortvedt or Hunter Ferduscia.
Speaker 5: Which one stays? Which one goes?
Speaker 2: Hunter Vodusha is probably going to stay. That means Ben
Speaker 2: Rortvat is the odd man out when Will Smith returns.
Speaker 5: Okay.
Speaker 2: Still have two catchers. You can bring up a position player.
Speaker 2: David Vasay hinted at Dalton rushing. Doesn't feel like Dalton
Speaker 2: rushing is ready right now to come back. But when
Speaker 2: Dalton rushing is good to come back and be a
Speaker 2: hitter only, because it doesn't feel like he's going to
Speaker 2: catch here.
Speaker 6: Okay.
Speaker 2: That's just the reality folks. Let's, let's, let's put all
Speaker 2: the cards on the table here. Uh, Dalton Rushing's a
Speaker 2: hitter only, a pinch hitter. He's not going to DH
Speaker 2: because you've got Shohei Otani there. So are you going
Speaker 2: to have Dalton Rushing take up a spot off the
Speaker 2: bench as one of those expanded roster spots, or do
Speaker 2: you give that expanded roster spot to another left-handed power
Speaker 2: hitter in James Tibbs III?
Speaker 5: If it's between.
Speaker 2: Dalton Rushing, the hitter only, in the month of September,
Speaker 2: or James Tibbs III.
Speaker 2: The left-handed hitter, but can play first base, can play
Speaker 2: right field, and folks, the last three days, James Tibbs
Speaker 2: III has been playing left field in AAA Oklahoma City.
Speaker 2: He's got more starts in right, DH, and first base,
Speaker 2: but he's got now double-digit starts in left field, and
Speaker 2: if you look at what he's done the last few days,
Speaker 2: he's been playing left field. Teoscar Hernandez is struggling in
Speaker 2: left field. James Tibbs III, Could be that guy. I
Speaker 2: think if you're going to make a roster expansion here
Speaker 2: on Tuesday and add a position player, Tibbs is the guy.
Speaker 2: Because to him and Dalton Rushing, Rushing can only hit.
Speaker 2: He can't catch for you. I love Dalton Rushing. I
Speaker 2: love everything about his makeup. But at this point in
Speaker 2: the season, reality is he's just a left-handed bat.
Speaker 5: That's it.
Speaker 2: Tibbs can play multiple positions for you, including left field
Speaker 2: for a certain struggling veteran left fielder by the name
Speaker 2: of Teoscar Hernandez, and he's also a left-handed bat.
Speaker 5: Certainly, he hasn't played the major league level.
Speaker 2: We don't know how he's going to do when he
Speaker 2: gets up, if he gets up, but If you're going
Speaker 2: to have to choose between adult and rushing and if
Speaker 2: it's the James Tibbs III, I just explain why I
Speaker 2: go with James Tibbs III if that's the direction they
Speaker 2: go to when you can expand the roster on Tuesday
Speaker 2: by two spots. The old days of having 30 dudes
Speaker 2: sitting in a dugout and your entire 40-man roster is
Speaker 2: up at the big leagues and you got extra lockers
Speaker 2: everywhere like spring training. It's just not the case anymore.
Speaker 2: Just not the case. All right.
Speaker 5: Jack in Austin, Texas. Thanks for being patient. Welcome to
Speaker 5: Dodger Talk. Jack, how you doing?
Speaker 11: Doing well, doing well.
Speaker 8: Yeah.
Speaker 11: I got a couple of things. One is shout out
Speaker 11: to Steven Nelson for, for trying not to jinx it
Speaker 11: today with the rain, but you know, he couldn't hold
Speaker 11: off Mo from jinxing it. So there's that. The other
Speaker 11: thing is, you know, Mookie looking good at the plate
Speaker 11: is really exciting to me.
Speaker 1: I think he's just.
Speaker 11: Looked like comfortable. He looks like he's seeing pitches and
Speaker 11: the prospect of seeing him have sort of like a,
Speaker 11: you know, being the guy in the post season is
Speaker 11: really exciting. Cause I feel like we haven't really seen
Speaker 11: that since the 2020 world series. And he's kind of
Speaker 11: just been, you know, had weird seasons the last couple
Speaker 11: of years and him looking comfortable. The idea of seeing
Speaker 11: that in the post season, especially if they went on
Speaker 11: a run is, is really cool. And then, you know,
Speaker 11: this team, I just feel like they have earned our patience, trust, respect. Like,
Speaker 11: I don't know what else they could have done in
Speaker 11: the last decade, but to earn having slumps. And maybe
Speaker 11: you have a slump in June, maybe you have a
Speaker 11: slump in September, whatever it is, but what other fan
Speaker 11: bases wouldn't give to have an eight-game lead in August,
Speaker 11: in September, and to pretty much know that you're punching
Speaker 11: your ticket to the postseason, even if you're having a slump.
Speaker 11: I just think Roberts, Friedman, the sort of leadership, the
Speaker 11: veteran guys on the team, they really earned our patience.
Speaker 11: And they might get punched out In the wild card
Speaker 11: or the division round, and that's baseball. You can't look
Speaker 11: at this slump in September and say, well, they should
Speaker 11: have done X, Y, Z. Because like you said, they're
Speaker 11: not going to replace this roster with... unproven guys and
Speaker 11: then throw them out there in October and expect it
Speaker 11: to work out.
Speaker 1: Exactly.
Speaker 8: Jack.
Speaker 5: Well said my friend. Well said.
Speaker 2: I appreciate the phone call and thanks for checking in
Speaker 2: here on Dodger talk.
Speaker 5: Well said by Jack. He's absolutely right. These guys have
Speaker 5: earned it.
Speaker 2: And if they're going through a slump, you got the, the,
Speaker 2: the right for these guys to figure it out. And
Speaker 2: I think you got time to figure it out. And again,
Speaker 2: the schedule will allow them to figure it out and
Speaker 2: get right. And I know for some of you, it's
Speaker 2: hard to, you know, to fathom that, but also keep
Speaker 2: in mind, Wouldn't you rather than go through a rut
Speaker 2: here over a month or so in the summer rather
Speaker 2: than the last two weeks of September into October? I mean,
Speaker 2: it's all about hitting your stride at the right time.
Speaker 2: In horse racing, it's all about that. Imagine this is
Speaker 2: a horse race, Dodger fans. If you come out of
Speaker 2: the gate and you're in first... and you're exuding all
Speaker 2: your energy, and you're feeling good about yourself, so you
Speaker 2: get to the first turn, and you're still in the lead.
Speaker 2: You get to the second turn, and all of a sudden,
Speaker 2: you're neck and neck with a couple of other horses
Speaker 2: on the backstretch, and all of a sudden, you're still
Speaker 2: out in front, but you're losing your wind, and you
Speaker 2: go through a little bit of a rut. Then you
Speaker 2: get overtaken on the third turn, and next thing you know,
Speaker 2: you're in second or third or fourth, and you're struggling
Speaker 2: to get to the front, and down the stretch they come,
Speaker 2: and you've got no energy left, and you're not playing
Speaker 2: your best or you're riding your best at that time.
Speaker 5: If it were a horse race. That's the equivalent of this.
Speaker 5: Get it out of your system now.
Speaker 2: Get these bad at-bats out of the way and get
Speaker 2: ready for a stretch run in which you start feeling good.
Speaker 2: When I say get right month of September, folks... Getting
Speaker 2: right is feeling good at the plate. How often do
Speaker 2: you hear Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts and these guys
Speaker 2: talk about it?
Speaker 5: Hey, they go three for four. What do you think?
Speaker 5: What changed today, Freddie? Well, not much. Still doing the
Speaker 5: same thing.
Speaker 2: You know, yesterday I was 0 for 4, three punch outs,
Speaker 2: but did the same thing at the plate today.
Speaker 5: You know, I just kind of keep trying to mimic this,
Speaker 5: I guess. It's all about repetition. It's all about getting.
Speaker 2: Into a groove at the plate and feeling good and
Speaker 2: mechanics be feeling good at the plate. And if you
Speaker 2: can get all these guys kind of doing it at
Speaker 2: the same time or a multiple guys getting right at
Speaker 2: the same time, this Dodgers team is going to win games, folks.
Speaker 2: They are, and they're going to get back on track.
Speaker 2: And the answer is not a 23 year old and
Speaker 2: a 21 year old who have never sniffed the major
Speaker 2: leagues before. to play in September to carry you into October.
Speaker 2: That's just not the right answer. If you're the Padres
Speaker 2: and you need a boost, maybe that's what you're doing.
Speaker 2: If you're another team that's out of it, that's what
Speaker 2: you're doing. Look into the future. But this team is
Speaker 2: paid too much. There's too much invested in this team.
Speaker 2: And I'm not sitting down a $ 60 million right fielder
Speaker 2: who is the highest paid player in baseball this year
Speaker 2: for a 21-year-old right fielder. just because he's a highly
Speaker 2: touted prospect.
Speaker 5: I can't do it.
Speaker 2: I cannot do it. Jeremy in Atlanta, welcome to Rain
Speaker 2: Delay Dodger Talk as we get ready for first pitch
Speaker 2: coming up in about 22 minutes.
Speaker 5: How you doing, Jeremy?
Speaker 8: Good.
Speaker 6: How are you?
Speaker 5: I'm doing good. The rain is going away. We're going
Speaker 5: to get some baseball in here finally.
Speaker 8: Yeah.
Speaker 6: Listen, I totally agree.
Speaker 9: Young starters is not the answer.
Speaker 7: However, What I don't agree with is.
Speaker 9: Not bunching guys in when the situation calls for it
Speaker 9: or taking— or the example of the first Braves game, taking
Speaker 9: one of your most offensive-producing hitters out because it's a
Speaker 9: left-handed pitcher coming out of the bullpen.
Speaker 7: The— When Dave Roberts.
Speaker 9: Pulled for Dusha to put in, I forget who it was,
Speaker 9: game one of the Braves game.
Speaker 5: Of the Braves series.
Speaker 9: That was what shot our offense out, or shot our
Speaker 9: offense in the foot. And you can't, I get what
Speaker 9: numbers say, but when you money ball games like this,
Speaker 9: you are more than likely going to lose.
Speaker 2: I appreciate it, Jeremy. I appreciate it. Thank you for
Speaker 2: checking in. I appreciate the phone call. Small ball and
Speaker 2: the Dodgers is just something they don't do. And to
Speaker 2: wish it into existence, it's not going to happen at
Speaker 2: this point in the season. It's not going to happen
Speaker 2: the way the roster is built. Now, in a situation
Speaker 2: like the other night in Atlanta, where Freddie Freeman comes
Speaker 2: up after Shohei Otani leads off the ninth inning against Iglesias, who,
Speaker 2: by the way, is their closer in Atlanta, and Otani
Speaker 2: hits a triple off the wall and left and Freddie
Speaker 2: Freeman comes up and Freddie Freeman strikes out on a changeup.
Speaker 8: Okay.
Speaker 2: I'm sure Freddie Freeman wasn't trying to hit the ball
Speaker 2: out of the ballpark or a strikeout. I'm pretty sure
Speaker 2: he wasn't going up there thing. How many pitches can
Speaker 2: I swing at and go back to the dugout as
Speaker 2: fast as possible? He is the guy who we can
Speaker 2: rely on. I mean, the last two days he's driven
Speaker 2: and runs late for this Dodgers team. So he's got
Speaker 2: a knack for doing it. He struck out. You tip
Speaker 2: your cap to Iglesias. Mookie Betts is ground out. Again,
Speaker 2: probably not the greatest at bat in the world. Max
Speaker 2: Muncy intentionally walked. Tommy Ebbin flies out to end the game. Again,
Speaker 2: not great situational hitting.
Speaker 5: Got to be better than that.
Speaker 2: But you also have to tip your cap to the
Speaker 2: closer the Atlanta Braves in game one of that series.
Speaker 5: But you're right.
Speaker 2: Maybe in that situation, one time against the Atlanta Braves,
Speaker 2: They could change the philosophy.
Speaker 5: But to change it over the course of a.
Speaker 2: Season or a series or the rest of this season,
Speaker 2: that is just not going to happen.
Speaker 11: 866-987-2570.
Speaker 2: Dodgers baseball brought to you by Modelo. Modelo, the mark
Speaker 2: of a fighter. Again, when you get to October, situations
Speaker 2: are different. You do need to get every run you
Speaker 2: can because they're premium. But it's not like they're completely
Speaker 2: changing their game. I mean, again, I go back to
Speaker 2: the tasker three run home run in Philadelphia last year
Speaker 2: in the playoffs. Dodgers live and died on the slug.
Speaker 5: Just what it is.
Speaker 2: And they do it against bad pitching and they do
Speaker 2: it against good pitching. Theo in Chicago. I love all
Speaker 2: these calls outside of Southern California. We've been to Atlanta.
Speaker 2: We've been to Austin, Texas. Now we're in Chicago.
Speaker 5: Theo, how you doing?
Speaker 8: I'm well.
Speaker 1: How are you?
Speaker 2: I'm doing all right. Getting ready for first pitch, which
Speaker 2: is now about 15 minutes away in Detroit.
Speaker 7: Well, thanks for taking my call. I just wanted to
Speaker 7: point out that when I hear Dave Roberts, the clip
Speaker 7: you played about 10 or so minutes ago, I don't
Speaker 7: hear someone who thinks that things are just going to
Speaker 7: be okay. He seems frustrated. He seems a little bit befuddled.
Speaker 7: And I hear the same thing when I hear the broadcasters,
Speaker 7: whether it's Nelson, whether it's Monday. So I think fans
Speaker 7: have a right to be a little bit frustrated. And
Speaker 7: maybe small ball is not the option, is not the
Speaker 7: right approach here, given the roster. But I think maybe
Speaker 7: riding the ship a little bit with some situational hitting,
Speaker 7: with some situational baseball will help get things right. I
Speaker 7: think things will be okay eventually. It's just the funk
Speaker 7: is way too long, and it's very unusual. And I
Speaker 7: think if you have Dodger fans not calling in and
Speaker 7: being frustrated, I would be concerned that Dodger Nation is
Speaker 7: not right. And so I don't think the right approach
Speaker 7: is getting mad at callers. I think callers have a right.
Speaker 2: They're passionate.
Speaker 7: They love this team. So I think that there has
Speaker 7: to be some solution other than let's just go out
Speaker 7: there and try to hit it out of the park
Speaker 7: or do whatever. I look at Shohei. He seems completely
Speaker 7: out of sorts. I don't know what's going on with him.
Speaker 7: I see the same thing from a lot of other
Speaker 7: players that traditionally haven't been in a slump this long.
Speaker 7: So I don't know. I don't know what the solution is,
Speaker 7: but I don't think avoiding small ball or trying to
Speaker 7: do something different is wrong.
Speaker 1: All right.
Speaker 2: I appreciate the phone call Theo, you know, in a
Speaker 2: situation like the game in the ninth inning against Atlanta,
Speaker 2: the approach does have to be different and you got
Speaker 2: to go out there and you have to figure out
Speaker 2: some way to put the ball in the outfield, drive
Speaker 2: the ball, the right side, get show. Hey, and yeah,
Speaker 2: that's situational baseball, but, but the Dodgers aren't a bunting team,
Speaker 2: so to speak. That's my point I'm bringing up. They're
Speaker 2: still going to rely on the slug, but yes, you
Speaker 2: can get into a situation and do something different. It
Speaker 2: doesn't mean you become that team, and I think that's
Speaker 2: my point I'm trying to make. Dodgers baseball brought to
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Speaker 5: Yeah, I love it.
Speaker 2: I love the fact that Dodger fans are not happy.
Speaker 2: I'm not happy either. My friend group, my family group,
Speaker 2: they're all Dodger fans. Everybody's frustrated. Everybody's asking me for answers.
Speaker 2: I don't got the answers. I'm looking to Dave Roberts
Speaker 2: for answers. And that's what's interesting because Dave Roberts doesn't
Speaker 2: have the answers right now.
Speaker 5: And he's tried all these.
Speaker 2: Different things to shake things up with this Dodgers team
Speaker 2: with the roster he has and the roster that has
Speaker 2: been built to be this juggernaut that is the Los
Speaker 2: Angeles Dodgers. And a couple of callers are brought up
Speaker 2: the fact that, yeah, this is a Dodgers team that
Speaker 2: is still nine games up.
Speaker 5: In the NL West. This is still a Dodgers team.
Speaker 2: That's got, you know, top two record in baseball tied
Speaker 2: with the Atlanta Braves four games back from the Milwaukee Brewers.
Speaker 5: So it's not like a team.
Speaker 2: That's three games over 500 and in danger of not
Speaker 2: making the postseason.
Speaker 5: That's not the case at all.
Speaker 2: So I think this is a Dodgers team again coming
Speaker 2: home getting right in the month of September individually guys
Speaker 2: can get back on track. That's what you want to
Speaker 2: see is this team getting back on track collectively And again,
Speaker 2: with the roster expanding on Tuesday, it'll be interesting to
Speaker 2: see what they do with those two roster spots, a
Speaker 2: pitcher and a position player. I personally think Tibbs is
Speaker 2: the answer for that. If you're going to ask me,
Speaker 2: if you're going to make a roster move and bring
Speaker 2: back Will Smith off the injured list, that means most
Speaker 2: likely it's either Rortvat or Ferduscio is going to be
Speaker 2: the odd man out. You can still bring up another
Speaker 2: position player. Tibbs can play multiple positions. He's a left-handed bat,
Speaker 2: and maybe he's a guy you can plug in and
Speaker 2: Maybe he's a guy at the seven or eight spot
Speaker 2: in the lineup that can provide a spark. Let's go
Speaker 2: out to Dave in Toluca Lake, just around the corner
Speaker 2: here from our Burbank studios. Dave, welcome to Dodger Talk
Speaker 2: as we are about 10 minutes away from first pitch.
Speaker 8: Hey, Tim. Yeah, I'm cautiously optimistic. Got a few solutions here. Okay, great.
Speaker 8: Knowing that we just can't flip a switch, right? But
Speaker 8: number one, I think a lot of people need to realize,
Speaker 8: in my opinion, and feel free to disagree with me,
Speaker 8: hitting is much easier to fix than pitching. If we
Speaker 8: look back last year, everyone was completely out of sorts
Speaker 8: because our pitching was struggling.
Speaker 11: Okay.
Speaker 8: So what do we need to do? First of all,
Speaker 8: I think the good Dodger teams that we've seen over
Speaker 8: the years, we're always great at grinding out at best.
Speaker 8: If you recall, even these guys that were having great
Speaker 8: games against us, they'd be 70, 80 pitches into the
Speaker 8: fifth or 16th. Guys are free swinging too much. We
Speaker 8: need to take some pitches. And my suggestion would be
Speaker 8: let's put Tommy Edmonds at leadoff. Let's move Shohei back
Speaker 8: a couple spots. We need more speed, more contact hitting.
Speaker 8: If you look at the guys that have been getting
Speaker 8: punched out, it's because they've got a head in the count. They're,
Speaker 8: you know, up 2-1 or 3-1 or whatever. And then
Speaker 8: they start taking swings. We need contact ball. And I'm
Speaker 8: not saying play small ball.
Speaker 6: Yeah.
Speaker 8: But, you know, we need to at least square up
Speaker 8: a little bit and pull it back and make these
Speaker 8: guys think maybe we need to adjust. Maybe we need
Speaker 8: to take a few steps in. Move these guys around.
Speaker 8: Don't let them get comfortable. I just feel like everybody
Speaker 8: needs just to step their game up. And contrary to
Speaker 8: what a lot of people think, you just can't send
Speaker 8: people down. You have to DFA them. You can't get
Speaker 8: these veterans that are on contracts. You can't send anybody
Speaker 8: down with the exception of young players to the minors
Speaker 8: like a lot of people think.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm with you, Dave. I like the solutions, and
Speaker 2: I'm going to build on that. I appreciate the phone call.
Speaker 2: I think you hit something on the head there. Tommy
Speaker 2: Edmond in the leadoff spot, I love that. a guy
Speaker 2: who's going to take pitches, Otani maybe drops down into
Speaker 2: the three or four spots. Colin E was just saying
Speaker 2: off air, let him see some at-bats, maybe with runners on.
Speaker 2: If you can get Edmund or Freeman on, maybe Otani
Speaker 2: in the three or four spot, seeing traffic on the
Speaker 2: base pass, putting some pressure on the pitcher, force him
Speaker 2: to throw strikes. I mean, as a leadoff guy, Shohei Otani,
Speaker 2: we love him. But at this point right now, He
Speaker 2: is swinging a lot of first pitches of the game
Speaker 2: and not producing and not getting on. And certainly he
Speaker 2: is still the greatest player of all time. And you
Speaker 2: want to have that bat up there as many times
Speaker 2: as possible. But I think that's not a bad idea.
Speaker 2: Tommy Eminew can grind out at bats, you know, six
Speaker 2: or seven pitch at bat to start off a game.
Speaker 2: Let's see some pitches from the starting pitcher rather than
Speaker 2: just one pitch, one swing, one out.
Speaker 5: From Shohei Otani. I'm not opposed to that.
Speaker 2: Max Muncy is also a guy who takes a lot
Speaker 2: of pitches and can grind down a pitcher. You're absolutely right, Dave,
Speaker 2: and I appreciate that. This is a team that was
Speaker 2: so good, and that's part of their MO was grinding
Speaker 2: it out at starter. Let's get to that bullpen as
Speaker 2: fast as we can.
Speaker 5: How do we do it? Get that pitch count up.
Speaker 2: Let's get to 80 pitches in four-plus innings and get
Speaker 2: to the bullpen for the second half of a game.
Speaker 2: That's what they did so well, passing the baton, so
Speaker 2: to speak. You know, having quality at bats. They've gotten
Speaker 2: away from that, and that's just part of the equation
Speaker 2: that this Dodger team was so successful at doing that
Speaker 2: they've gotten away from.
Speaker 5: Izzy in Anaheim.
Speaker 1: Oh, boy, Izzy.
Speaker 5: I can't imagine you're too happy on this Sunday.
Speaker 7: Not really.
Speaker 10: I was really frustrated yesterday. You know what, guys? I
Speaker 10: learned something about this season.
Speaker 5: Okay, what'd you learn?
Speaker 10: I don't think... I think that trying to win another championship,
Speaker 10: this is going to be the third time in a
Speaker 10: row if they get it. They've been working hard the
Speaker 10: last three years. The body is just not... Don't forget
Speaker 10: that they even went to Tokyo and China. Yeah, the
Speaker 10: last three years, they had to take a toll on
Speaker 10: your body.
Speaker 5: No doubt, Izzy. No doubt. I appreciate it, Izzy.
Speaker 10: I think this is probably going to be an 87-win team. 87-win?
Speaker 5: They're at 81 right now, Izzy.
Speaker 2: I appreciate it. Six more wins the rest of the
Speaker 2: season in this schedule?
Speaker 5: No way. No way.
Speaker 2: Just keep this in mind, Dodger fans. Winning three in
Speaker 2: a row is hard. Nobody said this was going to
Speaker 2: be easy. Yeah, they're running away with the division over
Speaker 2: San Diego and Arizona. Nine games up going into the
Speaker 2: final month of the season. But nobody said this was
Speaker 2: going to be easy. There's adversity, there's struggles, and they're
Speaker 2: in the midst of right now. But there's not saying
Speaker 2: that they can't turn this ship around the final month,
Speaker 2: get right, get back on track for.
Speaker 5: A third World Series championship.
Speaker 2: First pitch from Detroit is coming up next with Stephen
Speaker 2: Nelson and Rick Munday.
Speaker 5: Enjoy, everybody. It's the rubber game. Dodgers-Tigers next.