And an exclusive interview with David Bassey for Dodger Talk. When a future Hall of Famer is only eight strikeouts away from three thousand in his career, you got to get dressed up, and I'm dressed up for this guy, Clayton Kershaw on Sunday. Thanks a lot for the time, and yeah, you look great too.
Yeah, thanks for thanks for we'reing the three piece today, David, you look great, You look great.
How does it feel being just eight strikeouts away?
Now?
I know Freddy reminds you how close you're getting every start, but do you have to fight chasing those eight.
Bus It's taking a little while, taking a little longer than I thought, But uh no, you know, I'm really just trying to pitch. You know, at the end of the day, the strikeouts are supposed to happen, and they'll just come when they come.
But it is getting closer.
You're starting to feel it a little bit more, and uh, you know, I try not to pay too much attention to it, but you know, I am thankful. My teammates are excited for me, and Freddie especially keeps reminding me.
So it's uh, that is that is cool.
I mean it shows that big care and they want me to, you know, do something cool like that.
So I do appreciate that. That's cool.
You hear about hitters when they're on the doorstep of five hundred, they kind of go into a little prolonged slump trying to hit that home run. Is it different for a picture, Well, I.
Think so you got more opportunities to strike people out, you know, I think, uh, you know, you only get four maybe five at bats of game, so that that.
That's a little more understandable.
You know, I shouldn't I shouldn't go on a strikeout drought that bad. You know, we are going to Colorado next, but make make make get it through that one and then see where we are.
Skip Schumacher was your first ever strikeout here at Dodger Stadium. How often did you remind him of that? And how often do you still remind him?
Yeah, it's great, you know, I get to uh, I get to have that for the rest of my life with Skip, So that's awesome. And it's just kind of cool that, you know, I got to play with Skip and get to know him, and he really is one of the best. So it's a it's a cool strikeout to have, and yeah, I remind him all the time.
That's great.
Shoe a Otani's on the mound today, second time with the Dodgers. You're always top step watching every game, but is it different on days like today.
Well, it's just amazing.
Like that crowd for the first game, it was like it was like a golf match. Like it was like we were back in Japan. You know how quiet it was because they're just watching so intently, and it was so quiet that first sitting just watching show. Hey, like you saw everybody on their feet, like with their cameras, and it really is just kind of like a spectacle, you know. And so you know, eventually we'll get used to him being back on the mound and being out there.
However many times he pitches, but you know, the first couple of times is pretty impressive because you know, we've seen him as this for so long now as the best hitter in the game and now potentially being one of the best pitchers in the game is just I mean, it's kind of amazing to see on a day and day out basis.
Were you checking out his preparation before a pitching start.
It's kind of yeah, like just everything he has to do, like I was, you know, day game. You know, if you're pitching a day game, the starter leaves early, and I'm like, well, he's got in that bat here in the eighth inn. You know, you can't leave, and so you know just what all it goes into and all the different things that he has to do to get ready.
It's I'm not envious of him, for sure.
Hey, I remember a pitcher when pitchers used to hit, hitting a big home run against the Giants an opening day back in twenty thirteen. So don't sleep on kersh on what he can.
Do, that's right, Yeah, I mean show air very similar in the box, very similar back in the day.
Hey, you've seen a lot over the course of your eighteen years with the Dodgers. You've had flare ups with different teams, Prado para Diamondbacks, Granky versus Quintin with the Padres.
What did you make of what took place.
During that four game series against the Padres.
Yeah, I just kind of blame it on the schedule.
You know, you played seven games in ten days, and you know there's hit by pitches that are a little bit more on the forefront of people's minds. Just because you know, it's happened so recently, so at the end of the day, you know it's it's probably fair on both sides, you know, like that tempers boiled over. They didn't like Tatis getting hit. We obviously didn't like show Hey getting hit. So it's just kind of one of
those things part of the game. It happened a lot more back in the day, and you know, both teams handled it and hopefully it's you know, over and done with come August.
There was a period of time in thirteen and fourteen the Cardinals' pitching staff seem to be throwing inside with no regard and whether or not they would hit any Dodgers. What what is the unwritten rules about pitching inside?
Yeah, I mean you have to pitch inside, you know. I think if you hit the same guy on purpose or on accident multiple times, you have a right to get upset, especially when he's one of your superstars. So I understand that side of it for sure. And you know, if you're going to retaliate and it's going to be on purpose like that, you're going to get suspended. And that's that's just the way baseball is. That's whay it goes.
Where does it rank?
As far as it seems like you guys take on all comers over the eighteen years you've been here, I don't.
Know, there wasn't a lot.
I think I was more you know, Shilty and Doc getting after it a little bit, which I appreciate. You know, they're both protecting their guys. So I think the players it was a little bit more of like a staring contest, you know, which is probably probably good. We don't do anything, but Diamondback one was pretty wild. Yeah, I think that was you know, I remember Big Mac having you know, Matt Williams over there and.
Kirk Gibbs, all those guys. So that was that one was real. That one was real.
All right, Clayton, thanks a lot for the time and look forward to seeing you at Chorus Field. Eight strikeouts away from joining Steve Carlton, C. C. Sabathia, and Randy Johnson as the only left handed pitchers in baseball history to have three thousand punch outs.
That's a great list. Thank you. That'd be cool.