Dodgers Interview: Roberts on honoring Kershaw, trusting Ohtani’s “postseason mode,” and setting up for Tuesday
SEATTLE — Dave Roberts wanted Sunday to breathe, to let Clayton Kershaw and Dodger Stadium share one more honest baseball moment before October tightens everything. “I wanted Clayton to get his flowers from the fans one last time,” Roberts said after the 6–1 win in Seattle. “He told me he felt good to start the sixth, so I let him face one more hitter. Ending it on a strikeout was perfect. At that point I’d already decided Freddie was good for the day after the homer, so I told him, impromptu, ‘Grab the card for Knack and go get the ball from Clayton.’ Freddie didn’t need any convincing. Clayton kept the baseball, which is exactly how it should be, and the teammates got to be out there for it.”
Asked what he said to Kershaw on the mound, Roberts didn’t hide the emotion. “I just repeated how much respect I have for him,” he said. “What a career. How much I care about him and how hard I’ve tried to do right by him. He’s done the same for me and for this organization. You run out of superlatives for what he’s done here. Today was one more special moment that belongs to him.”
Roberts also spoke directly about why he leans into these bits of ballpark theater when the situation allows. “The game is bigger than me,” he said. “It’s about the players and the fans. When a player has earned that level of respect, my job is to orchestrate or facilitate those moments without disrespecting the other club. You don’t always know how it’ll play out. The 3,000th strikeout, that was the last hitter he was going to face and it happened to be a punchout at Dodger Stadium. Today, the way he pitched let me get a little creative again. He was gassed, but giving him that extra moment, something his family and the fans can always remember, was worth it.”
On Shohei Ohtani’s record-setting day and what it signals, Roberts was unambiguous. “Shohei’s been in postseason mode,” he said. “His September at-bat quality speaks for itself, and you can see the different look on the mound. It doesn’t surprise me that he eclipsed his own home-run mark. He’s had a tremendous season, and now we’ve got a long way to go.” Planning his two-way usage is already baked into the Dodgers’ October map. “More rest has been good for him, and he’s responded to it,” Roberts said. “We’re going to factor that in. The expectation is he starts one of these three potential Wild Card games, and we’ll balance that with keeping him fresh offensively the next day.”
When the topic turned to Tuesday night at Dodger Stadium (6:00 p.m. PDT), Roberts offered a wink without a proclamation. “I don’t know if we’re ready to make it official,” he said, “but Blake Snell is a good bet for Game 1.” He laughed at his own verbal slip—he’d said “Yamamoto” while thinking aloud—then doubled back: “Snell’s a good bet.”
He was clear-eyed about the opponent. “The Reds are a gritty, hungry, young group,” Roberts said. “They can pitch, they’re athletic, and they’re coming in to win a series. You don’t play these games on paper. We’ve got to bring the edge we’ve been talking about and take it to them. They’ve got a great manager with championships. We’ll be ready, but we’re not taking them lightly.”
Finally, Roberts explained why finishing the season with sharp baseball mattered more to him than resting on a clinch. “Given we’re playing Tuesday, it was important to play well this weekend,” he said. “You don’t flip a switch, play poorly, and hope it clicks in two days. We didn’t do that. We played clean, we hit, our pitching lined up. Now we’ll get on the plane, work out tomorrow, and be ready to go Tuesday. My hope is the fans are as excited as we are. From pitch one, I want their energy to hit us in the dugout.”
One night, two priorities: honor the franchise icon, and harden the team for what’s next. In Roberts’ words, Sunday accomplished both. “Clayton got the moment he deserved,” he said, “Shohei looks like October, and we like where we’re lined up. Now it’s time to play.”
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