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<v Speaker 1>We're joined right now by one of the newest members

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<v Speaker 1>of the Dodger bullpen, Michael Kopek. Michael, thanks a lot

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<v Speaker 1>for the time. Appreciate it.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, thanks for having me.

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<v Speaker 1>It was great to introduce myself to you on the

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<v Speaker 1>bus yesterday. It feels like I got some streak cred

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<v Speaker 1>with you after you recognized the slide gate.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah. I didn't realize it was you until I asked

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<v Speaker 3>the question, and then you made it seem like I

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<v Speaker 3>had kind of attacked you there, So I'm sorry about that.

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<v Speaker 3>But yeah, I want to see around two at it.

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<v Speaker 1>I would need Michael Kopek and some other Dodgers to

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<v Speaker 1>support me at the bottom of the slide if I

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<v Speaker 1>went down.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, like I said, I'd support you. I'd help brace

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<v Speaker 3>your fall in somewhere or another.

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<v Speaker 1>Hey, last night, another great outing with the Dodgers. How

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<v Speaker 1>have you been able to make the transition so seamless

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<v Speaker 1>or appear to make it so seamless?

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<v Speaker 3>You know what, I think, it's just for me a

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<v Speaker 3>matter of a couple of things. A change of scenery

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<v Speaker 3>has been important for me because the start of my

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<v Speaker 3>career didn't exactly go the way I for it to

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<v Speaker 3>have gone, but also coming to a team that is

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<v Speaker 3>disinvested in winning, that has so many moving pieces that

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<v Speaker 3>you don't have to have, you know, one guy go

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<v Speaker 3>out there and be a hero anything like that necessarily.

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<v Speaker 2>You just you have to come in and step into

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<v Speaker 2>your job.

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<v Speaker 3>And even if you don't that day, you know that

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<v Speaker 3>there's gonna be guys to pick you up. And so

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<v Speaker 3>it's it's almost, you know, just playing stress free because

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<v Speaker 3>there's MVP after MVP on this team, there's All Star

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<v Speaker 3>after All Star on this team.

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<v Speaker 2>There's some of the.

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<v Speaker 3>Best pitchers in all of baseball in this team, if

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<v Speaker 3>not the best pitcher or in all the baseball. So

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<v Speaker 3>you don't necessarily worry about dropping the ball and you know,

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<v Speaker 3>messing up a game or what have you, because you

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<v Speaker 3>know that everything is kind of being picked up after

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<v Speaker 3>you if if something slips that day.

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<v Speaker 1>And the Dodgers do define roles, but they don't define

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<v Speaker 1>it by innings. They do it by groupings of hitters.

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<v Speaker 1>Last night, the highest leverage situation was in the eighth

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<v Speaker 1>inning when you came in. Does that happen with other teams?

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<v Speaker 1>Where is that unique?

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<v Speaker 2>I'm in my experience, it's unique.

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<v Speaker 3>I like how it plays out, though, because I think

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<v Speaker 3>amongst the guys in the bullpen, each and every one

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<v Speaker 3>of us realized that we could close out a game

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<v Speaker 3>on any given night, but we could also be in in,

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<v Speaker 3>you know, in the fifth if the situation called for

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<v Speaker 3>it or what have you. And I don't think any

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<v Speaker 3>of us doubts one situation versus another for any guy

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<v Speaker 3>down there.

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<v Speaker 2>So it's been pretty it's been pretty unique. It's been

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<v Speaker 2>pretty cool, though.

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<v Speaker 3>I like pitching when the game calls for me to pitch,

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<v Speaker 3>whether that be the you know, the first through the

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<v Speaker 3>ninth that I don't care.

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<v Speaker 1>Have you embraced being a super reliever, I mean that's

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<v Speaker 1>what we call a lot of these guys. Have you

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<v Speaker 1>fully embraced it? And is that part of the reason

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<v Speaker 1>why you're excelling?

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, I don't. I don't know if I like any

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<v Speaker 3>kind of label on what I do rather than pitcher.

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<v Speaker 3>You know, I've been in almost every position you can

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<v Speaker 3>imagine as a pitcher in the big leagues.

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<v Speaker 2>Have been a starter, middle.

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<v Speaker 3>Relief, a bolt guy, long guy, a leverage guy, closer

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<v Speaker 3>at times. But I think for me, it's just going

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<v Speaker 3>out there and pitching and matching the.

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<v Speaker 2>Necessity of the game.

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<v Speaker 3>So right now, every game seems like leverage because we're

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<v Speaker 3>a winning team fighting for you know, you know, a

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<v Speaker 3>really good position in the playoffs, so it's really easy

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<v Speaker 3>to go out there and compete.

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<v Speaker 1>Speaking of labels, you would expect from a relief pitcher

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<v Speaker 1>or pitcher that throws as hard as you do, we

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<v Speaker 1>would be blown away with your hair on fire, very

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<v Speaker 1>outgoing personality. But that's not who Michael Kopak is.

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<v Speaker 3>No, you know, I think that just came with growing up.

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<v Speaker 3>But at one point I probably was more after the

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<v Speaker 3>the energy and the personality or what have you. But

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<v Speaker 3>you know, I I've kind of adapted to the game

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<v Speaker 3>and I found my my calm and my piece in

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<v Speaker 3>this game. And you know, especially since having kids, I

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<v Speaker 3>feel like that I I operate on a on that

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<v Speaker 3>level much easier than you know, getting too ramped up

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<v Speaker 3>and riding the wave or the roller coaster. How emotions go.

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<v Speaker 3>So I try my best to say even keel, not

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<v Speaker 3>to say that I'm perfect at it, but I yeah,

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<v Speaker 3>I don't like getting too high.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah the parenting change, you did it give you better

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<v Speaker 1>perspective on baseball?

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah? Absolutely?

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<v Speaker 3>This game was you know my my whole world for

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<v Speaker 3>a really long time, and then after having kids, you

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<v Speaker 3>realize how small a part of my life this really is,

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<v Speaker 3>even though there's a magnitude of it that touches everything

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<v Speaker 3>in my life, Like not taking the importance away from

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<v Speaker 3>it at all. You know, it's my livelihood and it's

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<v Speaker 3>how I provide. And you know, I've got to see

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<v Speaker 3>a lot of the world because of this game. And

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<v Speaker 3>I'm very appreciative of this game. But at the same time,

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<v Speaker 3>if it was stripped away from me at any given moment,

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<v Speaker 3>you know, my pieces in my family and my kids

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<v Speaker 3>and I have a lot more to live for than

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<v Speaker 3>just this game.

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<v Speaker 2>But I am appreciated to be where I am. I know.

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<v Speaker 1>All right, So I saw you out here earlier doing

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<v Speaker 1>your pre work preparation. What music are you listening to?

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<v Speaker 1>A c DC back in black? Are you more yacht rock?

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<v Speaker 1>Where does Michael Kopek fit?

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<v Speaker 3>To be honest, I wasn't listening to music. I was

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<v Speaker 3>kind of just, you know, fighting with some demons in

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<v Speaker 3>my head. We all are, yeah, right for the most part, though,

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<v Speaker 3>I kind of mix it up. I like country music,

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<v Speaker 3>I like Christian rap or you know, Christian music. In general,

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<v Speaker 3>it branches pretty pretty far and wide, and I like

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<v Speaker 3>a lot of classic rock as well, but I'm not

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<v Speaker 3>penned on one genre necessarily.

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<v Speaker 1>All right, Michael, thanks a lot for sharing more of

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<v Speaker 1>who you are, introducing yourself more to Los Angeles. We

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<v Speaker 1>all appreciate what you do on the mound, and maybe

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<v Speaker 1>I'll see you at the bottom of the slide tomorrow.

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<v Speaker 2>Kopek sounds good. I see there.