It's the Dodgers and Giants hooking up for the first time this season, albeit in spring training. But we're joined right now by a man that can add his name to the list of players that have played for the Giants and Dodgers. That list seems to be growing more in recent years. But that's Dodger left fielder Michael CONFORDO. Michael, thanks a lot for the time. Appreciate it.
Yeah, I appreciate you having me.
What's it like being on the West Valley compared to beautiful Scottsdale? Are you missing Scottsdale Stadium?
Not Scottsdale Stadium itself. Maybe the commute there from my house it's a little bit longer.
I actually live over in.
Scottsdale, so it's just a little bit longer commute. But there's no place I would rather be than right here.
Michael.
What's it like in your first experience with the Dodgers.
It's been great.
It's been super positive since I showed up early camp. You know, I've gotten everything I need, got great coaches, great teammates, you know exactly what I expected. You know, great leadership from the guys who've been here.
For a while.
The Hall of Fame guys do things a Hall of Fame way, and uh, you know, I'm just trying to I'm trying to soak all that up, you know, take you know, take take in what I can and and and try to do things the same way.
You know. It's kind of just the Dodger way over here.
When you talk about soaking up the way Hall of famers do things. He got one to your left that will be headed to Cooperstown one day. And Freddie Freeman in the clubhouse here in spring training. What's it been like to be locker mates with Freddie?
It's been great. You know, I've played against him for a long time. I know he's got a great personality, great sense of humor. But now I'm able to see kind of, you know, behind the curtain a little bit, you know, extremely competitive guy, wants to be out there every single day. Obviously, he's dealing with some rehab right now, so I'm not seeing him as much. I think he's gonna be in there tomorrow. Yeah, so I'm super excited
about that. But you know, it's it's it's early. I'm I'm still uh you know, still getting to know him, and I'm excited to have that relationship grow.
What you just described about Freddie Freeman is what pictures have said when they've joined the Dodgers, where they get to see behind the curtain as far as the work ethic and just the method of Clayton Kershaw. Is it the same type of feeling where you're you're looking at this guy across the field, but now you get to see how it comes together.
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
There's some things that you see being on another team, the way he works in his batting practice, the discipline he works with, but just being around him, knowing that that discipline isn't just in his hitting, it's in everything. Yeah, you know, that's that's something that you just don't get to see. You kind of assume that, but to see it is a is another thing. And to be teammates with him and to be held accountable by guys like him, you know that that goes a long way yourself.
And it feels like everybody that was here last year, humble and hungry seems to be what I'm feeling in that clubhouse.
Absolutely.
I mean, I know these guys are you know, one is or two? For some of these guys, two's not enough you know, they want to do something special, something that hasn't been done in a long time, and going back to back, and I think this team has been set up to do that. Now it's on us to go out there and actually execute and and live up to, you know, all the hype that's that's obviously always around the Dodgers.
Michael Conforto is not the only former Giant that's joining the Dodgers. You were teammates with Blake Snell last year. What can you tell us about Blake and how underappreciated he may be.
There's no other guy like him, really, you know that shows up on the field. There's no picture like him. His stuff is electric, but people gravitate to him. He's a positive energy. He's a funny guy, you know, great guy to have in the clubhouse. I'm really excited to see him with a full off season, you know, right
coming off of Asai Young where he started slow. You know, it could be really scary to see what he does if he's able to just be who he is the entire year, stay healthy, because when he's on, there's not a whole lot you can do to put the ball and play against him.
So I'm excited to see that.
Before I let you go, I'm sure you've noticed the hordes of media in the Dodger clubhouse, a lot of them Japanese media. Are you looking forward to starting the season in Tokyo?
I can't wait.
I'm super excited to go out to Tokyo. Yeah, it's hard to miss all the media in the clubhouse. I'm sure that's going to be a thing all year. Not necessarily not used to a lot of media, you know, I played in some in some big markets. New York was big, San Francisco was definitely not as much, but there's still some attention there. But to start the season with Shohy, with yosh with Roki in Tokyo, it's a special opportunity.
It's you know, once in a lifetime.
So that's the kicker, right, that's the kicker. You're not just going to Tokyo, but you're going with the ginormous superstar i Otani exactly.
I mean it's one thing to go and one thing to play out there, start your season out there, But to go with the you know, I mean maybe the biggest sports star in the you know, on the planet in their home, you know, in their home country cherry on top.
Yeah, you'll just be there.
You'll be there and you'll make your impact. You'll let your game do the talking. That's why, that's the way Michael CONFORDA lives a proud Italian American. Thanks a lot for the time and look forward to being around you all year.
Thanks a lot, Yeah, I appreciate it.