Dodgers Interview: Knack reflects on rough start, strong finish to outing

LOS ANGELES — Although the final box score won’t be kind to Landon Knack—charged with four earned runs in a long relief appearance during the Dodgers’ 9–5 loss to the Diamondbacks on Monday night—the young right-hander’s ability to settle down and provide five innings of work was a quiet but crucial contribution on a difficult night for the pitching staff.

“Obviously early on just execution just wasn’t there,” Knack admitted after the game. Entering in the top of the third after Jack Dreyer’s early exit, Knack quickly surrendered a pair of two-run home runs to Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Gabriel Moreno. “Just kind of leaving some pitches over the middle, getting into some deep counts, just not really executing what we needed to. And they took advantage of a couple mistakes. They definitely didn’t miss those.”

It was a rough start, and Knack didn’t sugarcoat it. “Just very frustrating early on to put us kind of in that situation,” he said. “Just bad, bad execution early on and just gotta be better.”

But what followed was a display of resilience. Over the next four innings, Knack held the D-backs scoreless, giving the Dodgers time to claw back into the game with solo homers from Mookie Betts and Shohei Ohtani.

“Was glad eventually we locked it in as we kept going and provided a little bit of length,” Knack said. “I basically came in and was immediately like, ‘Just ride me as long as you can to save that pen a little bit.’”

The Dodgers’ bullpen has been tested heavily in recent weeks, especially as injuries continue to thin the ranks of the starting rotation. Knack understood his role from the moment he stepped on the mound. “As we were kind of going forward, just trying to find the adjustment as quick as I could. Obviously, the first inning didn’t quite make it in time, but I was able to kind of make it a little bit better after that and start getting back to the attack.”

Though the game didn’t go the Dodgers’ way, Knack’s self-awareness and willingness to absorb innings under difficult circumstances weren’t lost on his teammates or manager Dave Roberts. Roberts later praised Knack’s outing, saying, “It was good to see Landon chew up five innings to kind of get to the next day.”

For Knack, it was about more than just innings—it was about finding a path forward in a challenging stretch for the pitching staff. “It’s been frustrating,” he said candidly. “Early on, especially in games, just kind of the inconsistency… for me right now, just trying to keep things where they need to be, keep on the attack.”

Perhaps the clearest example of Knack’s mindset came in the fifth inning during a marathon at-bat against Moreno, who had already homered earlier. “Were you counting the pitches in that Moreno at-bat?” a reporter asked. Knack grinned: “It did just keep going. He was fouling off anything I was throwing in there for a bit. But I just wanted to stay on the attack and try to win it.”

And win it he did, finally retiring Moreno on a flyout after a 16-pitch battle. It didn’t change the outcome of the game, but it summed up Knack’s night: bruised early, but composed and competitive until the very end.

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