Dodgers Territory - Gavin Lux Joins! Arozarena Trade Rumors Heat Up, Phillips Out as Dodgers Closer?

Episode Date: July 24, 2024

The Dodgers hot streak out of the All-Star break has continued and one key contributor to the team's success, Gavin Lux, joins hosts Alanna Rizzo and Clint Pasillas on this edition of DT.Lux opens up about his struggles this season and changes that helped him bring home NL Player of the Week honors this past weekend. Plus, thoughts on the return of Clayton Kershaw, Miguel Rojas's role on the club and much more!Alanna and Clint also dive into the incredible success of LA's core of rookie pitchers while looking at the team's needs with less than a week until the trade deadline. Rays outfielder Randy Arozarena has been heavily linked to the Dodgers. A new name has also been added to the list of names the front office could be looking to acquire by Tuesday's deadline.PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THE DT YOUTUBE CHANNEL TO WATCH THE SHOW WITH NICE GRAPHICS AND VIDEO!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Make sure your ETF can too. Learn more at Fidelity.com slash active ETFs. Before investing in any exchange traded fund, you should consider its investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus, an offering circular or if available, a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully. While active ETFs offer the potential to outperform an index, these products may more significantly trail an index as compared with passive ETFs. ETFs are subject to market fluctuation and the risks of their underlying investments. ETFs are subject to management fees and other expenses. Fidelity brokerage services LLC, member NYSE, SIPC. This early struggles kind of help me, you know, like, okay, if I'm not going to play short, like, I'm going to bust my ass to do the best second basement that I can.

Good afternoon, everybody. Welcome to a special edition of Dodgers territory, live with you on this Wednesday afternoon. I am Alana Rizzo. That is Clint Pesias. We are not on tomorrow at our regular time because the Dodgers have a 1 p.m. start in Los Angeles. So that kind of messes around with our territory. But we have a big guest today, Clint. We're going to be welcoming in Gavin Lux, no better time than to talk to Luxie.

He has been on fire the last couple of weeks. Looking forward to that, my friend. Yeah, it's going to be fun talking to Luxie, a well-deserved player of the week. But let's get into the big ticket, Alana. All right. Before we get into Gavin Lux coming on the show, which we always appreciate guys coming on and taking the time to be with us. Evan Phillips, Clint, do you think he's losing his grip on the closer role?

The reason I say that is because he says that, you know, Conviction in his pitches, not the issue. This from Mike D. G. Ovana, it's not the problem. It's more of a mindset of shift and focus straying too far away from my thought process on the mound. Definitely not a very good month for the high leverage Honeybun. I think he's given up, what, eight runs in six and two-thirds innings, 10.80 ERA. But still, I'm not terribly worried about Evan Phillips. He's bought a lot of, you know, I guess, sweat equity into that.

position and he was never really necessarily a true true closer yes he got the lion's share of time there in the ninth inning but he's still somebody that dave roberts has moved around he's kind of played him you know in the eighth inning going against some of the the bigger parts the heart of the lineup as people might call it so with with evan i'm not worried and and if he's not you know closing every game in october i'm not worried because this team has a lot of a lot of guys that are absolute dogs in the back end of that bullpen. So if it's Evan, if it's trying in, if it's Alex Vesia, Dan Hudson, been picking up some more saves, I'm in a good spot with EP,

kind of taking some time to figure it out. Are you worried about Evan? I don't think that there's that much of a worry issue right here, but here is something that I do question. I wonder if you don't have a true closer. Let's say you have four closers. That means you don't have a closer at all, right? I mean, back in the day when Kenley was there,

And I understand that Kenley gave up the home run recently to Kike Hernandez. But the point is that we knew that for all intents and purposes, when Kenley came on, he was going to shut it down. Yes, oftentimes he did it with traffic, but he shut it down. I just feel like it's almost like if you have, you know, three quarterbacks, you don't have a quarterback. And I kind of feel the same way about the closer role. I feel like if you have too many people that get that call in the ninth inning, because those final three outs of a game, it takes a particular kind of beast to do that job.

just think that I don't really like not having a bona fide closer, a guy that you know is going to come into the game and lock it down. Yeah, I mean, I could understand that, but I would argue in October in postseason play, how often do we really see that ninth inning guy ending up with that spot? Of course, they had a starter in 20 go and pick you up three innings or whatever. So when you get in that postseason, having that one dude who is in the ninth, I think it's not as big of a deal to to this team. That said, I agree with you. I feel much more comfortable when you know you have Mariano Rivera is going to be getting the baseball in the ninth inning. But it's a different ball game. And as much as we love EP, he's not Moe there in the ninth inning. And Mariano, you know,

he blew a game or two. Sorry, Derek, our producer, who is a Yankees fan. But this is a situation. I think Evan figures it out. And he'll be, he'll be that guy who is an option at the back end of ball games, you know, in a month or two or three from now. I love that you just brought in Mariana Rivera. Why don't we just get Trevor Hoffman too while we're at it? Let's bring in Gavin Lux. I have been following Gavin his entire career when he got drafted, obviously. He came up for the first time and we're so excited to have him.

Gavin, I appreciate you taking the time to be with us. Thank you so much. What a time that you've had the last couple of weeks. In your opinion, what do you think has made the most difference for you offensively? What's going on? Thanks for having me, guys. Yeah, I think just, I think I said it last night, like being more aggressive. I think early in the year I was still kind of feeling my way through at bats and swings and trying to figure out how my knee felt.

And there was just a lot of different variables, you know, going into it. But I actually went back home over the All-Star break and I got to hit with my uncle, who's like kind of been my hitting coach ever since I was, you know, five, six years old. and I think we kind of figured some things out in my setup with my lower half, just trying to use the ground a little bit better. Because early on, I was kind of all over the place, and I didn't really have a good base. So I think, you know, we kind of, we had a couple days

to just grind some stuff out where it was just me and him hitting on the field for a couple hours. And, you know, we could talk through some things and field through some things where during the season, it's kind of hard to, you know, find time in the day to really kind of grind it out and lock things down when, you know, you got to respect your teammates' time to hit in the cage and everything, too. And what do you say, don't let the kid kid hit hot 393 over your last nine games,

270 with an 812 OPS over your last 24. The streak, it's been kind of around for a little bit of stretch telling people like me, hey, maybe I should shut up here and there. You mentioned it last night. I love the post game talking about not feeling safe in everything. What's sort of like that flipping the switch moment for you where you're able to let it eat? How do you kind of just let yourself let it go at the plate? Yeah, that's a good question.

I think obviously I was sick of grounding out to second base over and over and over. I'm like I was a fungo hitter to the second or first basement. So yeah, I think it was just kind of like the result, the same result over and over and over. And I was like, man, like I go back and look at some old video. Like just the gathering load and everything just, it looked more like I was playing in a backyard a wiffle ball game instead of, you know, trying to be so perfect and see the ball and not chase and all these little things that, you know, just can kind of get in your way. So I think just going up to the plate, just being like, hey, man, this is a backyard baseball

game. Let's get after it. And, you know, I'm not going to chase if, you know, I'm on time. So it's just more just kind of letting it go, man. And the results kind of forced me to do that when you make the same mistake over and over and over. It's like, all right, we got to do something different, you know. Hello, hello. I'm Malcolm Gladwell, host of the podcast Smart Talks with IBM. I recently sat down with IBM's chairman and CEO, Arvin Krishna. And I asked him, how can companies use AI to its fullest potential to create smarter business?

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Wow. So we are not asking our clients to be the first experiment on it. We say you can leverage what we did. We're happy to bring out all our learnings, including what needs to change in the process, because the biggest change is not technology, is getting people to accept that there's a different way to do things. To listen to the full conversation,

visit IBM.com slash smart talks. Fidelity active ETFs have the flexibility to shift and transform as markets do the same. So instead of just riding an index, they can seek to outperform it by adapting to market conditions and pursuing new opportunities as they emerge. And while you get the potential outperformance of an actively managed fund, you can still buy and sell it on your terms just like any other ETF. Markets can change in real time. Make sure your ETF can too. Learn more at fidelity.com slash active ETFs. Before investing in any exchange traded fund, you should consider its investment objectives, risk,

charges and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus, an offering circular, or if available, a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully. While active ETFs offer the potential to outperform an index, these products may more significantly trail an index as compared with passive ETFs. ETFs are subject to market fluctuation and the risks of their underlying investments. ETFs are subject to management fees and other expenses. Fidelity brokerage services LLC, member NYSE, SIPC. I can't do it today. I already have plans. Something came up. There are a million reasons to put off a cancer screening,

but one reason to keep it. Early detection can save lives. Every screening, every result, every early detection matters. At Pfizer, we're fighting against cancer, aiming for eight cancer breakthroughs by 2030. Join the fight against cancer and get screened at Pfizerforall.com forward slash screenings. Gavin, how much of this game have you learned as a mental mind F? Oh my God. Yeah, I mean, when you get your ass kicked seven out of ten times and that's considered good. Yeah, I mean, it's a tough sport, man, and it can be cruel. So, you know, I've had my struggles with it. You know, I've talked to a lot of guys that have helped me along the way, though. And, you know, hiring a mental skills coach has helped me a lot. Even this year where I think earlier, even with the struggles, I would have really, really, really been frustrated and not to say that I wasn't, but also at the same time, like, it's a process,

which is cliche, but I mean, when you're coming back from missing a whole year, it's like you got to find a way to find a little wins throughout the day and try to be patient with yourself, even though, you know, it's such a resolve-driven business that, you know, it kind of forces you to press a little bit at times. So well-deserved, like I said, you got your player the week honors. How much of that help with that mental mindset of, you? You know, you had that first half, wasn't exactly what you wanted, but you're contributing where you can with the team.

And I like that. That seems to be the mantra with a lot of the players. But what does this do for the mindset moving forward? Putting that first half behind, knowing that the second half going into October, that's what's most important for this team. Yeah, I mean, that was cool. That's the first time that I've ever, you know, gotten that. And obviously it was only like, what, three or four games, but still to get any kind of recognition

where, you know, there's how there's a ton of really good. good players in this league. And obviously you don't get here if you're not good. So, yeah, but like you said, man, I think, you know, our roster is full of guys that just want to win games and whatever it is, especially like at the bottom of the lineup, we've talked about, like, we all know we got to be better. So it's how can we contribute when even we're not hitting well, like whether it's moving a guy over with less than two outs, moving them over to third, making a couple of plays on defense or taking a walk, grinding a pitcher down, and whatever it is. And, you know, I think we just, we know what we have to do. We got to get on

base for the guys at the top. And, you know, I think over the last few weeks, I don't know what the numbers say, but I feel like it's been, it's been a lot better than where it was in the first half. So one through nine when we're playing like that, it's a really tough lineup to navigate through. Can we get your uncle from Wisconsin to just move with you to L.A.? Oh, man. I just bring him out. I wish he could. He's a college baseball coach. So, so he's a, He's grinding it out, but he keeps telling me he's only got a couple years left doing it. I'm like, man, I got a room right over here for you, man. We can, we can bullshit every single night about the at-bats if you want to come out here.

So, yeah, I mean, God, I would love that. That would be awesome. How much of it, though, Gavin, is getting back to basics. I mean, you needed to go home to Wisconsin over the break. You got to clear your head a little bit. You get a little bit of time to just take a breath. But it's like, you know what? There's a reason that you were drafted where you were drafted.

There's a reason that the Dodgers wanted you and want to continue to put faith into you. How much of it is just getting back to what got you there to begin with? A lot, honestly. Yeah, it's sometimes like you overcomplicate things so much, especially when you're struggling. You go into the cage every day and it's almost like you're looking for something that's wrong in your swing. And it might just be like, hey, man, like I just, I swing at a pitch I shouldn't have or, you know, my timing was off or whatever it is. that's a great point. Yeah, a lot of times when I think all of us, when we struggle, it's like we're searching and looking for something that's wrong instead of, you know, flipping it and being like, okay, like what did I do right here and, and, and or was I even on time swing at the right pitch?

So it's almost like a curse having so much video sometimes where you can overcomplicate things a ton and you can always look for something. And sometimes it's just, there's nothing wrong in the first place and it's round ball, round bat, hard sport. You know, it's, Yeah, 100% I think definitely can overcomplicate things a lot of times. So simplifying is better. Or how about this? There's a really, really bad segue. Maybe it's just knowing that down the road you got Women's Night coming up and you got these bangers coming out.

Gavin Lox walking out to Beyonce. Is that going to stick around? Is that going to be like the vibe? Because you put up a multi-hit game coming out. It's got to mean something. My fiance and Molly picked that one out. She sent me a list of like six different songs. And I was just like, hey, man, it's your night.

You can pick whatever. I'll walk out to it. So that's what she ended up going with. It had a couple of heads. So I don't know, but I don't think I can keep that one throughout the whole year, man. I know it sounds like the silly question when you get a first ballot hall of fame or back into the starting rotation. But how psyched are you guys that Kirsch is coming back?

Oh, man. Yeah, I think. I mean, he's the best. I don't know. Like just having him around every day again and just his presence in the clubhouse. Obviously, we all know how great of a pitcher he is. I mean, he's, if he's not, you know, if he doesn't get every single vote to go into the Hall of Fame, I mean, there's something wrong. But just having him around every day and that veteran presence in the clubhouse, I mean, he's just, I love him.

You know, he's great to be around. So I'm excited to see him pitch. I missed him last year. I know he's itching to get back out there. You know, he's the ultra-competitor. So I'm sure he wants to get back out there more than we even want him out there, you know. So I'm excited for him, man. I think it's been a long road from this last year.

So can't wait. And you'll be behind him playing some second base, a position that you have been exceptional at all season. Something Dave Roberts went out of his way talking with us a couple of weeks ago, talking about how important you've been at the position. Obviously, not where you expected to be entering the season, entering this year, but taking the bull by the horns and kind of running with it. What has been kind of a key to the growth there and really settling in and becoming arguably a gold glove caliber second basement?

Yeah, I think, you know, obviously the spring didn't go how I wanted it to in terms of defense. But, you know, I moved back over to second base, a spot that I've been the last few years. It's just, you know, pouring into the daily ground balls every day. I mean, I think me, Meggie, Mookie, months, like Kiki, all of us are out there early every day getting their ground balls, our live fungos. So, you know, I think work ethic is kind of contagious and we're all out there every day getting after, trying to, you know, lock it in and get better every day. So I think, you know, the early struggles kind of help me, you know, like, okay, if I'm not going to play short, like I'm going to bust my ass to be the best second baseman that I can. So that's just kind of the approach I took with it and just trying to pour into it and be consistent daily with my routine.

What do you think you've learned from Miggy and Mook about just playing in the infield in general at this level? And also, what do you think you've taught them? I think, you know, Maggie's kind of sensei when it comes to the endfield defects. He's like master splinter. So I think me and Mookie had probably been almost annoying to. him, you know, how much questions we ask and, and, you know, just picking his brain. And it's not even just like mechanical stuff. It's, it's, all right. In this situation, what do you think we should have done? Like, even last, or two nights ago on double play ball, like, kind of got caught on my

heels and had a soft flip to Kee-Kamp. We didn't turn the double play. And just picking his brain, like, hey, man, should I try to pivot there? Like, what do you think? And just kind of like, you know, picking each other's brains. And, you know, I think he's helped a lot. and more on the mental side, like trying to figure out, you need to know if this ball's hit here before the, you know, the pitch even goes, like, what am I going to do with this ball? What do I need to do? So he's helped a ton, too, and I think, you know, Mookie can say the same thing, I'm sure. Yeah, Mugie Rowe, an exceptional defender at shortstop. Mookie Betts, not too bad himself. I know some folks in the chat wondering, is there maybe a future at shortstop for Gavin Lucks? Is that something you're even thinking about right now, you know, next season or something like that?

Are you just kind of trying to stay grounded in the moment? Yeah, I think right now it's just buzz dominate second base and stick with our routine there. And we can worry about, you know, whatever happens in the future later down the road. You know, I grew up playing shortstop. So obviously, you know, I love playing there. But, I mean, really anywhere on the infield dirt, you know, if they throw me there, I'm just going to try to, you know, make every play for these guys that are throwing the ball. So, but right now it's just let's dominate second base and worry about that, you know, later.

How's wedding planning coming? Are you participating at all or is Molly doing it all? I mean, let's be honest. I have a little bit of say here and there, but I'm letting her dominate it. And she's doing really well. We actually just picked out a venue. So we got that locked in at least. But she's killing it, man.

I'm letting her do her thing on this. That's her cup of tea. I'm just here, man. I'm letting her crush that part. What is more nerve-wracking? Proposing or waiting to get drafted or getting the call-up? I was so nervous when I proposed to her. I'm going proposal. Like obviously, it's like, I'm not going to propose to you if you don't,

I don't think you're going to marry me. But for some reason, like, just, I don't know. I was so nervous that entire day. You know, the butterflies, I mean, it felt like I was about to go play a World Series game. And it's not even, you know, but yeah, I mean, I was, yeah, I was nervous, man. All right. Speaking of World Series, how is this team going to get there? Let's get out of the first round, Gavin.

What do we need to do? Just play good team baseball. You know, I think getting healthy is going to help our roster all the way around, you know, getting a lot of these guys back. But just play a good team baseball. I mean, just let's get hot at the right time, which it feels. feels like we're doing a little bit right now. And baseball playoffs are such a crapshoot.

It really does feel like whoever's hot at that time. And they usually, that's the team that ends up going further. So just getting hot at the right time and then trying to build the momentum into the playoffs. And yeah, I think, yeah, obviously this roster is as good as anyone I think we've ever had. So just putting everything together, top to bottom, one through nine, bullpen, pitching staff. Yeah, I think I think this is a great roster, though. So I don't think there's any reason why it shouldn't be a World Series or bust. Yeah, you're getting a lot of guys back at the same time as well.

Everybody getting hot. Things trending right. After the last month where everything's felt like hell and there's, you know, meteors raining down upon us. The show's people. There's 162 games of this. Like it's all part of the series, all part of the chapters in this long story.

So we'll let you exit with this real hard hitter. It comes from the live stream audience. Tell us about the brough meme. Obviously, you're one of the most memeable guys on the team, and who's the next up-and-coming guy? We've seen a lot of McGee Vargas getting some of those moments in there. Who's taking under your wing? It's got to be Vargas.

Hey, I don't know if you guys have talked to Vargas much, but he's so funny. So, I mean, I think I saw what was it after one of Shohay's home runs where he did like, yeah, yes, that face right there. Yeah, that was beautiful. He's funny. It's got to be Vargy. It's got to be. It's got to be. All right. Well, Gavin, tell him to come on our show. I appreciate you so much. We're so proud of you. We always got your back. I really have all the faith in the world in you. Tell Molly, I said hello. Good luck and great success the rest of the way. Okay, we appreciate having you. And you know, you're welcome here anytime. Thank you.

I appreciate you guys. Thanks a lot. All right, Gavin Lux, of course, coming off a tremendous couple of weeks, National League Player of the Week. And you know what? I don't care that it was only three games. I don't care if it was one game. He is raking. He is rake. right now. He's turned a corner. That break, obviously, the help from his uncle getting back to basics has really helped. And we need that. We need him to be there mentally, which he is. And obviously, we know it's never been an effort issue with Gavin Lux. Yeah, no, you like that. I think you could see the mental change immediately. And I've said that with him for a year. Usually when his game is wrong, it's between the ears. And all the talent is there. There's a reason this organization stuck through, you know, with him when he's.

he's hitting under 200 for a good stretch of the season. The talent is always there. He's a good kid and just has had a crappy time with injuries at inopportune times and all of this. So you love to see him kind of putting the pieces together. And hopefully, hopefully it's not a small sample size. It keeps on trending. And we feel proud that this guy is your starting to be in October, making big plays for

this team. No question about it. I remember when he got hurt and, you know, blew out. his knee and he was so emotional. I mean, he went from being the starting shortstop for the Los Angeles Dodgers to not being able to play and he was crushed about it. And obviously, I wish him nothing but the best. We were going to be back right after a word from Eric Crats and Scott Braun and our friends at AG1. Eric Kratz here from FT. I'm a former athlete that really pays attention to his routine. And AG1 every morning before my workouts is something that gets my day going.

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slash foul. That's drinkag1.com slash F-O-UL. Go check it out, F-T-Fam. Hello, hello. I'm Malcolm Gladwell, host of Smart Talks with IBM. I recently spoke with IBM's new director of research, Jake Gempata. discussed his vision for the future of quantum computing. At IBM research, what we always do is answer what is the future of computing, whether it's coming up with new algorithms, coming up with better AI, coming up with quantum, or coming up with just how do different accelerators go together. It's our DNA to answer the question of what is the future.

Isn't it a perfect problem for IBM because you kind of need to have a legacy of building stuff? Yes. building actual physical machines. Yeah, it's why I came to IBM. I wanted the experience, the culture of building hard things that others have not done before. Where do you imagine we are in the timeline of this technology? There will come a point when it will mature. My cell phone is a mature technology at this point.

How far are we from that point with Conta? By 2020. will build the first fault-tolerant quantum computer. That is one that can run a very, very large, large problem. To learn how IBM is building the future of computing, visit IBM.com slash quantum. Fidelity active ETFs have the flexibility to shift and transform as markets do the same. So instead of just riding an index, they can seek to outperform it by adapting to market conditions and pursuing new opportunities as they emerge.

And while you get the potential outperformance of an actively managed fund, you can still buy and sell it on your terms, just like any other ETF. Markets can change in real time. Make sure your ETF can too. Learn more at fidelity.com slash active ETFs. Before investing in any exchange traded fund, you should consider its investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus, an offering circular or, if available,

a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully, while active ETFs offer the, potential to outperform an index. These products may more significantly trail an index as compared with passive ETFs. ETFs are subject to market fluctuation and the risks of their underlying investments. ETFs are subject to management fees and other expenses. Fidelity brokerage services LLC member NYSE, SIPC. I can't do it today. I already have plans. Something came up. There are a million reasons to put off a cancer screening, but one reason to keep it. Early detection can save lives.

Every screening, every result, every early detection matters. At Pfizer, we're fighting against cancer, aiming for eight cancer breakthroughs by 2030. Join the fight against cancer and get screened at Pfizerforall.com forward slash screenings. Guys, make sure you use that link, get that AG1. You can feel good like, hey, you know what? I like seeing AJ. I like seeing Prasinski in that because I heard he was complaining about not being part of the reeds for a little bit, Alana. I love how he didn't say anything though.

It was just Scott and Crats. AJ has just taken it all in. He's been as he running as Vice President of the United States with Donald Trump. You still haven't seen Vance and AJ in the same room, have you? All right, let's talk a little bit about the starting staff as far as the rookies are concerned, because you and I, as we are now into behind the seams here, and don't forget guys listening and watching to get your questions, and we'd like to answer those here live on air in the next 10 or so minutes.

that I've been worried about the starting pitching. I've said that at nauseam. I understand, but take a look at what the Dodgers rookies are doing so far, Clint. The Dodgers are 16 and 8 in games started by rookies this year. And those rookies combined have an ERA of just 3.10. And that was per yesterday's broadcast. So the Dodgers have shown faith in these guys and they've delivered.

I still don't think this is the winning formula for a five game series. I still want your big guns in there. But in the times that they've had, they have delivered. So let's give them some props. Yeah, I mean, keeping in mind a couple of those rookies, one being Yoshinovo Yamamoto, the other being Gavin Stone, mixed in there, but still, Justin Robleski's given this team some quality innings.

River Ryan was exceptional in his debut. Landon Nack has been great. I'm pretty sure he's going to be the guy who is option as the team gets back, Tyler Glass now today. But that's where you look at these guys. You look at these rookies, and you can kind of stomach the idea of, oh, the Dodgers just DFAed their one lone head. healthy veteran that's been there for the entirety of a season. Of course, that being James Paxton,

which I could understand kind of being somewhat of a surprise to someone, but not shocking to me. Were you at all surprised by by Pax getting in? Yeah, I mean, I think that's fair. The Braves are cooked. I mean, they definitely are decimated by injury. Yes, colossal jaguar. I wouldn't say shocked, but I was a little bit surprised at the timing. I guess I understand it because obviously with Kershaw coming back, Tyler Glasnow coming back, you needed the space, right? You need the space and the roster. but I was thinking perhaps maybe you put Paxton in the bullpen to give them some length. He has been the only consistent starter that has had health. I understand that the record was 8 and 2, but I think the reason the record was 8 and 2

is because of the run support that he's gotten. His ERA personally, I think it was about 4.5. So, I mean, he hasn't pitched brilliantly, but he has at least been consistent. So again, I'm not completely shocked by it. I guess I was a little surprised at the timing, but it does make sense. Yeah, and it comes with, hey, we've mentioned Clayton Kershaw. He comes back tomorrow. You do get Tyler Glassnow back today. Some other guys coming back. You know, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, he's throwing a baseball. Walker Bueller back with the club after going visiting Cressy performance. They feel a lot better about him now than they felt then combined with these rookies that are performing well. They mean, they've earned opportunities at the big league level. I think there's just not, there wasn't enough room. There weren't enough innings to go around for somebody like James Paxton. plus add-in trade deadline where Brandon Gomes told you earlier this week on your other show MLB Network. There we go.

That's what it's called. He had mentioned, you know, if they're getting anybody, they're kind of looking more frontline starter type of guy. And I don't think James Paxton fits that mold for this club. I agree with you. I don't think he's a frontline starter. And I've been saying that they definitely need to get some frontline starters. And they will if Beeler comes back healthy and gets out of him between his ears as well. And I think he did because he has.

has worked with Cressie, but he's been working with Cressie since he was at Vanderbilt. So this is not something that is new. So that'll be great to get him back. I can't wait to see what Clayton Curshaw does. I love Tyler Glass. Now, listen, it goes, it's a very different mindset. If you have Kersh, you have Glasnow, you have Bueller back and healthy. Bobby Miller, if he could get out of his own way in terms of his confidence, I still think

he has some great stuff, obviously. So let's not forget about Bobby Miller, who's with Oklahoma City right now. So I feel confident and I still believe that the Dodgers, Andrew Friedman, will go out Brandon Gomes and they will get some, some, you know, key pieces. I stand by my statement that if you have four closers, you don't have a closer. So I'd like to see a closer. I keep hearing that people are, it's heating up that we're going to get Randy a Rosarana. Yeah, Randy Wood could be coming in LA.

It sounds like maybe the crochet Luis Robert stuff is kind of cooling down. And, you know, we had mentioned on our Monday show, we want to talk trade deadline. We want people to give us some trade deadline thoughts for them. I saw a question from our friend Elisheva Jones asking, what do the Dodgers do regarding third base? Of course, we've talked a lot about this already, but it's some people feeling more and more like Max Muncie might not return this season. I'm going to remain positive that Max can get back.

As long as he comes back sometime in September, I think he's got enough wiggle room to settle in at the position and in the lineup. But if not, I guess, you know, with the Cubs selling, there's somebody like a Nico Horner that could be on the move. You've, of course, mentioned Justin Turner. A lot of people have mentioned Boba Chet. Not that any of those guys are directly third baseman these days. I got a name for you that I don't know if people are going to like, but I would like it.

Alex Bregman. And I know, but you've got to get over the 2017 situation. Alex Bregman is not going to sign a long-term deal with the Houston Astros. If the Astros were going to do that, they would have done it already. They signed Jose Al-Tube to a long-term situation. deal. Why don't you get Alex Bregman if in fact Max isn't coming back, which I still think that he is. Brandon Goem said that, you know, he's he's trending towards coming back. So no, I mean, the Astros tied first place in the AO West. They got a lead in the wild card there.

So trade. So maybe they don't, you know, I get it. I mean, it's a lot different than a month ago when they were eight games back and now they're tight. So that's a fair point by you. That's a fair point. Maybe off season. And I think that's where this team is. I really do think they like what they have internally. There's a reason we haven't seen Mookie Betts not taking ground balls at short or only taking ground balls at shortstop as he recovers from this, this hand issue. There is a chance. They do plug him in at short and maybe Miguel Rojas is the backup option at third base. I think this is something we might have talked about a little bit. If not, I've talked about it on my channel very recently. But if Gavin Lucks keeps hitting, like I said on Monday, that just keeps creating a really

good problem for this team to have, where if Mookie is at shortstop, Miggie Roe has. has played an exceptional defense at third base before, up to and including saving a no hitter for Clayton Kershaw. So there are some internal options. You'd like to see one more guy that's, with all due respect, better than Kavana Vizio on the bench. I really would be interested in maybe seeing them find a bat slightly better than Kika Hernandez. I tread into that very likely because I know the love affair some people have with Kika Hernandez. But to have that one other option off the bench is important. I don't think it's going to be something big. I think having a deep bench is going to be critical in the postseason.

So I understand. I mean, I do I am one of those people that has a love affair with Keke Hernandez, but I also remember what he has done for this team in massive clutch moments. Here's an interesting thought, non-Dodgers, but worth noting because it kind of has something to do with the Dodgers. John Heyman reporting that Alex Cora and the Red Sox are in agreement on a three or seven million plus per year. So over 21 million for Alex Kora, again, there was speculation that perhaps he was going to be managing the daughters, which I think is complete bullshit because Dave Roberts is a phenomenal manager. He has, you know, the highest winning percentage of, you know, active managers out there. So,

and again, we're going to the postseason again. Like, what else can, yes, get out of the first round. I get it. But Dave Roberts isn't going anywhere. By the way, we're not on tomorrow, but we will be if something goes down. I mean, we're obviously very serious about the trade deadline. If something goes down, you and I will be back. Let's, uh, Let's get to Leslix. All right, I want to introduce you to Joy. She's in Southern California, and this is an urgent need. She's a sweet, sweet, sweet, sweet lab and pity mix.

She's excellent with other dogs. She's great with kids. Unfortunately, her family no longer wants her because there's some family marital issues and the dad doesn't like her, so they were going to take her to a shelter. I promise you, if this dog goes to a shelter, she will be euthanized, partly because she's a mixed breed, partly because she's black, and certainly because we have a lot of overcrowded shelter. So she's in the Southern California area. If you'd like to give Joy a home, she is a wonderful pup to no fault of her own. Her life is on the line. Please reach out to me and or you can check

out Gidreysguardian.org for more info. We appreciate that. All right, doctors look good, Clint. In the second half, obviously Teoscar Hernandez was not affected by the home run derby. Not at all. I don't know how much more time we have left on the show. We could be talking for another hour and a half about all this stuff of the team looking really good. Tay Oscar Hernandez, the fact that he hasn't been extended yet, hopefully that gets done immediately after the trade deadline because I want to see that man in Dodger Blue for the rest of his career or at least the next four or five years. The man deserves it, but this is a fun team.

And the fact that we're talking about good news, positive news, guys coming back, not just more and more injuries. It's a fun time to be a Dodger fan, and it's a fun time here to be covering the team, whether it's here on my own channel. That's right. Speaking of, what's coming up on your own channel, are you on tonight

or you're doing it tomorrow after the game? Tomorrow, we got a special one as we keep trending towards the trade deadline. I've got to talk a lot about trade deadline. So I'm welcoming my buddy DMAC from my old job. That's right. Doug McCain is going to be joining the show live 6 p.m. Pacific time.

All Dodgers, two in, get the popcorn. And let's see if we can get them to do a shooy. Oh, wow. All right. Don't forget to like and subscribe us right. on Dodgers territory. We appreciate it. Brightest five stars, if you will. Again, if something goes down, Clint and I will be on tomorrow. If not, we will be back on Monday afternoon at 3 p.m. Eastern, the 4th, 12th Pacific. Thank you, Gavin Lux for coming on. Or Dodgers. Fidelity active

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