And now your host of Dodger Talk, David Vasse.
We are live at Nationals Park after the Nationals defeat the Dodgers tonight by a final score of eight to two. Welcome the Dodger Talk. We're here with you until eight o'clock, taking your phone calls at eight sixty six nine, eight seven two, five seventy. After starting the season eight to zero and everybody talking about the Dodgers breaking the Mariners record of one hundred and sixteen wins, They've lost four
their last five and lost three in a row. I gotta look it up to see if the one Mariners ever did that when they were going for their one hundred and sixteen wins. But I can tell you that the Dodgers lost three in a row three different times last year on their way to ninety nine wins, so it's not like it's the end of the world. In fact, the Dodgers' longest losing streak last year was five games in the middle of May. So you know, these things
happened during a long season. And that's why you never really heard me jump on the bandwagon for one hundred and sixteen wins. It's really hard to do There's a lot of different variables that go into a season, like weather, like injuries, and the Dodgers have had all of it. On this road trip. In Philadelphia, Tyler Glassnell melted down in the third inning of his start because of rain. Something we have never seen a picture that I can remember with the Dodgers doing. And I know the Phillies
broadcasters saw that. See a lot of teams and pitchers come through there and have to deal with rain. They said they never seen that either, so they had that. They have injuries. Blake's now was supposed to start tonight. He's on the il after a couple of weeks of the regular season and two stars. He's got left shoulder soreness. So Justin Robleski started tonight. They're going to have landon next start tomorrow to give this rotation an extra day
of rest. My point is everybody was getting a little too far ahead of themselves after that eight and zero start. Was it a great start, of course it was, but the Dodgers were getting good starting pitching. They were playing at home for the majority of those eight wins. The two were in Tokyo. They were riding the emotions of
being there with Otani and Yamamoto. But since that last home stand, or towards the end of that last home stand, even against the Braves, the Dodgers were getting sloppy with their defense and their offense having the last at bad of games, were able to take advantage of that and get them a couple of wins or stole a couple of wins. You know, it feels like even during that eight game winning streak, the Dodgers have been playing by playing from behind a lot. And you look at the
first two games of this series, same thing. They're been put in a tough position. The last game on Sunday in Philadelphia, same thing, put in a deep hole. The Dodgers have the most comeback wins this season. Six of their nine wins are from coming from behind. That's not a way to live. It's great that they were able to do it, but it's not a way to live. They got to start playing with early leads and we
just haven't seen that. Feels like one thing or another, whether it's defense, bad base running, or poor starting pitching, has really put them in a hole early in games. And it's hard as an offense to feel like, man, we gotta get two more runs just to tie it up after three innings, or like tonight, you're down eight to nothing after four innings. I mean, come on on the road in temperatures that felt like with the wind chill thirty six degrees, that's not a way to live.
And Justin Robleski, you know, this was not easy by no means to be called up to make a spot start in this type of weather. But going back to spring training and just being around that clubhouse, you know, guys were trying to help Justin Robleski to realize that he doesn't have it all figured out, that you may want to try to use different pitches in different counts. He hung a curveball to James Wood. I know he'd been working on the curveball a lot this spring. It
had looked good in spring training. But everything that looked good for Justin Robleski in spring training just didn't look good tonight. And the Dodgers fall eight to two, eight six six nine, eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. And like I said, the Dodgers, Andrew Friedman, Dave Roberts, Mookie Bets, Freddie Freeman show, Heyotani. They had
never said during spring training or the offseason. After the big offseason they had spending half a billion dollars on more players, that their goal was to break the Mariners one hundred and sixteen win record. That never came out of any of those people's mouths. Came out of other people's mouths, but it never came out of the guys that matter. I'm talking about media people, other players. It doesn't matter. Those guys never said that was a priority.
So one hundred and sixteen wins never was a priority for the Dodgers. They have never made winning the most regular season games a priority. They're trying to win back to back World Series championships. And the one thing that we have agreed upon even before the Dodgers won the World Series, is that Andrew Friedman has pretty much mastered how to work one hundred and sixty two games and be there at the end. They've won the division every year except one since Friedman took over, so they know
how to manage a full season. And in fact, I talked to Andrew Friedman before the game today. Here's what he told me about how he evaluates the beginning of the season, the highs of an eight to zero start and I wouldn't say the lows, but you know the adversity of losing four or five. Here's something I used to cover the Lakers when Phil Jackson was coaching, and he said he never evaluated any of his teams until probably a quarterway through the season. Do you look at
it big picture like that? And also on a day to day basis, how do you view it this early in the season.
Yeah, I mean I think you know where we will really take stock is basically a third of the season, get through May and get a real feel for things.
That being said, we feel it intensely every day. And so it's how not to overreact to things that are, you know, happening in a moment in time and try to get a bigger, broader perspective before making you know, bigger changes.
All Right, So that was Andrew Friedman giving you a peek into how he keeps a level head and obviously wants the Dodgers to play well, but is not going to overreact and pull Andy Pahz, Send Pahz down, make wholetsale changes. After three games sample sizes eight six, six, nine, eight, seven, two, five seventies, the phone number Dodgers fall to the Nationals tonight eight to two. They have lost three in a row for their last five. We have two lines open,
so let's go out to the phones. Tonight is your night. I want to hear where all the roller coaster fans are. Let's go out to La Eric. You're on Dodger Talk, Dave.
I'm first of all, I agree with your take on the fact that they should not go for the record. I was always in agreement with that. I always said, just get to the playoffs and let's see what happens.
Right, but don't get to the playoffs.
Don't look now because after starting eight to oh, we're we're third in our division right now, right, which is crazy to think. And I don't want to say this, but I think they might have started feeling themselves. Man. You know people talking about one sixty two and oh, you know after the eight and oh, after giving up zero unearned runs, all of a sudden, their defense becomes
a sieve the unearned runs. After that, you know that that's one thing you can control is your defense, and the Dodgers have been lackluster on that end, which I will.
Say that though it's not just the defense, but what's happened here in the last four or five games. Is bet starting pitching tonight with Robleski with Glass now on Sunday and Roki Sazaki is still a work in progress and only going four plus innings, so starting pitching really hasn't helped them outside of Dustin May and Yamamoto so far.
Well, yeah, that and now when you look at his start, I mean how many he was it? One under and run and give it with five runs?
Yeah, now sells on the l.
I know, I get it, you know, and look you here here, I'll leave with this. I think. Look, it might be a little too soon to pull the plug on Bets that short stuff, but I'm hoping sooner or later you do that, okay, because you.
Know where does he play?
Look where does he play? Put him in put him in the outfield, maybe put him in center, put him in center, leekl out right, and.
You are a smart because there is you can't put him in right because Taeoscar Hernandez is there, and you can't put him in left because you paid Michael Conforto eighteen million dollars, So you need some defensive help and center and Mookie Betts can play center. Field. If he wants action and wants to be engaged and be in every play, centerfield would be his spot.
And you know, look, the middle end feels so important. Man, you can't have like I love Betts. I love that he's trying to do that. Let me ask you another question. Let me this is the only question I'm to leave with you. One was the last time a player in the middle of his career moved from one position to shortstop? That is absolutely unheard of. Man. I admire the BET's trying to do that, but man, come on now.
Yeah, usually guys over thirty that have played that position their entire careers, they they move off that position, they don't move to that position. And that's why what Mookie Betts is attempting to do is unprecedented. The best right fielder in the game trying to play shortstop, and he's doing the best he can, and he's put in a lot of work this offseason. I disagree with pulling the
plug on him playing shortstop right now. Like you heard Andrew Friedman said, let the season breathe a little bit, Give this guy a chance. Eight six six nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. But yeah, you know it's I know it's hard for everybody to understand why he's playing shortstop. Sometimes I wonder the same thing, But tonight, Mookie Bets playing shortstop was not the reason why they lost, by the way. James Wood a really
good player. I know a lot of times we focus on the Dodgers and what they did right or what they did wrong, but there's some good players on other teams, and James Wood is a really good player. That's why he was one of the centerpieces of the trade that sent Juan Soto to San Diego for James Wood for CJ Abrams and the guy you saw last night, Mackenzie Gore, Let's go out to Jean in Los Angeles. Gene, you're on Dodger Talk with David vasse Hi.
Gene, Hi, David, First of all, you are just terrific. I so admire everything you do. I love the way you're critical and yet supportive and just so smart about everything. So I just love listening to you. But last day, no, it's true, It's true. Last Saturday you talked about Austin Barnes and how important he was to Susake calming down and having a better outing. And if I know that Austin Barnes caught his second game, and I think he caught his first. So and today Austin Barnes was there
for lub Letsky and he was calling the game. And I mean, you critics sized the young pitcher because he was using the wrong pitches. Is that Austin Barnes responsibility or you know, yes.
But in that situation, you gotta the pitcher has got to have conviction in it. And there were a couple of times where maybe he shook him off as well. But that's uh, that's a good point with the pitch calling. But let's say Austin Barnes calls a certain pitch, if if Robleski doesn't have conviction behind it, then all of a sudden, is it going to be the best pitch that he can throw. But that's a fair point. Austin
Barnes was behind the plate tonight. If I'm going to give him credit for Sazaki the other night, then I gotta, I gotta, you know, give him some responsibility for tonight. And actually Barnes did not catch the first two starts for Suzaki. Will Smith did, so you know, it just wasn't a good night for the battery Robleski and Barnes tonight, can we agree on that?
Okay? Fair enough? Fair enough? Can I ask you when is Freddy coming back?
Great question, and that's a question I want to ask Dave Roberts tomorrow Freddy is eligible to come off the IL. I believe either Friday or Saturday. We all know the Freddie walk Off Grand Slam Bobblehead is on Friday. It would be great if he was back in the starting lineup for that, So we'll get that information for you tomorrow.
Okay.
Can I ask you one last question? With him doing down well, I don't know.
He's doing really well. The new swing he's eliminated, the lad kick, the overahul of the swing that the Dodgers helped him with with in spring training has started to show results. He's playing great defense in center and short and second. So yeah, things are starting to come together for him.
How soon do you think he'll be up?
He'll be here. He'll be here at some point, but right now, I don't believe it's going to.
Happen later rather than sooner.
We'll see how it goes. Guys get hurt, Guys, go into slumps. I think really the guys that you know Kim would replace on this roster, or Andy pie Has, Chris Taylor, Miguel Rojas, and I don't see Rojas or Taylor going anywhere. And Pie Has tonight was on base three times and hit a home run, So I think we have to give him a little bit of an opportunity as well.
Do you okay? Promise last question? Has instinct are just.
So?
He's not a center fielder. He's not a center fielder.
And I could see Kim.
Kim would play center field, he would play second, he would play short when he did, and you know, Kim could fit this roster and hit ninth and get on bass, get that speed going and get on base for Otani and flip that lineup over. Gotta run, Gene, thank you for the phone call. Appreciate it. Eight sixty six nine to eighty seven two five seventy is the phone number. Hey, that's fair, Gene said. I praised Austin Barnes for Suzaki and tonight Robleski gave up eight runs. That's fair, you know,
fair and balanced. I like that. Let's go out to Valencia. Carlos, you're on Dodger talk. How are you doing, Carlos? Hey, let me ask you a question, Carlos, who do you think would win in a race? Adrian Gonzalez in his prime or Max Munsey right now?
I mean, Max.
Morty looks a little you know, he looks all right.
I don't sneaky fast right, speaky fast money. Yes, the only guy Adrian Gonzalez could beat in a in a foot race was me. That was the only guy he could beat.
I believe you.
Dude.
Listen about the Max Mrcy.
You know, keeping everything in perspective, you know, the Dodgers are on pace to win one hundred and twelve games, so you know they look crappy these last few games, but you know it's it's it's week two or whatever. Having said that, like, I hate to dump on Marcy, but but you are the heels of an on the heels of it already terrible twenty twenty four, This dude is off to an atrocious start. I mean, and it's not just the numbers.
He can't catch up to the fastball. He's he's fooled by any off speed.
And not to mention, he's he's an average defender at best.
I mean, I think.
They need to give I would say, Chris Taylor, give me playing a few games.
You just said it yourself. Spin twelve games, thirteen games, you're really gonna say Max Monsey's done. He is in the last year of his contract, so you know, let's see where it goes. But really we're gonna say, you're gonna say, on one side, it's been thirteen games. But because you have it and everybody else seems to now have a bullseye on Max Mounsey. Last year was Chris Taylor. Now everybody is all over Max Munsey. I think you all got to give him a little bit of a
more time. At least call me in May. Let's talk about this in May.
Hold on, it's been twelve games this year. Last year he was terrible, he was hurt.
He played thirty three games last year. Do you know that he failed the record in the NLCS for getting on base the most consecutive times twelve consecutive played appearances getting on base? You know he serves the purpose right, He sees a lot of pitches. There is a like I say, the sum is greater than the parts.
Carlos, listen, listen, Like I said, I hate the dump on the guy, all right, because you know, but.
You are after twelve games. I mean, come on, sorry, this doesn't hold a lot of credibility with me right now.
Okay, okay, he called me back in May.
I'll remember you. Call me back in May. Call me back in May.
Hopefully, hopefully I call you back, and I say, you know what, I don't know what. I don't know what the hell I was saying, but but I don't know.
You just said the Dodgers are not on the hill, but the next month's he's a disaster and he can't field the ground ball at third base. That's what you're telling me.
Is he better than average? Do you think he's better than average fielder?
Yes, the scouts say it, the scanner reports say it, the analytics support it. He's above average as a defender. Well, all right, thank you. That's for a phone call, Carlos. I left you speechless. Yeah. Sorry. You know, it just feels like fans zero in on a player that doesn't have a good game or a stretch of games, and they're all over them. Do you hear me kick Chris Taylor when he's down. We all know what's going on with Chris Taylor. We all know what was going on
with him last year. He didn't perform up to what we're used to seeing Chris Taylor. But the facts are the Dodgers still won the World Series. He was the twenty six men on the bench. We're not gonna get all over Chris Taylor. Max Munsey was not the reason why the Dodgers lost tonight. Yeah. Did he have a couple of bat at bats, Yeah, he struck out three times. Yeah, But if you're gonna tell me on one side it's only twelve games, you can't now tell me, oh, well,
thirteen games in Max Montsey just completely stinks. And I'm not I don't buy that. I don't buy that at all. There's a resume, there's a track record, there's a functionality to what he means to the lineup. And like I said, if this continues as far as the offense goes and the defense being spotty for a month thirty games, then we could talk about it, but not right now. Eight six six nine, eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. We're gonna take a time out here on
Dodger Talk. When we come back, we'll check in with Jose Mota. Plus we have three lines open month. Sy hater line very available. Actually it's not. It's usually full for whatever reason this year. Dodgers fall to the Nationals eight to two on a five seventy LA Sports.
On air at AM five to seventy, online at AM five seventy LA sports dot com, and available my podcast on the iHeartRadio apps.
He's Dodger Talk with David Bassi.
Keik swings Hammers won the left. This ball deep and heading to the wall. It is gone.
It's a home run for Kik.
Key k Hernandez with four hits on the season, all four of them have been home runs, and the score is now eight to two.
Dodgers fall to the Nationals eight to two. That was a garbage time home run by Key k Hernandez. He would say the same thing. Andy Paez hit a solo home run in the fifth inning as well, after the Dodgers were down eight to nothing after four innings. Today, James Wood hit two home runs for Washington off of Justin Robleski, and the Nats defeat the Dodgers eight to two and are looking to sweep the Dodgers in a three game series. For the first time since two thousand
and eight, Daniel Steelers presents the home run forecast. Go to Amphire seventy lasports dot com and use the keyword home run for your chance to win a fifty dollars Daniels Jeweler's gift card predicting the number of home runs in the next game. Daniels Jewelers own the dream. Eight six six nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number, you know. I feel like when a player's really good, we take him for granted, and because he's not on this road trip, we forget that. The Dodgers
are missing Freddie Freeman. I know they got good players at almost every position, elite players at a lot of their positions. But this offense starts with Otani, Betts and Freeman. That's what gets this offense going. And instead of having Freddy Freeman hitting third, you've had to move up tom Y Edmond to third, who lengthens your lineup later in the order. And you have keyk Hernandez playing out a
position at first base. And Key k only has four hits this year, four for third, and as you heard Tim Neverts say on the home run call, all four of his hits are home runs. You had Austin Barnes catching tonight, hitting ninth. I don't want to pick on him, but he doesn't have a hit. He's over ten this season.
And you know that ninth spot in the Dodger order has not been as good as it was a year ago at this time, when Gavin lux was hitting ninth and turning that lineup over for Otani, Betts and Freeman. So those are a couple of things to keep in mind. And the Dodgers miss Freddy Freeman. Let's not forget about him. Eight six six nine, eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. Let's go out to San Clemente. Chris, You're on Dodger Talk live from our nation's capitol.
Hi, Chris, Hey, how's going?
What do you got for me? Chris?
Hey? I just want to like the other. The other call it a confrey. It's like you can't, like you said, you can't say where. It's only twelve games in and then you're coming out to the Dodgers, right, we're twelve.
Games in monthly.
If you're coming out players in general, right, you got to get a feel of the game. It's a new season. It's new pictures you're seeing, it's a whole new rotation and everything's out there. You got to get a feel for it.
Yes he was hurt.
If this was all Star.
Break getting close to it and you're still acting like this, I get it, then you can come like, hey, maybe it's time to take a step back. Maybe get some minor league games in and get your swing going, or get some other players in there.
But we still have time.
Dodgers had hurt players last year, and guess well, we're still the best record, right and we still had the West going, and we still had people that were in there that were injured off on the injury list, and we're still able to do it. Our roster only got better. Was still going to take time for everyone to get together, get things to her buried out. We know we could come from behind. We had six games already that we came from behind already this season. We can do it.
Just give them time, Like it's too early, way too early in the season to be coming after anybody right now, Like if they were in their shoes right again, they're professionals, they got to be better, but guess what, they're still human. They still got to figure things.
Out all right, Chris, thanks for the phone call. Eight six six nine seven two five seventy. I remember Andre Ethier telling me and just stressing the fact that a lot of people don't realize and even players that are playing in the game, every season is unique to itself. You could have hit thirty home runs last year, that doesn't mean things are going to fall the same way. You've got to start from the bottom and climb to
the top in this marathon of a season. And that's why that that's why the great ones, the Hall of Fame ones are so elite because they're able to put it together for their entire careers. The all Stars, the perennial all stars, like Freddie Freeman. That's why he's so great. He's able to start again from the beginning, and every year is unique. But he at the end of the day, he's always there with two hundred hits and and being a great eight hitter. So that's one hundred percent true.
Let's go out to a Hambra, Javier, you're on Dodgery Talk with David veasse Hi.
Aavier, Hey, things are taking my call. Hey, let's bump the brice a little right. The sky isn't falling yet. I think things will come well, we'll fall where they're supposed to fall, right, Freddy Freeman, it's crazy the effect of him being out, what it has on this Dodger's lineup. They looked a little lost about him. That's what I think, Max Muncy, I won't to worry about breaking.
Out a lot more. It just button is them being passed the right way. They struck out fifteen times tonight. Keyk strikes out a lot. He's not Freddie Freeman.
It hurts.
So I wouldn't say it's it's not hitting on all cylinders. But you know they're just striking out too much right now on this road trip.
Yeah, And then I think Max Moncy, I'll start to get concerned when he's not seeing a lot of pitches. He watch a lot of pitches and that's usually very good for him. And it's just stopped falling into place for him. And that's that's fine. It's a long season. But also give some credits to this nationals team. They're a good young team, right and they're only going to get better, I think.
But that's really all that players, and look, they're trying to make a name for themselves and doing it against the Dodgers is going to uh, you know, it's it's I'm not going to say it's their world series this early in the year, but you know they're up for this series, all right. Thanks for the phone call, Javier, And I will say this. I remember Max Munsey telling me a few years back. It's not the home runs
that tell you when he's going good. It's when he's seeing a lot of pitches, like our caller Javier said, and he's taking walks. That's a big part of his game. It's not just about the home runs. It's about walking and having a good strikeout to walk ratio. He's gonna strike out a lot his share of times. I mean, the most he's ever struck out in a season is one hundred and fifty three times. And considering this day and age and if you're a three true outcome player,
one hundred and fifty times isn't that much. But he told me a few years back, when he's going good and seeing the baseball, he's walking, it's not just the home runs. Eight six, six, nine, eight seven, two five seventy is the phone number. The Dodgers fall to the Nationals. Tonight eight to two. Let's head out to check in with Jose Mota. It's time to go around the horn with Jose Mota. Yeah, Jose Mota. Max Mounsey three strikeouts
tonight did not look good. But man, I it feels like Max Munsey now has become the target of Dodger fans to blame everything that goes wrong on him.
Well, that's how my look Dodgers. The last five games, Max Monsey has not been on the man when they've had a five ra or what twenty four batters and forty one innings. But I can understand the frustration with the fans. I truly can understand. But at the same time, every single part, every single piece, plays its own part. Okay, you have a role to play in this ball club. Max Months, He's not expected to carry the team like a show Hey or Mookie or Freddie Freeman or even
Will Smith. But he does a lot of things You've explained well through the years. Going back to the NLCS, one of the biggest hits came early in that series for Max Months against Thang. I mean that kind of broke a lot of things out. But Max Mounts will be the first one to tell you he's not where he needs to be. He needs to be more in time, He needs to be more into a consistency on topic with swinging approach at times, very patient at times we're
going to seem to get more more, more aggressive. But he's not the reason the team is striking a way too much. They are not putting the ball in play. They're on base percentage coming into today very unusual, Dodger number three thirteen. So it's amount of things that happened. But obviously when things don't look well, one guy's going to be picked on, and it's Max Mumsey this time.
Yeah, you're right, Jose Dave Roberts has said this year after year being the manager of the Dodgers, it's the starting pitcher that day that sets the tone. And to get a winning streak going, you got to get some good starting pitching. And part of the reason why the Dodgers have lost four or five is because their starters are walking a lot, they're giving up a lot of runs, and they're not going deep into games.
Well, i mean, how do they beat Trek Skoogle, how do they beat Chris Sale? Because with one swing, the pitchers on the mound. The starters were able to allow the offense to do that, right, But it's gonna it's gonna come around. I mean there was one point last year when the Values were a five hundred team for
many weeks and they came out of one ninety eight games. Now, these are periods now where I really enjoy talking to you a little bit more because there's more to pike on and more to analyze I should say on things that need to be fixed, and one of them is the team that you have for longer, longer at bats. They need to understand that it's not just going to
be all about the long ball. The Dodgers have not even had a lot of opportunity women in scoring position, way more from the opposing side against them, and the long ball is gonna be the regardless, but they need to get back into more team at bats, the same approach we saw perhaps the first what five six games with two strikes with two outs, where you sacrifice a little bit of power to work the guy in the mound and know that you still teem to be no
matter what, you're the most talented team, the deepest team, but nonetheless, obviously without Freddy Freeman, and the em persistency of not having him look in the same line up for a while. It does put a little damper on things on how they should be and how they're gonna look a little bit later, which is gonna be much better.
Yeah, and Andrew Friedman joined us on the pregame show, and he said as much. He feels like the offense had not reached its potential by a long ways, and he believes the Dodgers are so far a little too reliant on scoring runs by hitting home runs. So even the guy the boss feels that way that they could be better at putting the ball in play and keeping the line moving instead of just trying to wing for home runs.
And again the same way that you got to have the mentality of beating good pitching. You're not gonna beat good pitching as the season progresses. It's slugging them out. Okay, it's gonna happen when you look guys out that have good pitchers. Is because you did something back before, in front of you, two ahead of you, to get you that mistake. Are you going to capitalize on?
So?
So matter of time, way too talented. Many pieces still not clicking. But the walks need to again be part of this arsenal and more contact perhaps should be better. Fifty strikeouts of last five games, that's not going to get it done and it just looks too easy for the opposing team.
All right, hose Mo Odo, let's talk about something good. And Ben Caspiraus has been one of the bright spots from the beginning of this season again comes in in relief for Robleski and just dominates his groupings of hitters that he was facing out there, two scoreless innings with two strikes. Do you believe in a game like this, Dodgers down eight nothing, that's tough for Dave Roberts to go to Caspirius instead of having him in a situation
where it's a closer game. Or do you think that was something that Dave would rather not have to do.
This early in the season. You actually have to go out there and just keep guys on a more consistent schedule. If it was his time to go out there and give you two winnings CS, but later in the season, when you know he's such a great guy for leverage, you're gonna probably hold off. The one thing about Cosparis, and we talked about this the other day day spring training. Mentality of attacking is there, but also his arm angle
is a little bit higher. And he told me this in one of the bullpens in spring training in Glendell, where he says, I think I'll get better bites, I get better feel for even rolling a breaking ball for
a strike early with a higher angle. So he went for like forty three degrees of forty forty eight degrees, and that's helped him a whole lot because now the fastball coming from that slot, he can get some holes with a fastball up on the zone because where the ball's breaking and the loop at has in his brick and ball. But he's a guy that we have never heard the excuse that he doesn't like the role or that this role is not right from because as a
starting pitcher, it's not easy to adapt to this. And he says, you know, being uncomfortable is the one thing you got to get used to it. And he's done a remarkable job because the guy goes out there in attack, he's got a bulld up mentality, and he throws a lot of strikes, a lot of leverage counts, and he finishes guys.
Off and tomorrow Landon Nack another guy that I feel is underrated and maybe underappreciated. He was bounced around from starting to the bullpen to being sent down to Triple A at times last year, but he kept a good attitude and was pretty good for the Dodgers. I would expect him to have a better start tomorrow than we saw from Robleski tonight by a long shot.
I would think so, because he faced the nets when he met his debut last season, and they ambushed him early, and he eventually settled down and gave the team a chance to win. One thing about Nack, and hear from scouts like he does give up a lot of hard als, a lot of hard ground balls, but if you look at the line, the bottom line is his lines look
very good. In other words, he might give up, you know, a couple of bullets here and there are outs or long fly balls, but just great this guy on what he did and what he did for you as a starter and also long reliever, because the guy is a true Dodgers that understands the evolution of pitching, how to become a better pitcher, and how to make this stuff quite well. So you know, sometimes throw the numbers out.
His numbers last year were very good, but there's no doubt that you got to go out there and give him a chance to grow in the big leagues because he has shown that he's earned it.
All right, Thanks a lot for the inside, Jose. We'll talk to you after the game tomorrow and we'll see you when we return home to Dodgers Stadium on Friday. There he goes, Jose Moda. Always a very interesting dismount by Jose, but we appreciate him checking in part of the Dodgers Spanish radio broadcast. The Dodgers fault tonight to
the Nationals eight to two. Like I mentioned Keik Hernandez Homer, so did Andy Pajas, but it was Justin Robleski who did not have a very good first start of the year, where he went five innings and gave up eight earned runs, including a pair of home runs to James Wood, who who homered and drove in five runs. The five RBIs for James Wood in a very young career, tied a career high. Our guy calling ye back at the Burbank Studios,
by the way, checked on it. The one Mariners who won one hundred and sixteen games only lost three games in a row once during the two thousand and one season. They actually had a four game losing streak. That was the only time that they lost three games or more during that entire year. The Dodgers have lost three in a row for the first time this season. Last year, when they won ninety nine games, they lost three in a row three different times, including a five game losing
streak in May. But like I mentioned at the beginning of the show, the Dodgers have never had their sights on one hundred and sixteen wins one hundred and seventeen wins. They've had their sights on being able to keep their focus during the regular season, be ready to play every day,
and make it count in the postseason. Again. They know they're going to be judged in the postseason as they were last year, and they're trying to become Their mission is to become the first team since the Yankees twenty five years ago to win back to back championships. It's not about the Mariners in one. It's about and by the way, in case you're too young to remember, the Mariners did not win the World Series that year. They were knocked out, So that's not something to Dodgers are
looking to do this season. If it happens in the process of things, that's fine. I mean, after seeing the first eight games of the year, he kind of felt like the Dodgers were in a different weight class and they're starting pitching, and they're pitching as a whole was looking so dominant, but all of a sudden, now on this road trip, we've seen some pitfalls, some trips, and that will happen during a long year. Tomorrow, Landon Knack
will make his season debut. He went three and five last year in twelve starts with the three sixty five ERA. He's going up against Jake Irvin, who made thirty three starts for the Nationals. Last year, he was ten and ten with an ERA of four forty one. He faced the Dodgers twice, and his first start he went six scoreless against the Dodgers here at Nationals Park in April, and then faced the Dodgers at Dodgers Stadium in the following start and gave up six earned runs. So that's
something to keep in mind. We'll see if the Dodgers have the answer like they had for him at Dodgers Stadium Tomorrow. Our coverage begins at noon with Tim Kats and First Pitches at one oh five with Rick Monday and Tim Neverett live from Nationals Park. Thanks to calling you back at our Burbank studios, thanks to Dwayne McDonald out here at Nationals Park in Washington, DC, and thanks to you for listening. In case you missed any of the show, you can find it on the iHeartRadio app.
That's also where you can listen to our full conversation with Andrew Friedman as well. Once again, the final score tonight the Dodgers fall to the Nats eight to two. Have a great rest of your night. See U.