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 win this.
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, Dodgers, world champion thing.
Put a small soft time they get a people what they want to die to in a row two is special.
I'm like, yeah, it's not a headache.
One of the con This ball's gone. You ready to go?
Hell time go to the South, grab your phone to get in on the show called eight six six nine eighty seven two five seven. I'll go to the show and now your host of Dodger Talk, David Vasse.
As expected, rain has interrupted the first game of the Dodgers road trip in the first game in Queens, as the Dodgers and Mets are in a rain delay in the top of the third inning, no score with runners at the for Freddie Freeman when the rain really dumped at City Field.
So we'll keep you updated.
On when the Dodgers and Mets will resume this game, and hopefully it's sooner rather than later because it would not be beneficial to the Dodgers to have their starting pitcher taken out of the game because of rain after just two innings.
And it would be even.
Worse to have Clayton Kershaw taken out of this game and have to sit for an extended period of time. Considering where the Dodger bullpen is. I mean, we've been talking about this since the last homestand right the Dodger bullpen is thin.
Starters are not.
Going deep into games, and because of rain now it may prevent their starter from going deep into the game because mother Nature had something to say about it. So not ideal for the Dodgers or Kershaw right now in a rain delay in the top of the third inning with no score at City Field. David Vasse with you on rain delay Dodger Talk. We do have phone lines open at eight six six nine, eight seven two five seventy.
We will hear from manager Dave Roberts. Because the Japanese media was well ahead of the American media covering the Dodgers. If you've been listening to Dodger Talk since last weekend, you would have heard me report that some members of the Japanese media relate to me that Dodgers trainer Thomas Albert let them know that Yes, indeed, tomorrow show Hey Otani will throw to hitters in a live batting practice
setting at City Field. It will be the first time Otani will have will do this since his second elbow surgery about twenty months ago.
So to me, when I saw Twitter.
Blow up and all these news stories being written about Otani breaking news He's gonna throw a live batting practice session tomorrow, well it really wasn't batting. It wasn't really breaking news. If you were listening to Dodger Talk since last Saturday, we told you that was going to happen, and Dave Roberts just confirmed it. Eight six six nine
eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. Another layer to all this and all the pitching injuries that the Dodgers have had and to a certain extent, some of their younger pitchers not stepping up when they've been given the opportunity. Is people wondering if the Dodgers would accelerate Otani's throwing program to make him available in the near future to be a starting pitcher for the Dodgers, rather than stick with their plan have Otani come back the second half of the year and.
Be ready for October.
Dave Roberts was our high and tight pregame guest before today's game.
Here's what he said about the plan for Otani. You know the short answers.
No, I think that show, hey, doctor elatross a training for all driving this sort of ramp up progression. I think it's separate. It's a separate issue, and I think that one part of it, or that I guess the main part of it is his value to us as a hitter as it is, as it stands, is so valuable, right, and so to try to speed something up to take on some type of downside just doesn't make sense. So I do think that we are being very methodical about it. I can safely say he's probably not going to pitch
for us until after the break. But I don't think that the injuries that we've had is going to speed up his process.
All Right, there's manager Dave Roberts, our pregame guest today in the manager's office saying, look, that makes sense. One thing that Dodgers have done better than any other team out there the last ten twelve years, and especially in the last few years.
Is not panic.
They're not going to panic and all of a sudden tell Otani, hey, ramp this thing up. We need you now. Glass now's down, Snell's not coming back for another month. We need you now.
Landon Na's been ineffective. We need you now.
Otani, ramp this up, Live BP tomorrow. You're in the rotation next week. No, the Dodgers have done a great job ever since Andrew Friedman has taken over. Is to perfect how to win the regular season. Yes, there's been some close calls over the course of the last twelve years. They had to go to a game won sixty three against the Rockies. The Giants had a miracle season in
twenty twenty one, won the division. The Padres have pushed them, pushed them last year, But the Dodgers, even in those anomaly of seasons, have never panicked and try to put their players in a position that would affect their chances or the best chances for the postseason.
And that's the reason.
Why the Dodgers are not going to put the ass pedal on Otani and his throwing.
Progression.
So tomorrow Live BP, and he will not pitch still until after the all Star break, and I would venture you won't see Otani pitch until probably August, maybe after the All Star break, that first turn, that first Saturday, because remember, even when you do see Otani pitch, it's only going to be once a week, and it more than likely is going to be on Saturday, because the Dodgers have structured his throwing program where he does these
aggressive bullpens on Saturdays. And it's not a coincidence Otani is going to throw his first live BP session tomorrow on a Saturday. Eight six six nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. This is rain delay Dodger Talk with David Vasse, the Dodgers and Mets in a rain delay top of the third inning, runners at the corners for Freddie Freeman. And before we go out to the phones and we have two lines open, I just wanted to applaud and give a lot of kudos to our very own Rick Monday.
Who probably knows the rule book.
Better than any other broadcaster in Major League Baseball. And that's the reason why if you were listening or making it a samulcast, because this game is being televised on Apple TV, Rick immediately was all over the play that was sent to review for an extended period of time.
When Juan Soto on Tyrone Taylor collided in center field, the ball popped out of Taylor's glove or Soto's, and he juggled it, caught it, and Confordo tagged as soon as he saw Taylor and the ball be able to make contact with each other as far as the glove goes, and Rick knew immediately that's the rule. Once you see the ball going the glove, even if it pops out,
you're allowed to tag up. And if you were watching the Apple broadcast, I like Wayne Randazzo a lot, but the reality is he's a former Mets radio play by play guy, and I feel like I'm watching an s NY hometown broadcast. He was livid over the fact he couldn't believe that they're taking this long.
Of course he's out, he left too soon.
Well, you gotta know the rules, especially on a national broadcast, and Dontrelle Willis had no clue either. So I advise you, moving forward, when this game resumes, make it a simulcast with Rick Monday and Steven Nelson, because that Apple broadcast, ain't it? Eight six six nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. Let's go out to long beat.
Sean. You're on Dodgery Talk. How you doing, Sean?
Good?
Dave, I am calling about Mokey best and the fact that he doesn't lead off anymore. I know, amazing and he's amazing at leading off.
But I remember, I don't know if you remember a few years ago.
When that will be made, the rule that a pitcher had to pitch.
Against three batters.
Dave Roberts hitting the linet based on why and Moki was batting leadoff some days and in the two whole other days, and his splits were so crazy that Dave Robert Kane's mind and Mokey was leoff you know every day that was.
Right.
Yeah, weird, weird season, but yeah, and then MOOKI, you know, has broken its. Like isn't he top five all time in leadoff home runs? He's just an amazing leadoff.
Hit It time show.
Hey, I don't this is These are numbers from the other day, but sixteen home runs and thirty RB you got to do with thirty four?
So what do you want to do? You're breaking up, so get to your point.
Oh sorry, Mokey leading off again.
That's what I.
Want, okay. Uh So here's the thing, and I'm with you, Sean.
At first I was against moving Mooki down to the two spots because of everything you said. But the reality is the Dodgers went on to win a World Series and it worked out really well to have Mooki in between Otani and Freddie Freeman. And you talked about a picture having to face the minimum three batters. So that's neutralizing what an opposing manager may do because you have a lefty in front of Muki and you have a lefty behind Muki. So let's say they come in to
face the nine hitter. All of a sudden, you have to make a decision. Are you going with the lefty or are you going with the rioty? So that makes the strategy a little tougher for the opposing manager. And case in point, Mookie Betts has been outstanding the last two years. When the opposing manager decides to walk Otani intentionally in front.
Of him, yeah, how about?
And Muki's not the same player he was in twenty twenty either, and Mooki Betts the number one thing for him.
He's got to.
Buy in and he bought in, So that's why I'm okay with it. MOOKI bought in, So I bought in?
What about what show was on paternity leave? Why didn't they put Mooky back as a leadoff then? Like that's what confused me as well.
Uh yeah, you know, I think it's consistency, lineup, consistency. Mooki's your two hitter, Freddy's your three and four hitter, depending on if there's a lefty out there, So why get them in that leadoff spot and and then have to move him back to the two spot.
That was only for a couple of games.
Too, right, Okay, thanks Dave?
All right, Sean, thanks for the phone call.
Eight six six seven two five seventy is the phone number. Let's go out to Javier and all Hambra. You're on rain delay Dodger Talk with David vasse Hi.
Javier, Hey, Dave, thanks taking my call.
My pleasure.
What do you got too bad for Kershaw?
Huh uh?
This is not good for the doddaw Javier, It's not too bad. It's worst case scenario right now.
Yeah, the bullten's kind of taking on water right now. We're not like you said earlier, starters aren't going deep enough right and that fabled bulletin release is just not happening right now. But uh, I just want to talk about the Dodgers kind of aren't productive.
When I lost my train of thought, Well that's.
What shoan, Xavier. You got a little nervous. It's afternoon, drive, the sun is out. This is not midnight. We got to bring it right now, rain delay, Come.
On, let's go. This is morning for me. I work at night. But so you just woke up, just woke up, just woke up. Uh anyways, just uh, I hope that bats kind of wake up.
It was kind of nice seeing Tao come in and just come in with a bang like that, and.
That happened two days ago, that you've been asleep for two days.
Er, thank you for the phone call. Wow, I mean here's I know you work at night, Javier.
Memo to you, don't pick up the phone right away after you wake up. That's a bad thing to do. Bad thing to do to pick up the phone right away, bad thing to do to text somebody right when you wake up. You're not yourself. Have a drink of water, Chug some water before you decide to call a sports talk show host in the middle of a rain delay at five point twenty in the afternoon, Let's go out to Montclair when else, Diaz Art, you're on Dodger Talk.
How you doing, good day?
You're cracking me up from that last caller. Hey, I wanted a call and just see your comments.
I'll listen.
After I read an article today talking about teen chemistry, and then the good Doctor went on to say, how you know, losing Barnaby and losing CT is gonna mess up the teen chemistry a little bit. And so you know, they're talking about team slides and everybody get together, and I know how that oft time, everybody spends a lot of time together. And he just had to hit your thoughts. Do you think chemistring really pays that much of a factory, not just a lot of baseball talk.
No, I mean I saw what you saw.
Bill Plunkett talked to Freddie Freeman about it, and he described it perfectly. It changes the dynamics, no doubt about it. But you just keep moving forward and think about this. Last year, the Dodgers released Jason Hayward, who was Freddie Freeman's and still is Freddie Freeman's best friend. In baseball. How do you think he felt last year? Did he sul did he just pack it in? No, he kept
going and won the MVP of the World Series. So you know, Austin Barnes was a presence with the pitching staff. He was a good guy to have around Chris Taylor, a little bit low energy, but obviously had not been playing a lot. Hard to make a difference chemistry or not. When you're not playing a lot, you're the twenty sixth man on the bench. And he wasn't a raw, raw guy. He never was, So take that for what it's worth.
Art.
Now, if the Dodgers all of a sudden decided to trade I don't know, Mookie Betts, or decided to trade taoscar Hernandez, yes the chemistry would be affected. But these are two guys at the end of the roster that you know. Unfortunately, the Dodgers felt that the younger players could help them out more. So, No, I don't think this is going to affect team chemistry.
All right, Gay, Thanks all right, Art, thank you for.
The phone call.
Look, nobody loved Austin Barnes more than I did. And you know we debated this over the course of the last two or three years. He was not there to hit three hundred, no matter what you thought. He played once a week. His number one job was defense, and he was really good at handling the pitching staff, really good at game calling in game. But the throwing is an issue. I mean, there's no getting away around that. There's no way around it, right, and it was at
an all time low this year. And the Dodgers understand the dynamics in baseball these days where a catcher needs to be able to throw runners out, especially now with the rules, the disengagement rules, the bigger bases, major League Baseball has made it much easier for base runners to want to go, be enticed to run, and you've got to be able to throw them out. And unfortunately, you know, and I'll say this, I don't believe Austin Barnes.
All of a sudden couldn't throw.
I believe there was something physically wrong with his arm that he never had fixed or was bothering him even more this year. I'm not going to concede that all of a sudden, a major league catcher cannot throw the ball to second base if there was not something fit wrong. And that's on Austin. Austin needed to say something. Austin needed to do something about it. He wanted to keep playing through it. He's a guy that has high tolerance,
plays through a lot of things. Remember last year his foot was bleeding two separate times and he's still caught, didn't come out of the game. But the reality is he's a backup catcher that plays once a week and Dalton Rushing has been knocking on the door. The Dodgers wanted to see what they got with him. They want to get him acclimated, and more importantly, they wanted to feel confident that they could give will Smith two to three days off a week instead of just once every
seven days on a day game on Sunday. So that is the thinking behind it. And look, it's hilarious now that I am getting calls every day about Chris Taylor and you being sad about Chris Taylor. I loved Chris Taylor, but you didn't the last two years. That's so hilarious and ironic about these phone calls. I had a full board of calls on days at Chris Taylor didn't even take a single at bat, and you were calling for the Dodgers to do what they did last week and
release him. Now I'm getting calls about chemistry, questions about oh I feel bad about Chris Taylor. No, you didn't. You wanted him out for the last two years. It's just blows my mind. And now Michael Confordo is public Enemy number one and he's standing at third base right now in a rain delay, first and third. Yes, that's right, they stay at the base even in the rain.
No, just kidding.
When play resumes, Dodgers will have runners at the corners. Freddie Freeman will be at the plate. He has three balls, two strikes. It's three and one right now. When Freddy Freeman comes back to the plate, one out, runners at the corners, and the Dodgers trying to get a run across the board.
But what's on.
Fortunate is Clayton Kershaw's day is likely over. He only threw twenty six pitches in two innings before the rain came down in the top of the third inning. So not ideal and probably a combination now on Matt Soer Lou Trevino. And this is not ideal for the Dodger bullpen that has been taxed so much to start this six.
Game road trip with the rain delay that you're.
Gonna have to cover now the last six innings of this game. Eight six, six, nine, seven, two, five seventy is the phone number. Let's go out to Hollywood. Eric, You're on Dodger Talk. How you doing Dodger Day?
Shine?
WHOA David?
I was.
I was getting to that point where I was last year when when I thought the sky was falling and and you know, a bunch of different things, and I was getting sabbage. Then I remember what you said last time. It's a long season and things will change, and yes and Barnsey, I am gonna miss them, but the team has to keep going. If you want to win World Series, then the team needs to get It's got to be
something different every year, you know. And what's not different is the bullpen being used as much as it is. So I mean much love to those guys. I mean, those guys are just carrying us right now. And I am very patient. I know this season is gonna be long. I know we're gonna turn this around. And I know comforda is Michael and is public enemy number one, and poor guy Man, I hope he turns it around too. Man,
because he's the Dodger. Nation's gonna be like, all right, so it's trying to pick on somebody's trying to pick on Mi Conforto. But DV, I know this isn't the gossip sports talk, But what do you know about those idiots down there in San Diego fighting each other down there? I personally I love it, I love it, But what do you know about that?
I know that it's fake news.
Everybody got got that was a parody account that everybody thought was real fake news.
Oh oh oh ah, god, never mind, then then forget about it. Forget about it.
Then.
Look, I love our team.
I love where we're going. I don't want to change a thing. I would like the starters to go a little bit longer. But once Snell and Glass now get off of that, get get back together, I think we're gonna I think that I think we're gonna start humming again. But it's not gonna be anytime soon. So the guys just have to keep batting around as much as they can. Man And uh yo, DV, what's up? What's up in New York? Any any spots out that you're gonna recommend to us?
Oh?
I got a lot of spots for you. Are you planning on going out there? Eric, what are you doing?
I love?
I love New York man.
Oh yeah, man, my buddy's moving out there soon.
And uh I love New York.
I mean I've been to the usual spots out there, like cats Galley and stuff like that. But I mean, being the sports caster that you are, you probably go sit down a nice place, just like keeping stake outs and stuff like that. But give give give a blue collar guy like me like a restaurant where he can afford though, you know what I mean.
Oh, you got to go to John's Pizza on Broadway there, Eric, That's the place to go if you want some good New York pizza, good New York vibes. That's a blue collar type of place that we can all afford.
I see, That's what I'm talking about. You are a man of the people, even though you're gonna go to King Steakhouse with the rest of the ball players.
I heard of that. I make my living in.
The meatpacking district, soho Greenwich Village, That's where we make my bones.
Eric.
When I get fancy, you are a humble man, DV.
You are a humble man that's why you that's why you're the conductor of this train. Brother all the time, Bro Dodger dationon loved you.
Thank you, Eric, appreciate the phone call. Yeah, fake news. By the way, if you saw on social media or some of these websites that said after the Padres got beat in Toronto twelve to nothing, that there was a fight in the clubhouse amongst players, and trust me, there were a lot of people out there that thought it was real. But dank social media, throw these social media apps into the water.
It was fake news.
There was no freaking fight, as much as we would love to believe it, and it is believable that never happened. Actually, now, I would be surprised because Jason Hayward is on the Padres and he's known for being the adult in the room. I couldn't see Jason Hayward allowing that to happen. Hey, speaking of pizza, how about Shaky's Pizza Parlor on a Friday night when there's a rain delay. They are the
official pizza partner of the Dodgers' audio broadcast. When it's game night, it's group night at Shakey's dot com eight sixty six nine seven two five seventy is the phone number.
We are in a deep rain delay right now.
Just got word from our producer engineer at Cityfield, Dwayne McDonald MLB. The Dodgers and Mets have been alerted that there's another wave of rain expected here coming through any minute now. And the Dodger relievers have just left the bullpen. So this is not good for the Dodgers' bullpen situation. The already lead Major League Baseball with two hundred and fourteen innings pitched. They're going to have to add on at least six more innings tonight because Kershaw's night is over.
Despite him pitching really well.
He had his.
Fastball only at eighty eight tonight, but he was able to land his curveball for strikes. He had his slider that appears like a cutter working for him, freezing guys like Brandon Nemo. He was doing what it took the first time threw the lineup, and unfortunately his second start of the year abbreviated because of rain, and he only threw twenty six pitches. So you're going to see Matt Soer in a game like tonight. When play does resume, it will be top of the third inning, Freddie Freeman
at the plate three to one count against Griffin. Well, not Griffin canning anymore, and runners will be at second and third base. Eight six six nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. Let's go out to shy town Bob in Chicago listening on the iHeartRadio app. Hi, Bob, you're on Dodger Talk.
Hi.
Great to be on the show.
Thanks for taking my call.
My pleasure.
What are you doing in Chicago listening to the Dodgers and Mets.
I'm a big Dodgers fan. I listened all the time. I was on my way home from work and had the game on on the radio and kept it on when I got home.
Love it, Love it all right, Bob? What do you got for us?
I just wanted to compliment you on pointing out how nice it was to hear Rick Monday know the rules and I was just a great point you made, and I totally agree with you. It's just leakes the game so much more enjoyable to listen to when you're listening to guys that actually know what's going on.
Great.
Yeah, I mean, if you're in the play by playbooth, that's.
Your job to know the rules and explain it to us the listeners, and especially if you're on a national broadcast, instead of just cheerleading for the team that you used to broadcast for, you got to know the rules. And I'm sorry, I'm not a guy that jumps all over national broadcasts.
But.
It wasn't a good look for somebody to be whinding in the booth that Michael Confordo should have been out and basically calling the umpiring crew and the people in New York dummies because they weren't giving it to the Mets. Instead of having a guy like Rick Munday, who's a Dodger broadcaster won the World Series for the Dodgers, left his leg out on the field for the Dodgers, take a step back and.
Know the rule.
Yeah, it's great. I mean it's gotten really bad in the NFL. The announcers don't know the rules to a point where they've actually hired a rules analyst to tell the announcers what the rules are exactly.
And that was probably the highlight of the Apple broadcast tonight. They brought in a former umpire as well, Brian Gorman, to explain the rule to us. So if it wasn't for Brian, the viewers on Apple would have no clue on why Michael can foh at third base. Tagging up was not a call to be overturned. So I'm glad you're listening, Bob, And like I said, when this game resumes, I strongly suggest making it a simulcast. Turn up Rick Monday and Steven Nelson. Let's go out to El Carriso
Golf Club. Are you Are you at some golf country club right now?
Oscar? You're on Dodger Talk.
Hey, Dave, thanks for taking my call.
Where is that?
Colin just throws up these things that I have no idea about.
Oh my goodness, you're more than welcome. Come out and play around with us. Alt In Stilmar brother on the way to Magic Mountain, stop by, play around Al Carriso Golf course. Man, beautiful place afill.
Drive your golf cart if you have a couple of Modello's in there for me.
That's the extent about how how did you know that was my beer of choice?
Man?
You know me so well. Hey, hey listen, man, that the other caller took my thunder a little bit. But I wanted to give you credit for calling out that guy out of New York such a homer. My son and I were watching the game at home and we were like, what is this guy talking about?
Right?
We also didn't know the rule. I have to admit awesome rule, but such an idiot for not knowing it on the national broadcast. And also, what's up with our boy Dantree Will is not backing us up? Man, that's your colleague. You need to call him out the next time you see him.
He's not my colleague, he's a part timer and he just didn't know the rule either. Oscar and Yeah, I mean we're all we're They were trying to sell us that Michael Confordo was a dummy and he left too soon.
Instead, he made the right play. So you know, that's that's the worst part of it.
If you don't know the rule, don't try to act like everybody else is the dummy when maybe you should take the look in the mirror. Thanks for the phone call. Let's go out to j in La. You're on Dodger Talk.
How you doing jay Yo?
David?
I also wanted to commend you for calling out d Chain and everybody on the Apple TV broadcast.
Absolutely one hundred percent. You need to know everything before he spark off.
David as a national podcast, right, you got to play it down the middle, Lea.
Don't be a homer.
Come on, bro, you're there to talk about the game, not you know, be a one sided guy. And to top it off, I've been having issues with d Train because, Bro, that guy during the postseason run last year. Yes, he chose the Dodgers to win some game, but you can tell he did not have confidence and did not want to choose the Dodgers, especially during the Padre series. And I can tell, Oh, he's on the payroll, so he's
got to choose the Dodgers. But reality is he doesn't want to choose the Dodgers, So D Train.
I don't know.
Man, Maybe he should go to San Diego and.
Be a loser down there as well.
Damn all right, gee, I'm not going that far on our guy, Dontrell Willis.
Thank you for the phone call.
By the way, Dontrell never did pitch for the Dodgers, so he doesn't have that type of connection to the franchise. He's a solid broadcaster, but obviously they did not know the rule. And maybe Rick Monday can let the Apple broadcast team borrow his rule book. I mean he taught me early on. Have the rule book in your bag. Him and Kevin Kennedy actually taught me that early on. And I keep a rule book in my bag and
it's very available now online as well. Eight sixty six nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. The Dodgers and Mets are in a scoreless tie in the top of the third inning, runners at second and third for the Dodgers, with Freddie Freeman at the plate, one out in a three to one count, and both starting pitchers now have been burned because of this extended
rain delay. Griffin Canning, who by the way, has had a renaissance to his career with the Mets, and so have a lot of these starters with the Mets that have been discarded by other teams. They've kind of done what the Dodgers have done to a certain extent, where they've helped them reinvent themselves and maybe give them a different.
Repertoire to their pitch mix.
Because Griffin Canning was an average pitcher for the Angels, up and down pitcher, and I was listening to the Baseball Tonight podcast with Buster only and Jorge Castillo, who was on off day Dodger Talk last night, covers the Mets and Yankees, and he said that a lot of these starting pitchers have been taught by the Mets pitching coach this new changeup that kind of serves as a split change up, a harder type of change up, and
they're calling it a kick change up. And Gryffin Canning was using that pitch early and often in this game. So I guess that's the good news for the Dodgers is that Griffin Canning is now out of this game and the Dodgers will get the Mets bullpen, and the Dodgers now will go to Matt Sower, who has been mister.
Versatile for them.
I don't know if they're going to go to him right away in the bottom of the third inning, but you can only imagine to have a weapon like Matt Sour Dave Roberts can go to him because he's a guy that can go four or five innings. Eight six, six, nine seventy is the phone number. This is rain delayed Dodger Talk. David Vasse with you on a five to seventy LA Sports. Let's go out to Boyle Heights. Robert, You're on Dodger Talk. How you doing, Robert?
Hi, Dave, how's it going?
Long time listener for his time caller, just wanted to ask you about Emma Chian. I heard that he's been throwing to He's been throwing a live bolt into two batters, and I was wondering, do you have any updates in terms of when he's going to begin a rehab start or like, you know, start to get back on the mound.
Oh? Yeah, how about this, Robert Dave.
Roberts said on the last homestand because Emitt Sheen threw to hitters on the last homestand early on, and he said, Emmitt Shean is a great sleeper, sneaky pick to help the Dodgers' rotation in the second half of the season. And Emmett when I saw him in spring training, I hadn't seen him since last year. He took this time off of not being able to throw the baseball to get into the weight room and he got bigger and stronger from the lower half all the way up to
his shoulders. So he's coming back a stronger pitcher and a guy that certainly can be a big weapon. For the Dodgers the second half of the season. But keep in mind, guys come back from Tommy John surgery in the first few months the first year back. Yes, they're not injured anymore, but a lot of them have told me they just don't have the same feel for their pitches that they did before until the following season. So it's great that he's coming back. It's great that he's healthy.
But let's see how he looks when he comes back. I believe we all should give him that kind of grace to understand where he's at. But certainly Dave Roberts is picking Emage Sheen to be a big part of the second half of the Dodger pitching staff.
Yeah that sounds great. I mean, you know, considering us all the injuries that are going through with the entire pitching staff, I was, I have my fingers crossed. You know that he'll come back soon to help lead the second half.
Robert, you better be there. You better leave Boyle Heights. When Emma Shean's pitching at Dodgers Stadium this year.
You better believe I'll get tickets.
All right.
Thanks for the phone call, Robert, appreciate it. Yeah, I mean look, right now, the Dodgers are in a very tough stretch with their schedule starting tonight against the Mets. Then they go to Cleveland, who's the leading American League wildcard winner. Right now, they're in the lead for the wildcard race in the American League. They're a very good team going back to last year. They have great pitching, So runs are going to be at a premium when
the Dodgers are in Cleveland next week. But after that, as you know, everybody's been anticipating, the next home stand seven games against the New York teams, the two teams the Dodgers played on their way to the World Championship, three against the Yankees and four more against these Mets. After that, the next road trip takes the Dodgers to Saint Louis and San Diego, and then they come back
home to play the Giants and Padres again. So right now, the next twenty five games the Dodgers are going to be tested. This is the toughest part of the first half of their schedule, make no mistake about it. And right now, going into it, they're not at full strength with their pitching staff. And when I say pitching staff,
not just their starting rotation, but their bullpen. So the Dodger offense is going to have to put up some runs to help out this pitching staff and take some pressure off that bullpen to not have to use these high leverage relievers three out of four nights. So just keep that in mind as we're moving through the next two and a half weeks that this is not the Angels, the A's, the Rockies, the Pirates. These are playoff contenders that are probably making the playoffs, and they're really good.
Right now.
Eight sixty six seven two five seventy is the phone number. Let's go out to Silver Lake. Alan wants to give us some pizza Rex in New York.
What you got, Alan, Well, Dave John's is on Bleeker Street.
The good John's my Bleeker Street.
Sorry, I have the rule book on pizza right here with me.
I know, I feel like the Apple broadcast. I said Broadway, not Bleaker. But the one thing is I'm from La.
I know, and I'm actually into documentary called The Best Pizzas in La So we'll get to that later.
But is this a free plug? Did you call in to plug your documentary?
I'm not, I'm just in it.
I'm not making any money, but maybe all right, all right, so.
Give us some Okay, we established John's, no matter if it's on Broadway or Bleaker.
Okay, Alan, I got the right place. So what else you got for mal?
The full leven Pizza in Little Literally it's the first place where they ever made pizza in America. The bedside is first pizza dot com I think, and very affordable. I recommend the meat falling onions.
All right, I love it. What about the place? Uh?
That was in the Spider Man movie with Toby maguire. I've eaten there with Andre Ethier, but I forgot the name of that spot.
Is that John's on Bleeker? Is that another one?
That sounds right? But I don't know. It's been too long.
Come on, you said with a pizza expert, and you don't know. I mean that was in a movie, a very famous movie.
Dave.
This is a Spider Man question. That's not a pizza question.
Save it, Alan, I'm not I might dabble with your documentary. You want to go ahead, give us a plug on your doc. You don't even know about the pizza place in Spider Man.
Let's go. What do you got?
It's called actually it's called the best Pizza is in La. It's got h it's got a bunch of people, weirdly who are in Beverly Hill's nine O two one O. We're in it, and uh, it really makes.
Brandon Walsh and David silver or in your documentary or is it Steve Sanders and Andrea Zuckerman.
It's a Tory spelling and Brian Austin Green Ah, my.
Two least favorite characters. We're struggling right now, Alan, We're not on the same page right now.
Well, let me make the case for La, which is actually that the reason La is the best pizza town is here. You can get New York pizza, Chicago pizza, Detroit style. We're a blending pot of all the best pizzas in America.
Recently, I think you're the guy I saw on Instagram doing a podcast that was making that case.
I am, I do have, I am a journalist, Dave, and I do have a semi public president, Alan Selton.
But uh, okay, all right right, so we go at Pizza in La, New York Pizza.
And your sheets quarter sheets in Echo Park. All right, there's a place called Secret Pizza in.
Uh.
Also on the East Side that I think Robert de Niro actually invested in, and it's going to have more places. And honestly, the best pizza in LA is probably a place called Pizzai Sai or say at the I. It's actually a Japanese chef and he has perfected Neapolitan pizza and very hard to get a reservation. It's in I think it's in West Hollywood.
All right.
Most of my listeners recommend West Hollywood for pizza.
Beverly Hills.
Oh, come on, they drive.
We're not doing that. We want something easy. We want to go get a slice somewhere Alan. We don't want to have to fight for a reservation.
Well that's another thing. LA's not a slight town. LA's a pie town. But I was listening silver Lake Hot Tongues.
You can't say that we're not just We're a slice town too. We like slices.
Uh da, Maybe we.
Need more slices in La.
Huh, we do need more slices, said, look, New York. The thing about New York is it's fast. You go in before you can even take the money out of your wallet. You've got to slice a hot piece in front of you. You've made the transaction. You're out the door in a New York minute. Here it's it's just it's not a town where with a fast transaction. I love LA, I love it here. I live in New
York Alongsting, but I want to fast. The beauty of pizza in New York is not just how good it is, it's how fast you can get it and go on with your day. And we need more fast pizza.
I agree with you, all right, we agreed on something, Alan, Thanks for the phone call and appreciate the pizza knowledge.
Thanks Dave, all right, take care.
Eight sixty six nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number.
It is almost dinner time. You might be driving home. See now.
You might want some pizza. Daniel's Jewelers. You might need some bling for Father's Day. 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 next game. Daniels Jewelers own the Dream. David Vasse with you until play resumes.
That's right, we're in a rain delay. Dodger Talk.
The Dodgers and Mets try to get this game in without interruption, but the sky opened up in the top of the third inning, rain fell with Freddie Freeman at the plate facing Griffin Canning three to one count runners at second and third with one out, So Freddy will be back at the plate, but there will be a new picture on the mound. Considering we are getting close to about forty five minutes an hour of a rain delay and doesn't seem like it's going to be stopping
anytime soon. Eight six, six, nine, seven, two five seventy is the phone number. Jose Mora is going to check in at the top of the hour, but first let's take more phone calls. Wess and Wittier. You're on Dodger Talk with David Vasse. How you doing, Wes.
I'm doing great. So I have a problem with the way the seating goes for the Major League Baseball I don't think that the winning a division should have any effect that as far as the seating goes, you should just go strictly by the record. And the perfect example was in twenty twenty one the Dodgers have one hundred and six wins, but they came in second in their division, the Braves with only eighty eight wins. They were the home team, and their argument, the Braves argument, is look,
we won our division. So the Dodgers could answer and say, look, so what you're saying is not only did you have fewer wins than us, but you played a weaker schedule. So what does what does winning?
You're saying it.
You're saying record.
Yes, just like basketball.
Guess I wouldn't be opposed to that.
But here's the problem West that separates baseball from other sports. It's one hundred and sixty two games, Then why are we playing these many games? If your regular season record doesn't count, but in what you're describing it would count. You won one hundred and six games in the regular season,
and that should mean something in the postseason. So I'm with you to a certain extent, Wes, But you fight to win your division, and I think that's the debate that's going on, right You don't want to water down winning your division and not get the benefits of that.
Some years it works out, some years it doesn't. So I don't know.
I just feel like that one year was a tough year for the Dodgers in a lot of ways, starting with Max Scherzer tapping out in Game six of the NLCS.
So I don't know.
I wouldn't be opposed to it, But my concern is, you don't want to devalue the regular season, and you don't want to devalue winning your division.
Okay, but but if the Dodgers have one hundred and six wins and the Braves only have eighty eight, I.
Understand, but that's just the way it goes. The Dodgers didn't win their division. If they would have won two more games, they would have won.
It, right, Okay, So that's that's my In.
Basketball, they play eighty two games, right, and they have virtually every team make the playoffs. The regular season, as you have seen with the NBA, means absolutely nothing.
Nobody's interested.
So if you're baseball in a long marathon season, you start to devalue the regular season, nobody's going to care about it.
You can't do that in baseball.
Yeah, Well, you know, the NFL makes the same mistake as baseball because the NFL also go by division winner, and so the Minnesota Vikings there was something like what were they like, fourteen and two or something.
Yeah, they value the regular season, even in sixteen and seventeen games. There's a you don't just fast forward to the playoffs West. The regular season in these sports has to carry some weight.
Okay, all right, all right, Wes?
Or why are we even doing?
Why are we even waiting for an hour plus in a game in May.
If it means nothing to you?
All right?
All right, Wes, thank you for the phone call. Yeah, sorry, I'm not you. It's such a fine line if you start to recede in baseball because of records. Look, there's years where it works out, there's years that it looks a little sideways. But you've got to keep the integrity of the regular season because if you start to water it down and devalue it in one hundred and sixty two games, you're going to be in real trouble.
And in games like this, why even play it? Right?
Why even make these guys sit around for an hour two hours if it means nothing to you, if you don't even need to win your division. So I guess this game means nothing to the Dodgers. It means nothing to the Mets. If you were to receive eight six six nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. David Vasse with you probably until seven o'clock. That's when we'll sign off for our Los Angeles Dodgers Audio network and send it back to the affiliates and here on
AM five to seventy LA Sports. We'll hand things over to Fox Sports Radio at seven o'clock. But for now, we're with you until we figure out if this game is going to get played. Maybe resumed tomorrow, maybe resumed in two hours.
We'll see.
But the one thing that's for sure is it's not a good thing for the Dodgers. This game got interrupted because, like we talked about, they're in a bad spot right now with their pitching staff. They've been talking about having their starters go deeper into games, lessening the burden on their bullpen. Well, tonight, Mother Nature and Major League Baseball had a greater say to play this game on time,
knowing rain was in the area. And now Kershaw's been burned after two innings and twenty six pitches, You're gonna have to go to Matt Sour You're probably gonna have to go to lu Trevino and then you're going to have to make roster changes tomorrow to get a fresh arm in here. Eight six six nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. Let's go out to Patricia in Seal Beach. You're on Dodger Talk. You call it from Hennesy's. Patricia, where are you calling from?
Yeah?
I wish, I wish I was there.
I'm not.
Oh, thank you for taking my call. I have a question I've always wondered about, and it's about the home ruby and I can't figure out why the batters don't use a pitching machine. It seems like that there would be a better balance across the board for all the batters, that the odds would be with the pitching machine.
And of course it would be I'd be great against the pitching machine. I'm always better to growing up. Yeah, we were better in the batting cage with the pitching machine than a guy. But how about the stories, Patricia, you hear about where dads are throwing to their sons, dads that were baseball coaches. I love those storylines when you have a connection between whoever's throwing to those hitters. So again, I love the human element to baseball, and I want to keep that.
I want to preserve it because it means a lot.
And I would not want to replace Dino Ebol with a hitting machine or I don't know, Bryce Harper's dad with a hitting machine.
Okay, So it's more of an emotion old thing with you.
I like people, Patricia. I don't know about you. I like people.
I do too.
I just sometimes, just watching it, I'm thinking, oh, that he could hit the ball better, if if his uncle could get the ball.
That's the that's the variable of it. He can't.
Know that, Okay, I I'll shut up.
Are you a big, big Dodger fan, Patricia?
How long have you been a Dodger fan for forever?
I was? I'm old, very old. I'm ninety, and I was a Dodger fan when they were in the world.
You sound better than most people younger than you.
You sound better than the guy that just woke up and decided to call the show.
I heard that well. I told the fellow that answered the machine. I told my husband. I used to tell my husband that I would dump him for Sandy Kolpak. So that's how long I've been a Dodger fan.
That's great.
Anyway, thank you, thank.
You for all back any time, your your sunshine to the show.
You call back anytime.
Oh You're very nice and I've enjoyed a lot of the comments. Sometimes I wondered though the last time, who cares where you sit? Uh? Anyway, I'll let that go okay during a game.
Thank yousha, thanks a lot. Thanks for the phone call. How about that ninety years young right there? She had more energy than some of you out there. Eight six six nine eighty seven two five seventy is the phone number. Dodgers and Mets in a rain delay, top of the third inning, runners at second and third for Freddy Freeman, who has a three to one count with one out, as the Dodgers hope this game gets started, but quite honestly,
now it doesn't matter when this game resumes. Kershaw's been lost and they're going to have to go to their bullpen. Eight six six nine seven two five seventy is the phone number. Here are three things we have learned in the first hour of this broadcast of raind lay Dodger Talk number one, make it a simulcast. Rick Monday is one of the best broadcasters in baseball. In fact, I would venture to say Rick Monday deserves to be considered for the broadcasters wing in Cooperstown because he has done
it all play by play analyst tv UH. Anyway, we learned that you should make it a simulcast because the Dodger home broadcast is more impartial than a nationally televised broadcast on an app that doesn't know the rules. Number two, we found out that one of our callers works nights and just wakes up and listens and calls into a radio show. And he found out also that John's in New York is not on Broadway. It's on Bleeker Street from a very fancy bougie pizza guy.
Eight sixty six.
Nine eight seven two five seventy is the phone number. When we continue in our next hour of rain delay Dodger Talk, I am going to prove to you that Teoscar Hernandez is greater value to the Dodgers than if they would assigned old Mopi, Juan Soto and also Jose Moto will check in. We got one line open full border calls here as the Dodgers and Mets are in
a rain delay. We'll get to all of you and more between now and seven o'clock right here on AM five to seventy LA Sports David Vasey Dodger talk right here on Freeform Frogman Friday, whatever they call it on that other wacky show, Don't go Anywhere. More Dodger talk around the corner.