Dodgers Interview: Roberts Talks Roki, Outlines Pitching Plans for Final Week
LOS ANGELES — If you wanted clarity on how the Dodgers will navigate the last week before October, Dave Roberts provided it in layers: test Roki a bit more in the bullpen, give Brock Stewart an inning, hold the rotation’s line, and use remaining leverage pockets to both win now and evaluate.
First, the experiment everyone circled: Roki Sasaki is headed to the bullpen—for real, today. “He’s going to pitch today out of the pen,” Roberts said. “He’ll throw an inning and then Brock will throw an inning, and then we’ll evaluate it and see what we’ve got for next week.” The bar isn’t vague. To make a serious postseason bid as a reliever, Roberts needs to see “velocity, strike throwing, the split that gets swing-and-miss, and the ability, emotionally, to handle coming out of the pen and attacking guys.” It’s brand-new territory, but there’s buy-in. “The most important thing is that he’s open to it and willing to do whatever it takes to potentially be on our postseason roster, which speaks to his character,” Roberts said. If the debut goes well, “he’ll get an opportunity this coming week.”
The cadence will be part of the test—short rest, repeat availability, the rhythm of a reliever’s life. “Two days off in between will be a big test,” Roberts told us, but he trusts the mindset. “Once you get into some type of cadence, it’s still pitching and it’s still baseball. I feel he can do it, but it’s up to him to go out there and perform.”
On the macro plan, the rotation stays put. There’s no gamesmanship to chase matchups while the division remains unclinched. “We’re going to do the same thing,” Roberts said. “We haven’t won the division yet. Emmet’s going on Sunday, Shohei is going Tuesday, then it’s Yamamoto and Snell. We’re not moving things around—we’re still trying to win this division.” As for chasing down the Phillies for a bye, Roberts kept it pragmatic: “It’s very unlikely given the math. We’re trying to win as many games as we can. Once we do win this division, then it’s a different conversation.”
The bullpen calculus is where the needle-threading happens. You can’t create more high-leverage innings than the schedule provides, so Roberts will blend trust and tryouts. “It’s a combo like most things,” he said. “There are certain guys who have earned the opportunity and know their roles, and there are other guys that need to show up, to be quite frank.” When asked if Kirby fits the “show-it” bucket, Roberts didn’t hesitate: “He’s in the ‘show-it’ bucket.” The message: reputations help, but October seats are earned in September.
That said, the club’s overall health leaves Roberts bullish. “On this particular day, we’re in as good a position entering the postseason as we’ve ever been,” he said, citing both starting pitching and lineup form. The staggered paths to this point could prove beneficial: Snell’s late start, Tyler’s IL hiccup, and other built-in breathers mean “the other guys have a lot of bullets left,” while anchors like Kershaw and Yamamoto “carried a brunt of the innings.” Net effect: a rested but ramped staff.
Roberts also doubled down on a prediction he made back in spring: Emmet Sheehan as the sneaky second-half weapon. “I believe in character and people,” he said. “Emmet is the sweetest guy you’ll meet, but he’s a killer—like Yoshi. He’s not afraid.” The tools matched the temperament. “You layer in the skill set—the glove-side command, taking in information—he developed a slider with his changeup. He was my wild card all year long. I expect big things from him in the postseason.”
Position-player decisions are mostly about fine-tuning roles by handedness. “I like the group,” Roberts said. “We’re figuring out specific roles versus right and versus left. We have a lot of capable options and nothing is cemented.” Translation: a few at-bats this week can still swing roster edges.
Threaded through all of it is the same principle: win first, evaluate second. Roberts will protect workloads, but he won’t gift innings. The rookie and Brock get today’s stage. Others will follow. When the door to October opens, the Dodgers want starters lined up, relievers battle-tested, and a handful of swingmen ready to flip a series with one clean inning. The plan for the week reflects exactly that.
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