Speaker 1: Welcome to a very special edition of Dodger Talk David
Speaker 1: Vassay live at Dodgers Stadium. We have forced our way
Speaker 1: in to Dodger Fest and we are going to be
Speaker 1: here with you for the next three hours. There is
Speaker 1: heavy security around this broadcast site. There's my guy, Tanner Scott,
Speaker 1: intimidating bald head with a great beard, Tanner Scott, and yeah,
Speaker 1: we got a lot of security here making sure I
Speaker 1: don't overstep my boundaries here, which is a very small one.
Speaker 1: And there's my guy, a man that every Dodger fan appreciates.
Speaker 1: Now it's never too late to appreciate him, and he
Speaker 1: is now greeting news God. Yeah, there he is Dave Roberts,
Speaker 1: two time World Series Champion, greeting his newest reliever. Dave
Speaker 1: Roberts has wanted Tanner Scott since December, and you got
Speaker 1: your Christmas gift in January.
Speaker 2: I think I've wanted Tanner for like four or five years,
Speaker 2: but I couldn't say it publicly, but we finally got
Speaker 2: our man.
Speaker 3: And this is a great turnout.
Speaker 2: There's a lot of energy and obviously with the renovation
Speaker 2: we got going on here at Dodger Stadium, so we're
Speaker 2: kind of making it work. But I just ran into
Speaker 2: Evan Phillips and Taylo Gonsolin show. Hey was on the stage,
Speaker 2: So this is just exciting. And I'm a week out
Speaker 2: from heading to Camelback, so it's already upon us.
Speaker 1: Dave Roberts has been a great ambassador for the Dodgers
Speaker 1: during his tenure as manager, but this off season, Dave
Speaker 1: seems to be a worldwide ambassador's ship by you can
Speaker 1: you take us through your off season because you really
Speaker 1: have been the face of this franchise after winning the
Speaker 1: World Series and rightfully.
Speaker 2: So, you know what I think, Dave, thanks for saying that.
Speaker 2: And I think the first thing that comes to mind
Speaker 2: is Tommy la Sorta. I don't think there was a
Speaker 2: bigger advocate for the game of baseball and the Los
Speaker 2: Angeles Dodgers and Tommy Lasorta, and with how we're playing,
Speaker 2: with what we've done being so glow, it was something
Speaker 2: for me just to really try to make Los Angeles
Speaker 2: the epicenter of the world in sports, and obviously shohes
Speaker 2: a big part of that.
Speaker 3: Winning certainly does that. And I took a trip to Japan.
Speaker 2: You know we're gonna obviously go back and just talking
Speaker 2: about the Dodgers, talking about baseball. It's really exciting to
Speaker 2: be a Dodger.
Speaker 1: When you always talk about gratitude, do you feel like
Speaker 1: there's that gratitude from your players and from the city
Speaker 1: after just the ride you gave everybody last year?
Speaker 3: There is?
Speaker 2: And the great thing about our players is, certainly the
Speaker 2: city of Los Angeles has gone through some hard times,
Speaker 2: some tragedy recently, and to see our guys step up
Speaker 2: in the community. I always talked Dave, and you know this,
Speaker 2: and baseball is bigger than us. It's got to be
Speaker 2: bigger than you. It's about the Dodgers, it's about the city,
Speaker 2: it's baseball in general. And it's a responsibility and not
Speaker 2: just it's not responsibility go out there and show up
Speaker 2: and pitch every fifth day or take it back. It's
Speaker 2: responsibility to do more. And so our guys have stepped up,
Speaker 2: and with that, they are ready for twenty twenty five
Speaker 2: spring training.
Speaker 3: I've seen so many guys.
Speaker 2: They're excited, they look good physically, they're excited to go
Speaker 2: back to back and we know we got to target
Speaker 2: on our backs and we're gonna be ready to kind
Speaker 2: of you take hold and own it and repeat as champs.
Speaker 1: A couple of things of what you just said right there,
Speaker 1: Let's just start about the responsibility to the city, the community.
Speaker 1: You not only lead in the dugout, but you lead
Speaker 1: in that way. And I saw something this week of
Speaker 1: you being a leader in that respect where you met
Speaker 1: with the Pacific Palisades High School baseball team. You met
Speaker 1: with those kids and it wasn't a quit meet. You
Speaker 1: actually took the time to listen to them and hear
Speaker 1: their story. What was that like for you?
Speaker 2: It was certainly like I told those kids, I said,
Speaker 2: I'm going to get more of this than you guys
Speaker 2: are getting out of this interaction, and obviously acknowledging what
Speaker 2: they're going through, what their families are going through. Half
Speaker 2: of that group of young men lost their homes and
Speaker 2: they're displaced and trying to do school online and commuting
Speaker 2: to Cheviot Hills Park for baseball, and they open up
Speaker 2: in a week, and I just basically commended them on
Speaker 2: their desire to keep going, certainly playing baseball. They were
Speaker 2: out there, joyful, laughing. It was a little bit of
Speaker 2: a diversion, a respite from real life. But I told
Speaker 2: them Dave that they have a chance to individually collectively
Speaker 2: write their own story, and not only the city of
Speaker 2: Los Angeles, but our country has eyes on them. Thoughts,
Speaker 2: prayers are going out to them, their families and as
Speaker 2: they embark on a baseball season, you know, baseball. I mean,
Speaker 2: I said, guys, there might be an opportunity, this might
Speaker 2: be a yeah, you know, and their relationships right now
Speaker 2: with what they've gone through. These kids, they've have gone
Speaker 2: through COVID, They've gone through this and for young kids
Speaker 2: in a short time in their lives, that's a lot
Speaker 2: to take on. And so again I was just giving
Speaker 2: them a lot of encouragement and praise and a little
Speaker 2: shout out certainly to Palisay's high school charter school baseball program.
Speaker 1: Yeah, Dave Roberts has his finger on the heartbeat of
Speaker 1: this city. He not only has managed here for the
Speaker 1: last nine years, he's not only won two World Series championships,
Speaker 1: but he played and he understands what it means to
Speaker 1: wear the uniform. And when you talk about guys being
Speaker 1: ready already, I'm sure that's got to be a relief
Speaker 1: as a manager of not doubting how hungry those group
Speaker 1: of guys.
Speaker 2: Are, Yeah, absolutely, because I remember when I first started playing,
Speaker 2: guys used spring training to get into shape, and you
Speaker 2: remember those days. But this year we're only going to
Speaker 2: be in Arizona Camelback Ranch for four weeks and so
Speaker 2: then we're going to make our journey to Tokyo, So
Speaker 2: it is two weeks less than we're used to, so
Speaker 2: guys have to be prepared. There's Tyler Glasna there, he is,
Speaker 2: he looks, he looks fantastic. So guys are ready to go.
Speaker 2: So certainly starting pitchers, it's a quicker ramp up, so
Speaker 2: they got to be, you know, throwing their sides and
Speaker 2: being ready to go, and hitters have got to be
Speaker 2: ready to go. So across the board UH training staff.
Speaker 2: Brandon McDaniel, who's performance UH coach and he's going to
Speaker 2: take on a different role this year for US, has
Speaker 2: kind of had a thumb on these guys and they've
Speaker 2: done a great job.
Speaker 1: When you look at the roster, I mean, obviously you
Speaker 1: have a lot of guys that were with you last
Speaker 1: year to win the World Series Championship. How important is
Speaker 1: it to bring in new guys, new blood that haven't
Speaker 1: been able to like that guy there he is, Oh
Speaker 1: my god, Yeah, he's my guy. Come on with your guy, TV,
Speaker 1: he's your guy.
Speaker 4: Now.
Speaker 3: I thought it was that he.
Speaker 1: Wanted to be He wanted to be with you. That's
Speaker 1: what it was. And Barnes is jealous already, that's for sure.
Speaker 3: No.
Speaker 2: But the thing is, though, is that you made a
Speaker 2: great point though, Dave, is that keeping the culture, the
Speaker 2: talent in place right is crucial. And then when you
Speaker 2: kind of shake it up a little bit, you shake
Speaker 2: it up with guys that are talented, but also guys
Speaker 2: that are hungry. And so when you're talking about Tanner Scott,
Speaker 2: you're talking about Blake Snell, Michael CONFORDO, different guys like that,
Speaker 2: Kirby as that we added that are proven studs. But
Speaker 2: one thing that they're missing from their trophy case is
Speaker 2: a World Series championship. So bringing these guys in to
Speaker 2: continue to add that urgency and Tasker Hernandez was a
Speaker 2: guy last year for us, and so guys like that
Speaker 2: that continue to be additive to the culture and raise
Speaker 2: the level of talent. That's exactly what we've done this winter.
Speaker 1: Oh Tani's second year with the Dodgers, after what we saw,
Speaker 1: it felt like him and Taoscar just wouldn't let anybody
Speaker 1: believe you were going to lose, even in that first round.
Speaker 2: That's exactly right, Dave, because and obviously, how dare I
Speaker 2: forget show Hey. But the thing is, though, is that
Speaker 2: we won in twenty there's a lot of guys that
Speaker 2: you know, justin Turner, different guys that we've had that
Speaker 2: you know, I wish could have been with us, and
Speaker 2: Cory Seger that could have been with us for this
Speaker 2: parade in twenty twenty four. But guys like Showhy and
Speaker 2: Tao really led the charge this year because they wanted
Speaker 2: what Mooki had, what Freddie had, you know, different guys
Speaker 2: with Austin Barnes as you mentioned had so that was
Speaker 2: a great infusion and we did the same thing this year.
Speaker 1: Have you had a chance to go back and watch
Speaker 1: any of the games from the postseason, whether it was
Speaker 1: the NLDS or the World Series? You know, I've gone
Speaker 1: back to watch a few of them recently, and I
Speaker 1: don't know, Dave, You've had a lot of great moments
Speaker 1: as a manager, But I felt like Game five and
Speaker 1: the eighth inning after Judge doubled Jash Chisholm walks you
Speaker 1: go out to the mound and you feel the heartbeat
Speaker 1: of Blake trining to me, that was one of the
Speaker 1: greatest moments you've as a manager.
Speaker 3: I think.
Speaker 2: So, you know, going back a little bit, Dave, you
Speaker 2: know when Bruce dar pitched that game and I just
Speaker 2: felt he wasn't as sharp as he has been. When
Speaker 2: I made a decision to go to Blake right there,
Speaker 2: I knew I was going to be in bed with
Speaker 2: Blake essentially for the rest of the game, or go
Speaker 2: as long as he can go. And so that right there,
Speaker 2: the guy fought back, and I felt I owed it
Speaker 2: to them to be all in and manage the bullpen
Speaker 2: as in essentially a winner go home game, even though
Speaker 2: it was Game five, and I thought our guys earned
Speaker 2: that opportunity. And so as you mentioned that point with Blake,
Speaker 2: I just wanted to kind of call a time out,
Speaker 2: to get get a twenty second time out, slow things
Speaker 2: down a little bit, look him in the eye, feel
Speaker 2: his heart, make sure you know, see where he was at.
Speaker 2: And he assured me that he felt good, he had
Speaker 2: a lot more in the tank. And you know, it
Speaker 2: proved to be the right decision, And you know, this
Speaker 2: was one of the things that I'll always remember and
Speaker 2: one of the great things about you know, being a manager.
Speaker 2: And that's a moment Dave that that might I too,
Speaker 2: will never forget it.
Speaker 1: You know, You've had great moments in the World Series, Dave,
Speaker 1: going back to still in that base and scoring you know,
Speaker 1: two important runs for the Red Sox. I mean, when
Speaker 1: you talk about Dave Roberts in the World Series, it
Speaker 1: just seems like the slow heartbeat. Whether it was as
Speaker 1: a player or a manager, I mean, it just it's invaluable.
Speaker 2: It's invaluable, and I think that you know, one thing
Speaker 2: I talk a lot about to our players is having
Speaker 2: smart players. And when you have smart players, and I'm
Speaker 2: not talking about scoring you know on an act or
Speaker 2: an SAT smart players, I mean by having feel understanding
Speaker 2: the value of the little things about you know, rundowns
Speaker 2: or throwing to the right base or you know, taking
Speaker 2: a walk to potentially get the next hitter up. Understand
Speaker 2: the value of each out the scoreboard, the long season,
Speaker 2: what preparation means. And so when you have smart players
Speaker 2: like that, when the moment gets there, it never gets
Speaker 2: too big. And there was a moment last year where
Speaker 2: I said to the guys in spring training that each
Speaker 2: one of you guys has got to get to the
Speaker 2: point where you want to be the guy with the
Speaker 2: baseball in the bottom.
Speaker 3: Of the ninth inning.
Speaker 2: In the bottom of the ninth inning, you got to
Speaker 2: want to be the guy with the balls hit to you,
Speaker 2: or you got to want to be the guy at bat.
Speaker 3: When the game's on the line.
Speaker 2: Because I think that every player will say that they
Speaker 2: want to be that guy, but I challenge each guy
Speaker 2: that behind closed doors, when you look in the mirror,
Speaker 2: you've got to find a way to really convince yourself
Speaker 2: that you are that guy. And last year I felt
Speaker 2: we had twenty six guys that really believed that they
Speaker 2: were the right guy in any spot they were put in.
Speaker 1: And he's the right guy to be the manager of
Speaker 1: the Dodgers for as long as he wants, and I
Speaker 1: have no doubt the Dodgers will make that happen. Dave,
Speaker 1: thanks a lot stopping by. You know, Mookie Betts had
Speaker 1: a great podcast with you. You know, I can't duplicate
Speaker 1: that I don't have that type of setup, but this
Speaker 1: was really awesome to share you with the fans, and
Speaker 1: I'm really happy for you that you know you are
Speaker 1: getting your due and rightfully so as a world champion manager,
Speaker 1: and there I can't imagine anybody else driving this ship.
Speaker 3: Yeah, well, thank you, Dave.
Speaker 2: And you know again, I just I love the city,
Speaker 2: I love the Dodgers, I love my players, and twenty
Speaker 2: twenty five is upon us now and let's go and
Speaker 2: have another great year.
Speaker 3: But thanks again, Dave.
Speaker 4: Love it.
Speaker 1: We'll see in Arizona. There is two times, two time
Speaker 1: World Series champion manager Dave Roberts. As a manager, I
Speaker 1: know he's a player world champion as well, but as
Speaker 1: a manager, I think that sets him apart from a
Speaker 1: lot of others, and also the highest winning percentage of
Speaker 1: any manager out there as well. I know they're including
Speaker 1: the negro leagues and stuff, but modern day baseball, how
Speaker 1: about that, Dave Roberts, I got the long rest for you.
Speaker 1: We could keep going all day long. We'll continue this
Speaker 1: in Asy. We're gonna take a time out now on
Speaker 1: Dodger Talk. When we come back, we'll see who else
Speaker 1: stops by. We're here until three o'clock. I crashed the
Speaker 1: party Dodger Talk from Dodger Fest right here on a
Speaker 1: five to seventy LA Sports Hey, we are live from
Speaker 1: Dodger Fest, having a great time, just chopping it up,
Speaker 1: talking shop Tanner Scott, Hay Song Kim and Evan Phillips.
Speaker 1: And here they are the dynamic duo, the Yin and
Speaker 1: the Yang teammates now in that Dodger bullpen. One's the
Speaker 1: righty super reliever, the other a lefty super reliever, and
Speaker 1: that is Evan Phillips and Tanner Scott. Guys, thanks a
Speaker 1: lot to day one of what's going to be a
Speaker 1: great ride in twenty twenty five.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 4: Absolutely, thanks for having us, Dave, thanks for having us.
Speaker 1: Oh come on, that's all you guys got now the
Speaker 1: microphones are on. Yeah, come on, hey Tanner, you said
Speaker 1: you were with Hay Song Kim yesterday. Yeah, and he
Speaker 1: was here already.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: He's a jokester, already got you.
Speaker 4: He got me one nothing him one nothing.
Speaker 1: He tricked you. He he you thought he was brothers
Speaker 1: with High Song Kim yep, And he said yes.
Speaker 5: Yeah, And then thirty minutes later they told me they
Speaker 5: were not even related.
Speaker 4: I was like, that's how kulable I am.
Speaker 1: What's this relationship going to be like? Now that your
Speaker 1: teammates between Evan Phillips and Tanner Scott.
Speaker 6: Well, we've been teammates before, so I think, you know,
Speaker 6: it's going to be it's a few years removed, you know,
Speaker 6: from all that, but it's probably gonna feel more surreal
Speaker 6: for our families to be connected again, you know, on
Speaker 6: a day to day basis.
Speaker 7: That's going to be a lot of fun.
Speaker 6: But you know, in the clubhouse, it's just going to
Speaker 6: be you know, kind of back to the roots of
Speaker 6: you know, breaking into the big leagues together.
Speaker 4: Yeah, back to back, back to what twenty.
Speaker 6: Yeah, eighteen eighteen to twenty one, so you know, well
Speaker 6: a lot of history, a lot of you know, ups
Speaker 6: and downs together throughout the big leagues, minor league level.
Speaker 6: So just to be on that journey together and then
Speaker 6: now to kind of meet again at this point, it's
Speaker 6: it's definitely special.
Speaker 1: How did you guys connect initially with or was it
Speaker 1: just nobody else wanted to play catch with? Evan and
Speaker 1: Tanner said, okay, I'll do it. How did this happen?
Speaker 7: He was he was a weird guy, you know, guy
Speaker 7: was a new guy.
Speaker 4: And no, it was it was easy.
Speaker 5: Yeah, hackey sack, hacky sack. He made us, He made
Speaker 5: his team hacky Sack shirts. We all rocked him before
Speaker 5: before stretching everything, and then stretch happened, and I don't know,
Speaker 5: the rest has been his.
Speaker 6: We we had been you know, playing against each other too,
Speaker 6: you know, going up through the minor leagues. The Orioles
Speaker 6: and Braves kind of had you know, parallel teams, you know,
Speaker 6: in similar leagues and all that. So I had played
Speaker 6: against him and heard his name a lot, and you know,
Speaker 6: being an Orioles fan, I was, you know, I had
Speaker 6: like a side where I you know, on what was
Speaker 6: going on with them too. So when I got traded
Speaker 6: over there, I was obviously familiar with you know, their team,
Speaker 6: and you know, being you know, similar age and relievers
Speaker 6: and all this trying to get our footing in the
Speaker 6: big leagues, it was just easy for us to connect.
Speaker 6: And yeah, Hackey Sack was a We did a lot
Speaker 6: of that together. We had a big group of guys
Speaker 6: in the bullpen. That's kind of like how we you know,
Speaker 6: you know, just hung out for a few minutes before
Speaker 6: we started playing catch that day.
Speaker 1: Any chance the Hackey Sack comes to the Dodgers way,
Speaker 1: it's been suit.
Speaker 3: Way too long.
Speaker 5: I don't know our dads and it's like, yeah, do
Speaker 5: we still have that skill?
Speaker 6: I don't know if I'm will waste any extra energy
Speaker 6: on playing hockey sack.
Speaker 4: When I got to.
Speaker 7: Chick Toddler and.
Speaker 1: Both dads sons named bow but spelled differently and bow
Speaker 1: that's right. Haven't made that very clear? When you sign
Speaker 1: with the Dodgers.
Speaker 7: Bow and Bow.
Speaker 6: Hey, it makes it a little bit easier to separate it,
Speaker 6: you know, I just uh be you and b Oh yeah,
Speaker 6: but it's a I can't wait to have those guys around.
Speaker 6: They're both gonna just be I'm sure all the play
Speaker 6: dates and you know, road trips together, it's be a
Speaker 6: lot of fun.
Speaker 5: Oh yeah, definitely. Our wife have been talking even more now,
Speaker 5: so it's like, hey, let's we're gonna do this.
Speaker 4: Hey, we're gonna do this. Hey, when do you get
Speaker 4: out the spring? What are we doing?
Speaker 3: Ye?
Speaker 6: Matter of fact, you I should probably just move into
Speaker 6: the house that you got ras buy a nice big house.
Speaker 7: Let's just you know, we'll pop in right beside you.
Speaker 7: How about that? You can see the death stair.
Speaker 6: Tanner's giving me right now, yeah, giving it.
Speaker 5: It's just my eyebrows, those resting ones Tanner.
Speaker 1: Evan doesn't like talking about himself. So what's the evolution
Speaker 1: of Evan Phillips been like from when you were teammates?
Speaker 1: To see how accomplished he is now in the success
Speaker 1: he's had and belief in himself.
Speaker 5: I mean, yeah, he's always had. He's always had amazing stuff,
Speaker 5: and I mean everyone knows that. And then now to
Speaker 5: see him doing what he's doing, it's it's awesome from
Speaker 5: outside looking in. Now I get to be a part
Speaker 5: of part of the team with him and get to
Speaker 5: experience it, and hopefully we get to back be back
Speaker 5: throwing together. But I don't know, Blake. Maybe I'm gonna
Speaker 5: have to talk to Tran about it. Oh yeah, hopefully
Speaker 5: hopefully lets me have my throwing partner back.
Speaker 4: It's awesome.
Speaker 1: We're gonna do that.
Speaker 6: Talking to Blake, I mean definitely him, he knows him. Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 6: not me. We'll lay it out there now. I think
Speaker 6: Tanner and I are gonna be throwing partners for as
Speaker 6: long as possible.
Speaker 8: For sure.
Speaker 6: We've got that that history. You know, there's some some
Speaker 6: good chemistry and the catch play. You know that that
Speaker 6: kind of stuff matters.
Speaker 1: All right, Yeah, for sure, I kind of picture you
Speaker 1: guys being catch partners, not this past offseason, but the
Speaker 1: way having described it a couple of years back. Now
Speaker 1: he moved away from me, He's not over.
Speaker 7: Clearly, I'm not over.
Speaker 4: I let him know. I let him know every time.
Speaker 5: I'm like, remember when we used to live like ten
Speaker 5: minutes away, like a flight.
Speaker 1: Yeah, well, when he became a Dodger Tanner, I kind
Speaker 1: of picture you, like, you know, throwing the ball and
Speaker 1: him throwing it back to him. You picking his brain
Speaker 1: about what the Dodgers do so well, And maybe that's
Speaker 1: where you know the seed was planted that one day
Speaker 1: you wanted to be teammates with him and Dodger Blue.
Speaker 1: Do I have that vision? Am I picturing that correctly?
Speaker 9: Yeah?
Speaker 4: I mean he would.
Speaker 5: He would say some things that's really nice about really
Speaker 5: nice about the organization, and would stay in the back
Speaker 5: of my mind. And then I think I think his
Speaker 5: wife really sold my wife because she was comfaning her
Speaker 5: on on what it's like to live in La.
Speaker 6: Yeah, you know, I think I think initially it was
Speaker 6: just so far away, you know, from that being a
Speaker 6: possibility of being teammates again that you know, I initially
Speaker 6: it was just hey, like, what did the Dodgers tell
Speaker 6: you that made it work so well? You know, and
Speaker 6: we would just talk about that kind of stuff, and
Speaker 6: you know, in the background, I was always telling the
Speaker 6: Dodgers like, hey, you know, Tanner Scott's another guy that
Speaker 6: could really benefit from being a Dodger, you know, just
Speaker 6: and really taking another step. So you know, he's already
Speaker 6: done that in his own way in the past few
Speaker 6: years and different organizations, so to you know, try to
Speaker 6: take the next step here with with the Dodgers and
Speaker 6: ultimately lead the championships. I think, like, you know, that
Speaker 6: kind of growth is going to be you know, the
Speaker 6: next step for for Tanner and and you know, hopefully
Speaker 6: we can you know what Mike, Mike Mookie said, and
Speaker 6: you get more rings on these hands.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I would love that Evan Phillips and Tanner Scott
Speaker 1: are joining us. You know, at his press conference, he
Speaker 1: got uncomfortable. First time Tanner Scott's ever got comfortable. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I called you the Otani stopper.
Speaker 4: Okay, yeah, you do not like that. That can't be.
Speaker 4: That can't be. We just met in the hallway and
Speaker 4: we're good.
Speaker 1: Was that awkward?
Speaker 4: Oh? I mean he's a special human being. I mean
Speaker 4: what he what he does.
Speaker 1: That's why it's impressive that you're the Otani stopper. No,
Speaker 1: he's not smiling because he doesn't have to face Tanner
Speaker 1: Scott anymore.
Speaker 4: Oh no, no, no, no, we're teammates, so it doesn't matter.
Speaker 1: I know it's gonna be great. You got the two
Speaker 1: guys that are amazing players in their own right being
Speaker 1: on the same team together. Now, Tanner, I hope you
Speaker 1: don't mind. I'm gonna ask Evan about how his arm
Speaker 1: is feeling after he was not on the World Series roster.
Speaker 4: Oh no, I was allowed to ask. That wasn't a
Speaker 4: part of it.
Speaker 5: We were talking about it on the ride end because
Speaker 5: we wrote in together actually too. I was like, what
Speaker 5: was it like being in that World Series? That was
Speaker 5: pretty nice, but it wasn't part of it. I'm like, dude,
Speaker 5: you gotta ring.
Speaker 4: Yeah, you got to.
Speaker 1: It was a big part of it all season long.
Speaker 4: That's that's all that matters.
Speaker 6: So many mixed feelings about, you know, not being able
Speaker 6: to play in the World Series, right, and they think
Speaker 6: about you know, I'd have conversations with you know, guys
Speaker 6: in the clubhouse, like Miguel Rojas. You ten year career,
Speaker 6: first time in the World Series, right, it doesn't just happen.
Speaker 6: So to miss out on that was really hard to
Speaker 6: deal with. But uh, you know, physically, I just wasn't
Speaker 6: in a position to do it. I couldn't push through it. Thankfully,
Speaker 6: I'm recovered at this point. I'm just not quite built
Speaker 6: up to where I need to be, you know, where
Speaker 6: I would normally be at this point in the offseason.
Speaker 6: So well, you know, I'm heading the Phoenix here soon,
Speaker 6: so we'll we'll get out there, they'll get eyes on
Speaker 6: me and kind of see how the progression builds from here.
Speaker 6: But I'm coming into spring training healthy, you know, and
Speaker 6: now it's just a matter of putting the building blocks
Speaker 6: together to get ready for Opening Day, or you know,
Speaker 6: if it's a little bit beyond that, then we'll we'll
Speaker 6: take those steps.
Speaker 3: Then.
Speaker 1: Well, just think about it this way, Evan. I mean,
Speaker 1: you were such a big part of not only the
Speaker 1: twenty twenty four Dodgers, but ever since you've emerged, since
Speaker 1: twenty twenty one, I mean, nobody even blinks an eye
Speaker 1: and thinks about, well, you know, he didn't pitch in
Speaker 1: the World Series. Evan Phillips is the anchor. When you
Speaker 1: talk about the Dodger bullpen, you say Phillips trying in
Speaker 1: Tanner Scott, Alex Sabasia. You are a dog and Tanner
Speaker 1: Scott now is going to be part of that dog pound.
Speaker 7: Right.
Speaker 6: Yeah, he's a great fit. I mean, initial conversations I
Speaker 6: had with you know, you know all the got the staff,
Speaker 6: you know, Mark pryor Dave Roberts, that were just asking, hey,
Speaker 6: what's he like? And I always said each time, he's
Speaker 6: just a perfect fit for our our culture down there
Speaker 6: in the bullpen that you know, Josh Bart is trying
Speaker 6: to instill in all of us. And you know, I
Speaker 6: certainly take a lot of pride and being you know
Speaker 6: someone of the guys can you know, I want to.
Speaker 7: Say look up to in that way.
Speaker 6: But I think when you when you establish a good
Speaker 6: kind of culture that you know, just blends well through
Speaker 6: each guy and everyone kind of just feeds off of
Speaker 6: each other. It's it's a really healthy environment down there.
Speaker 6: And I think you really saw that come to fruition
Speaker 6: and the we're in the postseason last year with you know,
Speaker 6: the bullpen games and how we managed that without you know,
Speaker 6: any sort of you know, ego or pride getting in
Speaker 6: the way, just doing whatever it took to get the
Speaker 6: job done, and you know, ultimately it led to a
Speaker 6: championship ring. So I would love to try to replicate
Speaker 6: that again the season.
Speaker 1: It'd be sweet to see three or four champagne celebrations
Speaker 1: with Tanner, Scott and Evan Phillips. You need a ring, Yeah,
Speaker 1: it'd be great to get one with Evan again, Right,
Speaker 1: that would be sweet.
Speaker 4: That would be great. Yeah, I definitely need one. I mean,
Speaker 4: I'm kind of jealous that I wasn't a part.
Speaker 5: Of it, but I got to see it, see it
Speaker 5: come together this offseason and be a part of this
Speaker 5: team and finally where this Dodger Blue.
Speaker 1: Love it Tanner Evan. I feel like I'll be saying
Speaker 1: that all season long. Tanner, Heaven, you've.
Speaker 6: Got a limit. We're gonna talk to one. You got
Speaker 6: like a three three person limit. Okay, you can only
Speaker 6: do this three more times this year?
Speaker 1: When I talk to right here now, he's saying, too,
Speaker 1: So can I talk to Evan? Do I have to
Speaker 1: talk to Tanner? It would be awkward if I said, Hey.
Speaker 4: No, either way, that's it.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it counts us one. Yeah, all right. I'm glad
Speaker 1: we set the ground rolls early. I'll keep my hand you, Scott.
Speaker 1: I'm not scared from ten feet away. Thanks guys, thanks
Speaker 1: for stopping by and looking forward to a great year.
Speaker 1: And Evan look forward to you ramping up and not
Speaker 1: asking you about it every day I get. I'll give
Speaker 1: you like at least ten days before I ask you
Speaker 1: about it. There's a good feeling.
Speaker 7: There, it is, I feel great. Let's put that out there.
Speaker 8: I do.
Speaker 1: That's one, and then that's one ten days, so nine,
Speaker 1: I only got nine more.
Speaker 4: I thought it was three.
Speaker 1: No, if I it, I'll give him ten days before
Speaker 1: I ask how his arms feeling.
Speaker 4: But then that's one one time.
Speaker 1: So it's this year. My gosh, it's like a Chuck
Speaker 1: E Cheese punch card over here. All right, guys, thanks
Speaker 1: a lot for stopping by, and we'll see you in Arizona. Tanner, Scott,
Speaker 1: you'll warm up to the vass a charm. Don't worry.
Speaker 1: I will some days more than others. Evan can explain,
Speaker 1: explain it, explain.
Speaker 4: We're just waiting for you to explain.
Speaker 7: I'll tell you later.
Speaker 1: All right, we're gonna take a time out here on
Speaker 1: Dodger Talk. When we continue, somebody else will show up.
Speaker 1: I'm sure who's next. Snail Zilla wants in bad, but
Speaker 1: I keep on giving him the heisman.
Speaker 2: You know.
Speaker 1: Let me checking my official rundown right here. Yes, snail
Speaker 1: Zilla wants in twelve.
Speaker 4: Thirty nice alright, Dave?
Speaker 1: All right, guys, thanks a lot for stopping by Tanner Scott,
Speaker 1: Evan Phillips, part of the vaunted Dodger Bullpen. In twenty
Speaker 1: twenty five, We're gonna take a time out, and yes,
Speaker 1: what you've been waiting for since he signed, Blake Snell
Speaker 1: David Vass. The show comes up next on m five
Speaker 1: to seventy l a. Sports Are they already? Oh my gosh, jealousy.
Speaker 1: You know that voice. He's gonna stay the rest of
Speaker 1: the show. Everybody else go home. David Vassy live at
Speaker 1: Dodger Fest at Dodger Talk. And here he is, the
Speaker 1: two time, two time Cy Young Award winner no hitter
Speaker 1: last year, the biggest sign for the Dodgers this offseason,
Speaker 1: wearing that number seven. He's got a tight haircut. And
Speaker 1: here he is the one and only Blake Snell aka
Speaker 1: snell Zilla, aka my number one guy on this team.
Speaker 8: No, no, okay.
Speaker 1: I was gonna say, aka daddy, whoa on the time road. Hey,
Speaker 1: here comes your brother from another mother A song?
Speaker 3: Right there? My dog?
Speaker 1: No Zilla's number one. Oh secret handshake already, even with
Speaker 1: the interpreter.
Speaker 4: You got one?
Speaker 8: My boys?
Speaker 1: Where are you taking them? Korea town tonight? Where are
Speaker 1: you taking them for dinner? Korean barbecue tonight? He loves it. Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 1: he says, yes.
Speaker 8: Song too.
Speaker 1: Oh wow, I song to guys.
Speaker 8: He gonna be there?
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, yeah, I love it. That's your guy.
Speaker 8: Are they done? Oh?
Speaker 1: Here come here, hey song put this on. Talk to
Speaker 1: Blake Snell. Yes, calm come, we're live on radio. He
Speaker 1: knows what that means. That's crazy and Vivo and Vivo
Speaker 1: all radio with Blake Snell. Oh, he's nervous. He doesn't.
Speaker 1: He doesn't like you already. See I gotta heat. Why
Speaker 1: does he like you?
Speaker 8: Stuff for me when I'm done with this, and then
Speaker 8: I'm gonna meet you in the room.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you're gonna get ain't playing?
Speaker 8: Yeah, yeah, we got a plan.
Speaker 7: Yeah.
Speaker 1: I had the skittles. Snail Zilla's coming in there after this.
Speaker 8: I don't I don't like skittles. I like Eminem's with peanuts.
Speaker 1: I love Eminem's with peanuts too. You know what I
Speaker 1: had yesterday? You would love Life Saver gummies?
Speaker 8: Whoa?
Speaker 1: I want to save them for my kids, but I
Speaker 1: ate them in the car.
Speaker 3: Come on, man, that's what I did.
Speaker 8: Man?
Speaker 1: How does it feel you're wearing this jersey?
Speaker 3: People?
Speaker 1: Your teammates?
Speaker 8: Now you got Kobe's on? Man?
Speaker 1: Yeah? Like these they were available? Okay, hardy get them.
Speaker 1: Take what it's available. I asked o Tany for a
Speaker 1: promo code for New Balance. He said, no, No, you
Speaker 1: gotta work harder.
Speaker 3: Man.
Speaker 1: What are you? You're a Nike guy, right, Yeah, you're
Speaker 1: sponsored by Nike. You're gonna have like air Jordan cleats?
Speaker 1: Is that what you wear?
Speaker 8: They don't want me to wear Jordan's Nike Nike only. Yeah,
Speaker 8: I got a two times Young Winner. Can't get on
Speaker 8: team Jordan?
Speaker 1: Are you kidding me? Hey, I'm gonna work on that.
Speaker 1: Work on it, hey, Kelly Jansen's a jump man. Mookie's
Speaker 1: a jump man. They don't have tu Cy youngs. Mookie's
Speaker 1: gotta yeah, bok got a couple of words, but two times.
Speaker 8: Come on, yeah, they don't.
Speaker 1: That meant a lot to Kenley when he became a
Speaker 1: jump man. Would that mean a lot to you?
Speaker 3: Uh?
Speaker 8: Yeah, I like Nike. Okay, I'm good, But all right,
Speaker 8: they're in the same fan.
Speaker 1: We don't want to burn the family. Yeah, you know
Speaker 1: the bridge, right, like I like? Uh, I like both. Hey,
Speaker 1: I heard you are at work in Arizona. You've been
Speaker 1: working with the Dodgers. I mean it's not funny games
Speaker 1: for snail Zilla around this time.
Speaker 8: No, I got a lot, you know, a lot to
Speaker 8: prove and I gotta I gotta get ready. I gotta
Speaker 8: learn the spring we spring train is gonna be like
Speaker 8: with a new team, learn the coaches, players, kind of
Speaker 8: figure out where I'm gonna fit in, where I want,
Speaker 8: what I want to do every morning to get ready
Speaker 8: to play. So yeah, I mean getting down there early
Speaker 8: is probably what's best for me to to to be
Speaker 8: ready to be the best to me once once the
Speaker 8: season starts.
Speaker 1: You've been on now four teams in your career. Yeah,
Speaker 1: You've always wanted a home, always wanted a home. It
Speaker 1: feels like you found a home. How much does that
Speaker 1: make it more comfortable to know this isn't just a
Speaker 1: one year thing.
Speaker 8: Yeah, it's big. I finally get it, Like buy homes. Yeah,
Speaker 8: I get to really invest into not only myself, but
Speaker 8: the players that are coming up with the Rays. The
Speaker 8: thing that they did best is the older players really
Speaker 8: did help the younger players a lot, and I was spoiled.
Speaker 8: I had so many veterans around me to really help
Speaker 8: grow me as a man a player, and that's kind
Speaker 8: of what I'm looking forward to do as well, the
Speaker 8: best that I can. But I've already been meeting with
Speaker 8: a couple of guys. Bobby's kind of been Bobby Ice,
Speaker 8: that's what you call him. Yeah, Yeah, that's Bobby Miller here.
Speaker 8: Reminds me a lot of just me when I was younger,
Speaker 8: and I feel there's a lot I can do to
Speaker 8: help him kind of mature into his career and just
Speaker 8: start believing in his ability more so. That's a guy
Speaker 8: I'll be around a lot. He might know that he
Speaker 8: might not, but that's awesome. I see a lot of
Speaker 8: similarities there, So definitely looking forward to that. But for
Speaker 8: my playing career, Kershaw is kind of the guy. I
Speaker 8: can't wait to meet him be around him. The thing
Speaker 8: going out on Instagram, my search feed everywhere is one
Speaker 8: hundred ninety nine starts of or one hundred ninety three
Speaker 8: starts of an era under a two and seven innings average,
Speaker 8: Like that's insane. I want to find a way to
Speaker 8: do that, to be as good as he was. I
Speaker 8: think I'm just getting into my prime. I think I
Speaker 8: got a lot left, so I really want to see
Speaker 8: how good I can really be and invest everything I
Speaker 8: can into these next five years. But I think I
Speaker 8: really have like eight years left. You do until I
Speaker 8: think I might not be the same guy, and then
Speaker 8: when that's over with, I'll go be a dad and
Speaker 8: I'll be happy with that. But once I'm not as
Speaker 8: good as I believe I should be and making a
Speaker 8: career out that I want, I'll be good to walk away.
Speaker 1: We always reinvent ourselves. We always have to evolve. I've
Speaker 1: heard athletes talk about training differently once they hit their thirties,
Speaker 1: but it feels like even last year you started to
Speaker 1: evolve as a pitcher to stay in games deeper and
Speaker 1: being allowed number one, be allowed to stay in games later.
Speaker 8: Yeah, there's a comfort with Bob Melvin, and I text
Speaker 8: to him a bunch, especially before the trade or before
Speaker 8: I signed, and then after I signed. But he I
Speaker 8: really love Bob Melvin. He he really would would talk
Speaker 8: to me all the time about what he expects, what
Speaker 8: I expect, how to get there. Uh, he would leave
Speaker 8: me out in the game. He always trusted me, and
Speaker 8: it made it so much fun to pitch, you know,
Speaker 8: for him and that team. I feel san Diego san
Speaker 8: fran but he's really an amazing manager. So that was
Speaker 8: something that that I really love. Was just a comfort
Speaker 8: he would bring me pitching knowing that, you know, this
Speaker 8: is my game as long as as I want to
Speaker 8: be out there and can help the team, and he
Speaker 8: has my back the whole way through.
Speaker 1: I love what you said at your press conference when
Speaker 1: you said I'm going to invest in people on this team,
Speaker 1: I just need them to invest in me as well.
Speaker 1: I feel like that's what every player strives forwards. If
Speaker 1: you want to be part of it, I'll invest everything
Speaker 1: in you, but you've got to invest in me as well.
Speaker 8: Yeah, and for me, for me, that's everything. It's tough
Speaker 8: to be on a team and then say like, hey,
Speaker 8: I'm gonna make all these players better, but I'm only
Speaker 8: here for one year. Yeah, it's like someone to make
Speaker 8: them all better to then you're not gonna want to
Speaker 8: sign me Like that's where the business part comes in.
Speaker 8: You don't like it, but it's it's the reality, and
Speaker 8: you know, you got to look at it that way too,
Speaker 8: to where now you know this team invested in me,
Speaker 8: I can invest in there and them their players, and
Speaker 8: it's gonna mean that much more. You know, every game
Speaker 8: you win is gonna matter. Every everything you do matters.
Speaker 8: And I love that feeling so much much more, having
Speaker 8: my own home, being able to say, you know what,
Speaker 8: like I can spend the whole off season in LA
Speaker 8: that's important to me.
Speaker 1: I'm going to have to tell the stories that people
Speaker 1: don't know. I think they're starting to see this side
Speaker 1: of Blake Snell. But another side of Blake Snell is
Speaker 1: the fact that you've pitched the majority of your career
Speaker 1: without a lot of run support. You got the offense,
Speaker 1: including that guy, a great Italian American Michael Confordo behind
Speaker 1: you that is going to put up some runs.
Speaker 8: Hey, that's gonna be nice.
Speaker 1: Where he's from Jersey?
Speaker 8: No, no, come on.
Speaker 1: Don't tell me he's from Seattle too. Oh no, he's
Speaker 1: so well adjusted. How is he from Seattle? And he's
Speaker 1: got a ten he's got a take Arizona by the way,
Speaker 1: you got to get in the sun a little bit more.
Speaker 1: You're looking Seattle, Pale White Hide the Ball, The Ball,
Speaker 1: two of America's most wanted Me and Snell about the
Speaker 1: Clown twenty twenty five. Thank you for staying.
Speaker 8: I appreciate you.
Speaker 1: Hey, this show is gonna go on. You want to
Speaker 1: stay the rest of the show, all right, Snell Zella,
Speaker 1: Maybe get down in the sun. You know before we
Speaker 1: see in spring training. You've been in Arizona for two weeks. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I mean I was outside. Man, dial down to fifty.
Speaker 1: Maybe put on only twenty sunscreen and oh man, my guy,
Speaker 1: Blake Snell, Snell Zilla. We're gonna have fun all year long.
Speaker 1: But he means business and you are going to fall
Speaker 1: in love with him when he's throwing shut He's out
Speaker 1: every other fifth or sixth day for the Dodgers. We're
Speaker 1: gonna take a time out and a great Italian stallion,
Speaker 1: Michael Conforto is going to join us next on Dodger
Speaker 1: Talk right here on five seventy LA Sports. Thanks to
Speaker 1: Blake Snell for joining us. Thanks to Evan Phillips and
Speaker 1: Tanner Scott. They're symbiotic. You will see them together never
Speaker 1: apart all season long. And thanks to Dave Roberts for
Speaker 1: starting our show. We're with you until three o'clock live
Speaker 1: from Dodgers Stadium. And I'm really excited to be join
Speaker 1: by a player I wanted the Dodgers to sign three
Speaker 1: years ago. But he is finally here and Dodger blue,
Speaker 1: wearing number twenty three. He's gonna play left field for
Speaker 1: the Dodgers. A well established Major leaguer and a proud
Speaker 1: Italian American, the one and only Michael CONFORDO. Welcome the
Speaker 1: Dodger Fest. I'm sure this is a very unique experience
Speaker 1: that you haven't found in other places.
Speaker 9: You've been absolutely I'm just trying to get in this place. Yeah,
Speaker 9: was Uh was was madness. You know, I tried three
Speaker 9: different gates and then you know, as soon as I
Speaker 9: said I was a player, they just waved me all
Speaker 9: the way through. So, you know, I was feeling the
Speaker 9: love with the uh, with the parking attendance and and uh,
Speaker 9: you know, some of the fans recognized me on the
Speaker 9: way in as well.
Speaker 7: So it feels good, especially.
Speaker 9: With all this talent we have here on this team,
Speaker 9: to be recognized by you know, some just baseball fans man.
Speaker 9: I mean, you know, I have been around for a while,
Speaker 9: but you know, not not for not for along on
Speaker 9: this side of the of the country.
Speaker 7: So it's good to be It's good to be here.
Speaker 9: I've been getting my butt kicked by the Dodgers for
Speaker 9: too long, so I'm excited to be on this on
Speaker 9: this side.
Speaker 1: Obviously, teams have to step up financially for you to
Speaker 1: want to sign there. But how much have you heard
Speaker 1: about the culture of the Dodgers that really excited you
Speaker 1: to sign here.
Speaker 7: I've heard a lot.
Speaker 9: I mean I've you know, there's there's what you see,
Speaker 9: you know, the product on the field that's easy to
Speaker 9: see from the from the fan base and just from
Speaker 9: you know, everybody watches the Dodgers. But there's things you
Speaker 9: hear from from guys who have played for the Dodgers,
Speaker 9: a bunch of guys that I've played with, just saying
Speaker 9: that it's a first class organization. There's nothing that you
Speaker 9: don't get that you need. On the player's side, the
Speaker 9: family side, you know, with my wife, my my young son,
Speaker 9: you know, they do everything you need to make sure
Speaker 9: that you're just focused on playing baseball, and and you
Speaker 9: don't have to worry about their you know, needs being
Speaker 9: being taken care of. And and then obviously, you know,
Speaker 9: I want to play with guys like show Hey, Mookie,
Speaker 9: Freddie will Smith, Chris Taylor, guys that I've played against
Speaker 9: for so long. And like I said before, I mean,
Speaker 9: you know, there's there's been a lot of sad nights
Speaker 9: on the visiting side, you know, but it's always an
Speaker 9: experience to come here to Dodger Stadium as a visiting player.
Speaker 9: You feel that energy in the ballpark when you drive
Speaker 9: up to the stadium. It's like you know you're coming
Speaker 9: to the coliseum or something. It's just so historic, the
Speaker 9: speakers in center field. I mean, there's just so many
Speaker 9: reasons to want to come play here. And let alone
Speaker 9: coming off a World Series championship.
Speaker 7: I mean, to be.
Speaker 9: Able to try to be a part of running it
Speaker 9: back for back to back championships is is going to
Speaker 9: be really cool.
Speaker 1: The Dodgers have been so good at home over the
Speaker 1: course of the time that you've been playing against them.
Speaker 1: The way you said it, a lot of sad nights here.
Speaker 1: Isn't the same feeling going into Dodger Stadium as it
Speaker 1: maybe going to Finway or Wrigley Field or even Yankee Stadium.
Speaker 7: Yeah, it's similar.
Speaker 9: There's really nothing like coming to Dodger Stadium, though, I
Speaker 9: mean just the way that it's all set up, the
Speaker 9: massive parking lot, you know, the way that the ballpark
Speaker 9: is set you know, you're kind of sunking down. The
Speaker 9: stadium is just up around, you know, on top of you.
Speaker 9: It's one of the bigger stadiums as far as capacity
Speaker 9: to so, if not the biggest, I don't know if
Speaker 9: it's the biggest or not, but it is. I just
Speaker 9: remember in twenty fifteen, playing as a rookie here in
Speaker 9: the playoffs, I lost a ball in the lights actually,
Speaker 9: and it was Justin Turner. He hit a game tying
Speaker 9: double and when I hit the ground, I dove for it,
Speaker 9: couldn't see it. When I hit the ground, the ground
Speaker 9: was shaking because it was a it was a game time,
Speaker 9: playoff hit, and I just wanted to dig a hole
Speaker 9: and wow, get away. But we ended up actually winning
Speaker 9: that game.
Speaker 1: So and the series, we know Daniel Murphy, we know
Speaker 1: confordo Y. Yeah that I actually feel like that was
Speaker 1: one of the best pitch games Kershaw ever pitched in
Speaker 1: the playoffs to force a Game five at City Field
Speaker 1: that night.
Speaker 9: I was not in the lineup for that one as
Speaker 9: a rookie left hander. Yeah, I don't you know, when
Speaker 9: Kershaw's on like that, it doesn't matter righty, lefty. You
Speaker 9: know he's getting everybody out. But but yeah, that was
Speaker 9: that was a really cool experience for me as a
Speaker 9: young young player.
Speaker 1: Michael Confordo is our guest at Dodger Fast. You always
Speaker 1: hear pictures like even Blake's now was saying he wants
Speaker 1: to help out the young pitchers on the staff. What's
Speaker 1: the dynamic between hitters? Obviously you've seen a lot, you
Speaker 1: faced a lot of guys. Are you looking forward to
Speaker 1: trying to pick the brains of Freddie Freeman, maximun See
Speaker 1: And what's the dynamic between hitters? Because you always hear
Speaker 1: pitchers talk about that, but you don't hear hitters talk
Speaker 1: about that as much.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I mean definitely.
Speaker 9: I mean I when I was a young player, I was,
Speaker 9: you know, talking to guys like Jay brew Rus, Curtis Granderson, Murdy.
Speaker 9: So like I I would like to be that guy
Speaker 9: for for some young guys. I mean I've I've been
Speaker 9: in Arizona working out with with outman.
Speaker 7: Love the kid.
Speaker 9: He's he's awesome. We have some like we have some
Speaker 9: connections baseball wise. He grew up in in nor Call
Speaker 9: and I went to Oregon State. A lot of NorCal
Speaker 9: guys state. Yeah, but yeah, I mean, you know, I'm
Speaker 9: I'm looking forward to I mean, I'm still looking to
Speaker 9: learn stuff from Freddie. You know, I love watching him hit.
Speaker 9: I played against him in the same division for for
Speaker 9: a long time, see him at first base all the time,
Speaker 9: and so now to be in the same lineup as him,
Speaker 9: you know, I'm definitely gonna pick his brain. I'd love
Speaker 9: to be a guy that you know is easy for
Speaker 9: the for the young guys to come and and and
Speaker 9: ask questions too. I've been in their shoes, you know.
Speaker 9: I've been the first rounder. I've been the the prospect
Speaker 9: come up and have a good start to my career,
Speaker 9: and then I've had some struggles along the way. So
Speaker 9: I've been in a lot of different different situations that
Speaker 9: I think I have some some insight for.
Speaker 1: When you would get to first base, Was it awkward
Speaker 1: when Freddy would be so talkative and friendly when you
Speaker 1: got there?
Speaker 9: When I was when I was a young guy, Yeah,
Speaker 9: when I was just.
Speaker 7: My head spinning at first base.
Speaker 9: I don't even know what happened at the plate, and
Speaker 9: Freddie's just you know, talking, you know, chatting me up.
Speaker 9: But over the years, of course, you know, I get
Speaker 9: to know him a little bit more, and he's just
Speaker 9: got a great sense of humor. And you know, sometimes
Speaker 9: he'd be sitting there, like you know the picture, slow
Speaker 9: to the plate, and he's looking at me. He's like, Michael,
Speaker 9: what are you still doing here?
Speaker 7: Why are you not stealing that?
Speaker 9: Yeah, And I'm trying to figure out if he's trying
Speaker 9: to get me to steal so they can stealing out,
Speaker 9: or if I really should be on second base. You know,
Speaker 9: he's like playing mind games with me. But you know,
Speaker 9: it's it's all. It's always been a pleasure to watch
Speaker 9: him play. And you know, again, I'm just I'm just
Speaker 9: excited to be on the same team.
Speaker 7: Man.
Speaker 1: You made a really good World championship team that much
Speaker 1: better with you in the lineup, and so many great
Speaker 1: left hand handed hitters to compliment so many great right
Speaker 1: handed hitters. It doesn't feel like there's any place one
Speaker 1: through nine that a pitcher's going to be able to exhale.
Speaker 9: It doesn't man. I mean the the whole roster seems
Speaker 9: air tight.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I mean, I know, the pitching staff, it's it's crazy.
Speaker 9: I mean, just my buddies, who aren't you know, affiliated
Speaker 9: with the team. I'm still getting to know all the guys,
Speaker 9: but you know, they're they're texting me about rookie signing.
Speaker 9: Then we get Tanner Scott, then we get Kurbyer. You know,
Speaker 9: it's like all right, the pitching set, you know.
Speaker 1: And you're gonna get Kershaw.
Speaker 7: Yeah, we got Kershaw coming back.
Speaker 9: I mean, we have we have guys still coming and
Speaker 9: it's just, uh, it's just a really cool, really really cool, uh.
Speaker 7: Team to be a part of. There's no doubt.
Speaker 1: Awesome. That heartbeat, that slow heartbeat. The man that understands
Speaker 1: there's not a linear path to any finish line. Michael
Speaker 1: CONFORDO in a Dodger blue jersey left field is gonna
Speaker 1: give him a lot of love as they are already
Speaker 1: right now. Thanks a lot for us stopping by and
Speaker 1: soak it all in and we'll see you out in Arizona.
Speaker 7: I appreciate it, man, I can't wait. I'm excited.
Speaker 1: That's my one fan. Whatever you hear at you see
Speaker 1: that right there, this one fan right there. All right,
Speaker 1: We're gonna continue the hour two right here on AM
Speaker 1: five seventy LA Sports, Dodger Talk Live from Dodger Fest.
Speaker 1: We're rolling on until three o'clock, and we have the
Speaker 1: grand finale of show, Hey Otani joining us at two
Speaker 1: forty five as well. You heard from Snell, you heard
Speaker 1: from Conforto, you heard from Dave Roberts, You're gonna hear
Speaker 1: from Freddie and Mookie. They're all stopping by as we
Speaker 1: roll to three o'clock on this beautiful Saturday afternoon in
Speaker 1: Los Angeles. Right here on AM five seventy LA Sports,
Speaker 1: your home of the world champion Los Angeles Dodgers