Dodger Talk (5-24-25)

One thing about this gene is the invisible and tangibles that they have. This team is really becoming a family.

Let's not play one on Tom.

Let's I love writing me these guys after the show.

So just thank you, give me are your attention, your fire and not a pisson. This is world champion, Dodger, world champion being put a small.

Soft time they get up people what they want to die too in a row two is special.

I'm like, yeah, it's not a headache one of them.

Come, this ball's gone. You ready to go?

Hell, go to the show. Grab your phone to get in on the show called eight six six nine eighty seven two five seven.

And go to the show.

And now your host of Dodger Talk, David Bassey.

Welcome to Dodger Talk.

David Vasse with you until about eight fifteen tonight here on AM five to seventy LA Sports.

Hope you're enjoying your Memorial Day weekend.

Hope you're being safe out there, and we are with you to talk Dodger baseball.

After the Mets.

Beat the Dodgers tonight by a final score of five to two in the middle game of this series. After a late night for the Dodgers winning that game, it would have been really bad for the Dodgers after using eight different pitchers, Tanner Scott blowing the save, for them to lose last night and then have to come back and play today against one of the best starters this

Twenty and fourteen.

The number of innings that their starting staff has pitched is top five or top ten in baseball. So I mean they're doing everything right with their pitching. It's just their offense that has been mia the last couple of weeks, including Juan Soto, who tonight in that fourth inning, hit a two run double with the bases loaded against Tony Gonsolin. That was the first extra base hit Juan Soto has had in two weeks. And Tony Gonsolin you could have

Wow, last night's game was phenomenal. That was a great comeback and I really really respect the Dodgers staying in that game.

I love that keed a positive a positive comment from Ken and Newport Beach on a day the Dodgers lose.

Okay, that's a good start.

Ken, all right, there's some weird stats last five games. Oh, Tommy, you's swinging at so many bad pitches as nine strikeouts last five games. Mukis or for nineteen or Freeman is four for nineteen, which is two ten and he won for sixteen against stuff candors. Mookie is three for twenty one last five games and talked about.

He did have a two homer game to help the Dodgers win a game the other night.

Yes, and then there's the rushing of a Dulton rushing. He's now at eighteen at bats and struck out ten times. He may not be ready, and.

I hold on, hold on, hold on, I'm not gonna concede that can. I think we have to also give him a pass that he's still developing. And also he's a guy that is a stud. He's been a stud on every team that he's played on, meaning he plays every day. So this is a huge adjustment to a kid that has been the best player or one of the best players on all the teams that he's played on until now where he's playing just once or twice a week.

That's a big adjustment.

Sure understand that. And I like him, and he's not used to these pitchers, so I understand all that. It's just a bad little street they were and again I think they were sleepwalking this game. They were up really late after a long flight, and I understand it. It's just the top of the lineup that's a little disappointing right now. It'll change, and it'll change.

And that's where you need other guys to step up, and ti Oscar Hernandez certainly has done that. Thanks for the phone call, Ken, Hey, you know, I thought that was going to be really negative, but Ken had great perspective on that.

Let's go out to our Kadia, Ronald. You're on Dodger Talk. How you doing, Ronald?

They David pretty good, glassawful today. It's probably, like Ken, just something I'm seeing right. We're at the bottom of the league and quality starts, and it's pretty obvious it's the bullpen is taxed, and I'm just curious. You're closer to the you know, obviously the player and obviously the coaches do what they got to do. But your nibbling point I was going to bring up, we also are very close to the top in walks and strikeout, So it's like we just have this all or nothing mentality

Yeah, this isn't the playoffs, Ronald. It's not the playoffs. There are no days off of multiple days off. This is the marathon. And you can't live with your starters only giving you innings or coming out of games because of rain after one inning or feeling something after a warm up after the first inning.

It just can't happen.

And I think now the Dodgers, at least, you know, they're not pitching the best, but at least they got something they could count on that these guys are going to make their start, they're gonna try to give you five innings. And today you know, Tony Gonsolin's fourth inning wasn't great, but at least he went back out there for the fifth and that kind of shortened the game a little bit.

Definitely. Yeah, and why I said glass half full, it's early. There's still time to turn this thing around for the starters. What my my fear is is what happened with River, Ryan, Em and Shehn that were injuries to the older guys. These guys had to come up fill innings and they're they're throwing their hearts out, but then they throw their arm out. I don't want to see that happens Disparius. I don't want to see that happens in that. But

I think it's happening to Caspiraus. If anything, he's he's leaving it all out there every time, out there for one inning, for one batter, for three innings like we saw last night, three no hit innings.

I mean, they got to protect that kid.

I know they're in a tough spot right now, but yeah, he's he's been used in a lot of different ways and he loves being.

A big leaguer. Thanks for the phone call.

Good call, Ronald from Arcadia eight six six nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. By the way, Speaking of the bullpen and some of these young pitchers, the Dodgers were in dire need of a fresh arm, so much so they called up Bobby Miller, not to make a spot start, but to be a reliever at the end of the game to cover some innings, and he did that tonight. He went two innings. He did give up an RBI double to Bret Batty, but for the most part, Bobby seemed to be a little bit

That's what it comes to.

Because what I saw in that at bad against Juan Soto reminded me of Bobby Miller's first major league start in Atlanta against Ronald Acunya Junior. I haven't seen Bobby compete like that and be aggressive with his ninety nine fastball and his change up like he was and in that at bad against Juan Soto in the eighth inning in a long time, and I know Bobby overthinks things. He has a lot of pitches that he believes are

When we come.

Back, your phone calls, we have three lines open at eight six six nine eighty seven two five seventy. Jose Moto will check in and we'll share part of our pregame conversation with Luis Cruz Coochito.

He shared his.

Experiences facing show he Otani when he was playing in jap hand you don't want to miss that. More Dodger Talk coming up right around the corner after the Dodgers fall to the Mets five to two on a five to seventy LA Sports.

Dodger Talk is available on AM five seventy LA sports dot com, hand on the iHeartRadio app. Back to more Dodger Talk with Dodger insider David Basse.

David Vasse with you on Dodger Talk after the Mets beat them, or Dodgers beat the Mets last night and thirteen innings in case you missed it, they come back tonight and lose the middle game of the series. Five to two, eight six, six, nine, eighty seven two five seventy is the phone number. Jose Mota is going to join us at the top of the hour. Also, you'll hear from Luis Cruz with sho Heyo Tani expected to throw his first live batting practice tomorrow at City Field

Louis played a couple of years.

In Japan and faced a young Otani, So you don't want to miss that. But right now we're talking about not just the game breakdown, but sometimes within games, things start to pop up that maybe could help the Dodgers in the big picture, and the Dodgers needed a fresh arm, and they called up Bobby Miller. And I'm wondering now, moving forward, are the Dodgers going to seriously consider Bobby bullpen Bobby Miller as a reliever rather than a starter.

Manny, Hey, what's up, David Good evening another's loss. You know, to answer your question about Bobby Miller, I think he definitely needs to come out of the bullpen. He's had many, many opportunities come up and show us what he can do as a pitcher. He just still seems very wild to me. He doesn't have too much control. But you know, I do give him credit for coming out short notice and giving us a mining, So shout out to you, Bobby.

And it's hard with games.

When you're one through five hitters, go three for twenty three for twenty two, you're not gonna winto any games. So you know, it can't always be on the offense carrying this team, but it has to be some type of balance. And I feel like the Dodgers are missing some type of dog or some type of like, you know, some type of sense of urgency right now.

Come on, Manny, Now you're making blanket statements over one game. They are grinding things out when they are not at full strength and they're pitching has put them behind the eight ball more nights than not.

So I'm sorry.

I know you're emotional right now, but that's a blanket statement. The Dodgers are talented and they're trying to grind things out on the East Coast after a long night into today, so come on give them a pass on that. Let's stop be talking about they're missing dogs. They got dogs. They got Edmund, they got ta Oscar, they got Mookie they got Freddie, they got Otani, they got dogs.

Yeah, they got they got dogs.

I'm just hoping that, you know, they get their red.

You really upset me with that, Manny, you kind of upset me with that. I'm not gonna lie sor ry Dave.

Sorry, TV, they mean to go there.

Yeah, please don't question the dogs since I mean, didn't we call the bullpen the dogs last year? Many?

Now, all of a sudden, they're chihuahuas.

Come on, they're missing a few guys.

But you know this team, this team has the best record, one of the best records in baseball, and they're nowhere near hitting their stride and nowhere near as healthy as they could be in the near future. Thanks for the phone call, Many, Yeah, that upset me. Don't be making blanket statements like that against the Dodgers and those group of world champions. By the way, they're just three or four months removed from winning the World Series. Remember that.

Good Daan?

Thanks for having me on.

Hey, I'm fired up now, Tim, you better be ready. I'm fired up now. Man, he got me upset.

He lit a fire underneath me, So go ahead, what do you got.

I'm with you on Bonni Miller becoming a reliever. I think he can throw some gas for an inny and a half, got good movement when he's on in his off speech stuff, and mentally he can do it. I think it's a good transition for him. Also, do you think it's twofold or they may be trying to increase his trade value?

Possibly?

I mean right now it's probably at an all time low, but there's always that potential and surplus value of team control.

He's got a live armed him.

There's something there that, for whatever reason, Bobby hasn't been able to put together.

Yeah, I agree, So hopefully mentally he can do it. We definitely need to help some arms here.

I mean at some point the Dodgers if Bobby Miller can't get things to click, and by the way, they really haven't clicked in the minor leagues this year for him, or he would have been up here before, landon NAC before Justin Robleski. So you know, after what we saw tonight, and I'm telling you go back and watch that Sodo at bat, that's what Bobby Miller needs.

To do.

And that's what Bobby Miller could possibly be if he just empties the tank like that in a one inning spurt. I mean, that's the way guys do it that couldn't be starters for whatever reason they. I think Bobby's case, he's just overthinking things too much and he's toying with too many pitches.

When you're a reliever, all you need is.

Two pitches, simplify it, and Bobby hasn't been able to do that so far as a starting pitcher. Daniels Jewelers presents the home Run Forecast. Go to AM five to seventy LA sports dot Com 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

Here's what Luis Cruz.

Had to say about his experiences facing Otani the pitcher. All right, well let's go back to you and Otani in Japan. How did Louis Cruz do against Otani the picture?

Well, the first time, I remember, I was coming from from playing in the big leagues and and I faced him in a in like a preseason game, and he only threw like two innings, and he threw fastball like a ninety nine slider cider I pop up or something to the right field, and I and I remember telling my teammates, oh, this is a tiny I mean, it's not that. I mean, you see a lot of guys on the big leagues like him. And once the season started that we got to face each other, he was

All right.

That's part of our pregame conversation with Luis Cochito Cruz, who had some great stories about his relationship and facing Otani in Japan, and also how Clayton Kershaw was more welcoming than I even knew about. When Louis Cruz got the call up when he first made his debut with the Dodgers. So you don't want to miss that conversation. You can find it on the iHeartRadio app. All right, from one Spanish radio broadcaster to the other, our guy, Jose Mota.

It's tough to go around the horn with Jose Mota.

How about that, Jose Mota, your partner used to talk trash to Otani when he was facing him in Japan.

Yeah. Oh, Tani has a little of that in him once in a while when he pitches, when he pitches as a different monster. By the way, wait till you see it. It's gonna be a lot of fun. Hey, but maybe you should turn the show tonight into a bilingual show. What do you think?

Yeah? I like it. I like it. You handle the Spanish handle day one day?

Yeah, we should do that one night? Why not?

Right, we'll see Jose. I think that's a YouTube type of thing.

No, not going there.

Jose speaking of Otani and him pitching and that type of monster.

Tomorrow, a LIVEBP for him.

How competitive do you think it'll be tomorrow at City Field?

He only has one gear when it comes out to pitching. Obviously, he's not gonna go out there and to turn to blow hundred and one by people. But Shoe doesn't want any good swings to be taken off of him. He's going to be gauging himself on command, okay, location, He's going to be reading every single thing that comes out of those reads. I mean, whatever all those machines show, he wants to know about it. He doesn't in spring

If you had to guess three hitters that would face so Tani tomorrow, who do you believe would be the three?

Just find me some guys that are not playing tomorrows. If I look at the lineup, I'll tell you who it is. But you're not gonna seem most likely, I should say, you're not gonna see a regular space in Showhale Tony. So guys on the bench, get ready.

Jose Mota is joining us after the Mets beat the Dodgers tonight five to two. A topic of conversation on the show Jose has been about Bobby Miller coming out of the bullpen obviously out of necessity tonight. But what do you think about the idea of Bobby bullpen moving forward?

I'll tell you what, man, It probably back to the days when David relievers were failed starters. That's what they were. Okay. It brought me back to that, and a lot of times I remember even even talking to tom of the Sword about this in my days in the Dugger clubhouse in the eighties, and Tommy would tell me, Hey, this guy's going to go to the bullpen, because I'll ask him sometimes, like Tommy, why is this guy go to the bullpen? Just to learn some things? He goes. All

All right, Jose, you're a good guy to ask this question too. I felt like that at bad against Juan Soto fastball ninety eight, ninety nine, that change up down in a way eighty six. That's enough for Bobby Miller to be an effective reliever. Does he need something else or would those two pitches be effective for him?

He's fine with two pitches, I mean, because he's got a sinker ninety nine miles an hour, he's got a four seamer that will, you know, triple digits, and he's got the great change up. I mean, the change up in his rookie season was the most unhitterable pitch he had. It was embarrassing two hitters. And now that you gotta go out there and use it a lot is to relieve it to begin with, because he's a power guy and that the arm speed is the same and all that kind of stuff. But it is the arm speed

A key to all this, though, Jose, is to get the buy in from the player and embrace this new rule. Do you believe Bobby Miller would embrace it at this stage of his career?

At this point it keeps in the big leagues? I don't see why not. And you know, even players cannot dictate things like that in a way by you explaining it well and saying, hey, listen, it's not gonna cost you any money, which all right, would make you better, but also a better fit for our team. It's about being the big leagus or being triple A. And in this case, I know the players have a lot of say and you know a lot of the agents have a lot of saying things like this, but you have

All right, Before I let you go, hoose Mota, I mean, I know Otani is human, but oh for four to three strikeouts and that at bad against David Peterson in the eighth inning, As Carlos Mendoza said after the game, we made him look human tonight. What did you see in particular in that at bat from Otani against Peterson in the eighth inning?

And why show hey looks so human?

Yeah, I mean the last four or five games, I would say he took that over six the other day, just a little disconnect between the bottom part of his body with the legs and the anchoring of the speed to the swing. He's not chasing as much ups theirs now he's taking more downstairs. So teams have gone away from, you know, trying to exploit upstairs, and they're going away.

And you can see he's way way.

Expanding his zone too much right now for his own comfort, because I don't think he's found a pattern in which they've been pitching to him so far lately, and he has not been able to make the adjustment. Really comes down to the show. He taking his watch when he needs to, enforcing pictures into the zone a little bit more. So, hopefully it'll start again by poster and by being anchored in the batter's box.

All right, Jose, thanks a lot for the insight. Look forward to talking to you after Sunday night baseball and a series win for the Dodgers.

Let's make it a fadiz doo mingo. Come on now, David, let's go.

All right, Jose, thank you for the phone call, Thank you for checking in. Appreciate it.

Jose Mota part of the Dodgers Spanish radio broadcast with Luis Cochito Gruz and Pepe and Ningez. Then I'll do it for us tonight on Dodger Talk coming up tomorrow, the finale of this three game series, the Rubber Game, with Land and Knack on the mound for the Dodgers. He's two and one with an ERA of six seventeen.

The Dodgers will.

Be facing Codei Senga, another really good Mets starter who is four and three this year with an ERA of one forty three. He has forty seven strikeouts and fifty innings this season. Morongo Casino Dodgers on Deck begins at three o'clock tomorrow, with first pitch on Sunday night, Baseball from City Field at four to ten with Rick Monday and Steven Nelson. Thanks to Colin ye Back at our Burbanks Student. Thanks to Dwayne McDonald at City Field. Thanks

Bad more of me if you do that.

Just the warning anyway, we'll talk to you tomorrow. Have a great rest of your Saturday night. Once again, the Mets beat the Dodgers tonight five to two.

See them don't shut play