Jeff Spiegel: What's up, everybody? Welcome back to Bleed Dodger Blue. My name is Jeff Spiegel, and today joined with special by special guest Marcus Grant. you may see him on Blue Review on ESPN LA's YouTube page. I am a frequent guest. In fact, this
Marcas: Yeah.
Jeff Spiegel: is coming out Monday. You may have seen me this morning with Marcus and Greg Bergman over there. Marcus, I I appreciate you joining me. The vibes have shifted, so it's good to be chatting with you after a brutal game two loss.
Marcas: Yeah, frustrating. No doubt about it. Although it it sort of brought up all the things that I think we were worried about coming into this series, right? I mean the pitching wasn't really gonna be a problem. I know it was kind of sloppy in game two, but good enough it was the offense that they just didn't get it done in in game two.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, it's weird how how much the vibes can shift. Obviously, they win game one, Scuble is great, Tayoscar hits a home run, Tucker hits a home run. you know, aside from Tanner Scott, the bullpen kind of does their job. Then you find out, hey, Chris Sale not pitching in game two. And there was a weird part of me that felt like the pressure shifted pretty significantly to the Dodgers when that news came out, because you start playing out the scenario, which is what happened, which is well, what happens if the Dodgers can't win game two in a bullpen game? And then Chris Sale is still yet to pitch, which is the world we now find ourselves in.
Marcas: Yeah, I do think there was a little bit of that, right? And I think maybe after game one, I I won't say there was complacency or overconfidence, but I do think it's like, hey, you know what? They figured it out in game one. The slug was there, which is something that was kind of had been missing. You know, you mentioned Tay Oscar, he stays hot. Kyle Tucker, who was hot down the stretch, he continues to to hit the ball well. So you felt like, all right, well, maybe they figured something out. And I think even worst case scenario, you were like, okay, well, even if the offense isn't great. You got Blake Snell, right? If Blake Snell gets you through six innings and you give it to the bullpen, sort of like you did in game one, everything's going to be fine. So it did feel like game two was kind of the worst case scenario in that Snell was not on his game. The offense could not come through with a big hit. It it's still, but they scored seven runs in this series. All of them were. By the home run. So you're right. Now I think the pressure is fully on the Dodgers side of things because the Braves get to go back home and they've got their guy going in game three.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, you mentioned the hits. I it's hilarious. The Dodgers are for eight with runners in scoring position. That's not funny. The Braves are one for ten with runners in scoring position. So these two teams combined are one for eighteen. It has been entirely the home run ball that has gotten teams across the finish line. I wanted to ask a series of questions. Normally it's five. We'll see if we get there. But through two games for you, what's the biggest storyline for the Dodgers? There's there's guys that have struggled. there's guys that performed well. Like what jumps off the page to you as the headline for games one and two now that we're Sitting in the middle of an off day.
Marcas: Still waiting for Shohei. I think that's sort of the biggest thing, right? And in game one, even though what he had the one hit, he had the single, I I you felt good about his at bats. It looked like, even though he he didn't necessarily punish a baseball, that he was patient, he was looking for his pitch to hit. It looked like maybe the timing was slightly off, but I felt like in game one, I'm like, it feels like he's close. It didn't feel like that in game two. In game two, he was chasing, they're throwing everything middle away. And as long as he keeps chasing, they're gonna stay out there on the at that edge of the plate and trying to go as far off the edge as they can to see if they could get him. But he's chasing, the swing looks bad again. He's late on fastballs. So through two games, suddenly when it felt like after game one, maybe Shohei was close to figuring something out and turning things around. Now, after game two, this looks, I mean, he he looks healthier than he did. Before he went on the IL, but in terms of just his approach and his production at the plate, it sort of looks like the guy we saw in late August, early September.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, pair of one for fours for Otani. Steven Nelson tweeted this. Shohei Otani hasn't looked or felt like Shohei Otani for a minute. Had a few flashes in the San Diego series late in the regular season, but he's been chasing everything in sight with the NL's second worst whiff rate post All Star game, suboptimal. You you kind of mentioned he looks physically healthy, but it's the approach that it is is a disaster. I guess I'm wondering like, is that good news? Is which which is easier to fix? Is it the physical side of things, do you think? Or is it his ability to not swing at breaking balls that have no chance of being strikes?
Marcas: I mean, I wanna I wanna say it's the the approach. I think you can fix that. Cause it felt like when he wasn't healthy, it was he was not healthy and the approach was bad. I mean, I just you know, those swings before he went on the IL where he had nothing in the lower half, right? It was just all upper body swings. He was late, there was no punch to it whatsoever. At least we've seen him go through these stretches before where it just seems like he's guessing and he's chasing, and then all of a sudden he'll rip one off the left field wall and you're like. Okay, now it seems like it's okay. And even like the single he had, right? It's kind of an inside out swing. It was, you know, a hard hit ground ball that got past the third baseman. You kind of felt like, okay, well, maybe there's there's something there. the other at bats certainly didn't look like that. But I do think with him, you know, he could have a bunch of bad at bats. Maybe he goes and takes batting practice on the field when they get to Atlanta. I don't know. But if he can just just hit one hard somewhere, put one in the gap somewhere, then you start to think, okay, maybe now he's coming around.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, and you've had people, I mean, I I'm sure you see the same folks I do on social media saying this guy's a mess, bench him. Like, obviously, first of all, he's two for eight, right? Like like he's there are guys we're gonna get to in a moment who are far worse than two for eight, but this is just the bed that the Dodgers have made and they have to lie in it. Like you you are going to live or die with Shohei Otani as your designated hitter, right?
Marcas: Yeah, I mean, bench him for who? I mean, what I is is this the is this do we we Josue Topala? I mean
Jeff Spiegel: That is exactly it.
Marcas: that look, man, I'm I'm not trying to put that kid in that pressure pack situation right now. Like I know he got the bat at the end of game two and he popped up. you know, I I I I don't fault him for that in that situation, but I also don't think you wanna put the burden of getting this offense going on his shoulders. Look, maybe maybe if they were to DH him, he wouldn't hit in the leadoff spot. But I no, you you have Shohei Otani for a reason. You're putting him in the lineup for a reason. I I don't I don't think there's any universe in which Andrew Friedman or Dave Roberts or anybody on the Dodgers side entertains the idea of putting Shohei Otani on the bench in a playoff series.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, I I'm with you. other by the way, guys, when I talk about the biggest storyline, Will Smith is 0 for eight so far through two games. Andy Pays, who struggled all of last postseason, he's 0 for 7. It hasn't been pretty for him. We mentioned Otani. Tanner Scott struggles in game one. If you want to go positive, like I think Edwin Diaz's performance tonight is probably a silver line, Terek Scubel in game one, right? But like I see you nodding when I mentioned Edward Diaz. he put together a last week or so of the season that If you look at the box score it it kinda looks like the old Edwin Diaz. It seemed like maybe that's the guy they found today.
Marcas: He he was the best arm that they had today. He had the best, cleanest inning of anybody that they threw today. And yeah, I mean, yeah, I sort of took it with a grain of salt when we saw him late in the season because of the teams he was pitching against. It was not great competition down the stretch there. But he comes in and he looks fantastic. And the slider. looked like the slider that we were hoping to see for most of the year. The fastball had that velocity. He had that sort of level of confidence of that. So, you know, I I don't know what this means going forward. I don't know if this means he's moved up the trust tree and he suddenly gets a higher leverage situation. but but there were definitely encouraging signs from the outing that we got from Edwin Diaz in game two.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, and it's funny because the other guys who I felt like were in contention for that ninth inning, obviously you've got Tanner Scott, who gives up the two run home run in game one. You've got Evan Phillips who is now pitched in both games. I wouldn't say he was amazing in game one, walking a guy and then getting a ground out. He gets an out today, but Edgardo Enriquez was a name that people were throwing around. He gives up two hits in a run today. Roki Sasaki was the name people were throwing around, who you look at the box score, hey, no hits, no
Marcas: Ha ha.
Jeff Spiegel: runs and two innings. It was about the ugliest no hits and no runs over two innings you could ever imagine, though, right?
Marcas: I mean, he was he was a high wire act, man. I mean, just he couldn't find the plate. He walks a guy, he hits a guy, he he's got guys all over the bases. And somehow, of all the guys he gets to hit into a Ronald Acunya. Like Acuna was the guy he gets to bounce into a double play. he he's able to work out of that. But no, it was not clean at all. It it looked sort of like r spring training early season pre-giant glove Roki Sasaki.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah. question number two for you here. Blake Snell. Decision to to make him pitch to not make him pitch, select him to pitch
Marcas: Ha ha ha.
Jeff Spiegel: in game two. I I'm sure he chose to pitch in game two. The final line is three and two thirds, one earned run, but five walks, three hits, and three strikeouts. It's eight base runners in three and two thirds. They end up having to tax the bullpen for five and a third. They do have an off date tomorrow, so I don't think it's that big of a deal. We're gonna get to the decision for him to be in game two in a moment, but What did you see out of Blake Snell? Is there anything in there that makes you believe that the next time he's called upon, it's going to be a much better sort of result?
Marcas: Just that this is part of the Blake Snell experience, right? Is that you every now and then get these kinds of starts from him, and you you hope that they're not in the postseason, but it's always a possibility that he's gonna give you one of those where he just can't find the plate. And it was a thing that I said, you know, we have our group chat, and I said, you know, after that first inning, I'm like, this feels like one of those four inning, 85 pitch sort of performances. I mean, I wasn't too far off. He went what three and two-thirds, three and a three
Jeff Spiegel: Two thirds. Yeah.
Marcas: and two-thirds, and threw 90 pitches. I mean, that's just sort of what it is. But the other part of the Blake Snell experience is that next time around, he could give you, you know, six and a third, where he's just on point and he strikes out eight guys and and doesn't really walk anybody. So if it wasn't great, obviously you would prefer that it was a better situation. But again, he left. And the Dodgers were still in the ballgame, right? They still had a chance to to win this thing. y you just hope that that next time, if there is a next time that he gets the baseball, that he looks more like the Cy Young Award winning version of Blake Snow.
Jeff Spiegel: It had been a full two calendar months since since Blake Snell had last walked five plus batters. That would be August 24th, 2024. He walked six against the San Francisco Giants. So it's been a while. He had a four-walk game in 2025. But yeah, I'm we knew that was the scouting report when he came over. And it's just disappointing for a guy who basically made his worst start of the entire season, not a large sample size in the game when they needed him, which leads me to question number three. And I sent this tweet out. Prior to anything happening, which was, man, if the first two games don't go really well, I think there's gonna be a lot of questions about why Yoshinobu Yamamoto didn't pitch in game number two. For my estimation, Tarek Scuble, Yoshinobu Yamamoto flip a coin. I thought Blake Snell was in the same tier, but just to tick behind those two. You can make the arguments, hey, the Braves struggle against left handed pitchers, throw your two lefties. You could say, Well, Yamamoto on the road, you probably feel best about him on the road. Also probably the one that was most prescient was well Blake Snell, if he doesn't give you length, at least the bullpen gets taxed on Sunday and then gets an off day on Monday. Is there any sort of Monday morning quarterbacking going on in your estimation about why did we get to a point where Yoshinobu Yamamoto wasn't pitching in this game?
Marcas: Not for me. I'm sure there are plenty of other people out there who will who will second guess this and and wonder why it was. I mean, I think, yeah, I think for most people, it's like, hey, you go Scoobyl and Yama in one or one and two in some order there, and then you go with with Snell and Glass now in games three and four. But I think for for a lot of people, you look at those four guys that you've got, and you could pull names out of a hat in almost any order, and you could feel okay, right? I mean. Especially in a when when the Braves are going with another bullpen game, right? If you're looking at this and you're like Blake Snell versus Ray Kerr and whoever else is coming out of the Braves' bullpen, you're gonna feel okay about it. And you know, again, if he goes six innings and he's clean and he only gives if he even gives him one run, strikes out six, gives up a couple of hits, you still feel okay about it. It's because the final result wasn't what you wanted. Then, you know, then then everybody kind of looks sideways at it. I I did see a a post from Steven Nelson during the game that like, you know, also some of the logic I think was you give Snell the the second game because the the the temperature, both you know, metaphorically and realistically was cooler, right? You were play you were pitching in the evening, you weren't pitching in the heat of the hot sun. But also, it's not game one where everybody's eyes are on you and it's super pressure-packed. It's also not game three where you're going to an incredibly hostile environment there in Atlanta. It felt kind of like a nice sweet spot for Blake Snell. You just didn't expect that he was not going to have any kind of feel on pretty much anything he threw that night.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah. I totally agree, by the way. I I think it was a totally defensible decision by the Dodgers to put Blake Snell in game number two. I think it would have been totally defensible if they just said, you what, Yamamoto's our second best pitcher. We know the lefties thing. We know all that. We're just gonna go with him. And the reality is for Dodgers fans, now you have Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitching for you in what is the most important game of the season against Chris Sale, game three in Atlanta. The tables have turned. The Dodgers no longer have home field advantage. Two of the last three games. Will be played in Atlanta. but again, it it's Chris Sale they get in game three, and then after that, it's a big shrug of the shoulders, and Atlanta's gonna try and piece this thing together, much like they have in the first two. But I think that leads to back to the conversation on the offense. This Dodgers offense has scored entirely by the home run ball. They're 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position. And yes, Tay Oscar had a big swing. Kyle Tucker had a big swing. Max Munsey was not in the starting lineup, had has now had two big swings. I'm not gonna fault Miguel Rojas, he had a double in his one at bat. Until Tommy Edmund couldn't get the the scoring excuse me the bunt down. But I mean, today the Dodgers put runners in scoring position with one out or less in the third inning, fourth inning, and fifth inning. And it's one thing not to cash those runs in, Marcus. They didn't move them. The guy never moved off of second base in an inning with one out, one out, and zero outs. That's I I understand launch angle and swing and and like all of it. How do you how do you not? Professionally at bat move guys over, that that's the confusing part.
Marcas: That's the confusing part, but that's the thing that we saw for a long stretch of the season. I mean, it it felt like game two, it was the July and August version of the Dodgers that came back again. And I remember going through those stretches and being frustrated by watching this offense get guys on, but not able to get them over and get them in. And even during those times, you heard Dave Roberts in post-games talk about not. Being situationally aware and guys not taking team at bats necessarily to figure out how to get guys in position. And it sort of felt like that again tonight. Just not, just not able to move runners along, not able to move runners over. I mean, it just is really, really frustrating. And you gotta hope that they can sort of pull it together, right? Because as you mentioned, time's running out to kind of fix this thing, right? You you only You're only guaranteed two more games left in this season. So at some point you've got to kind of you get yourselves together and figure out, hey, we've got to figure out how to manufacture ones. The long ball is great and you hope it comes back. It was great to see Freddie Freeman hit one in game two, but you've got to figure out how to take advantage of those opportunities when they come your way because they don't come your way that often in the playoffs.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, and it's strange because you look at the list of guys who had at bats with runners in scoring position, and it's all of the guys that you would expect to be able to do this. Like Will Smith was 0 for two, Tommy Edmund was 0 for two, and the others were Freeman, Mudsey, Tao, and Otani. Like if I gave you a list of guys, like, look, I don't think Tommy Edmund is a great hitter. I've been absolutely crushed for believing that basically for the last couple of years. But like if there's one thing I expect Tommy Edmund to do, it's to be able to move a guy over, put the ball in play and and sort of manufacture the small ball. I would put Will Smith at the top of that list as well. Obviously Freddie Freeman. And yet these are all of the guys who had the opportunities and none of them could get them done, which is what makes it so confusing. So last question here before we go is how do you see these next three games playing out? Obviously it's Chris Sale versus Yamamoto in game three. It's Tyler Glasno in game four and Tyrick Skubel in game five. Again, we have no idea what the Braves are going to do in game four and game five. The way their bullpen games have worked, they might just keep going with this, but like the vibes have changed dramatically since after game one to after game two. How confident are you that the Dodgers can still get this done?
Marcas: I still believe. I definitely still believe. And and I think we've seen this team, especially when they have had adversity, when they've gone on the road, figure out ways to just get it done. I still think the Dodgers have a decided pitching advantage from top to bottom. Now, like look, the sale Yamamoto, definitely a lot closer than than say the Snell Kerr matchup, at least on paper. So it's not going to be easy. I I Like to believe that we're not gonna see a repeat of that one-nothing game where Chris Sale was just absolutely unhittable. I don't I don't think we're gonna see that again. But you know, this is gonna be another one where the opportunities that are presented to you, you've got to take advantage of them. So, you know, I I think even look, I like to believe they come back and they figure out how to win game three. But even if they don't, I still would like to believe that you could put glass now against Tyler Molly or if they go bullpen game again. Like I still believe the Dodgers have the advantage there. you know, I I go back to to last year to twenty twenty four and that division series against the Padres where their backs against the wall and they figured out how to get it done. And, you know, again, until until somebody knocks out the Dodgers, I'm gonna believe they still have a chance to win a World Series.
Jeff Spiegel: in the same spot, and and if you kind of do the fan math here, it's if you win one of the next two, you get Tarek Scuble pitching for you at home in game five against Shrug emoji for the Atlanta Braves. I mean,
Marcas: Right.
Jeff Spiegel: basically. So that that's really the math is can you win one of two in Atlanta, get this series back to game five, and you're gonna have Tarek Scuble fully rested, ready to roll at Dodgers Stadium against a Braves team that you mentioned. I mean, the Dodgers have a starting pitching advantage. I would say they have a bullpen advantage, it seems like, and and on paper. They should have an offensive advantage, but they just haven't been able to tap into it. So give me one like player prediction that you have for the next couple of games. Like is it, you know, it could be Chris Seale gets blown up. It could be Yoshinobi Yamamoto, complete game shutout. It could be a guy who goes yard, but give me one thing that sort of sort of a a positively intrusive thought you have about the Dodgers in the next few days.
Marcas: I think Kyle Tucker's in the middle of some really good things for the Dodgers.
Jeff Spiegel: Let's go.
Marcas: I mean, like he's figured it out, he figured it out in September. He's he's hit the ball hard. He had the home run in game one, he hit the ball hard in game two. And if we go by the trends, he was a lot better on the road than he was at Dodgers Stadium. So if he started to pick it up at Dodging, now we get him away from that, put him in a hostile environment where maybe. Maybe he just sort of thrives on that negativity or something, but I think for whatever whatever happens over the next couple days, I somehow think Kyle Tucker's gonna be in the middle of it.
Jeff Spiegel: I like it. I think Otani's gonna homer off Chris Sale. It just feels stupid. There's no logic to it. And it's just exactly what Otani does. Like he's gonna turn
Marcas: Would love it.
Jeff Spiegel: around like a ninety-eight mile an hour fastball in the first inning, and everybody's gonna be like, What just happened? I'm sorry. Chris Sale versus slumping, disastrous looking Shore Otani home run in the first inning. Pencil it in for me, Marcus. Yeah.
Marcas: Love it. Love it.
Jeff Spiegel: okay. Thank you everybody for watching, Marcus. We appreciate the time. Of course, the Dodgers will be back. In action on Tuesday. I am at the All Dodgers podcast. We will be live after Tuesday's game. Marcus, Greg Bergman over at the Blue Review on the ESPN LA YouTube page. If you have not already subscribed to that, if you do not watch them, it airs at six thirty AM live and then am I remembering right that it reairs later on?
Marcas: Re airs at ten thirty in the morning. Yep.
Jeff Spiegel: Okay, there you go. Six thirty AM if you want the real thing fresh and hotly delivered, ten thirty AM if you're a normal person that's not awake at the same hour that the rest of us. But for the record, by the way, Greg Bergman was invited to be a part of the
Marcas: Yeah.
Jeff Spiegel: show and he said it was past his bedtime. So I have no problem saying that publicly to Greg. I'll probably make fun of him on the show tomorrow morning for it. But Marcus, a trooper, staying up late on Sunday, both of us waking up early. You're just a true professional, Marcus. I'm not saying Greg's not, but you are.
Marcas: You know, I do what I can to help the people. Plus like just it's fun
Jeff Spiegel: Like
Marcas: to talk to hydro baseball, you know.
Jeff Spiegel: exactly. Exactly. we appreciate everybody for watching again. This is Bleed Dodger Blue. You can check out the supporters of the show Foco and Amis. We've got some links below. If you want to support this, patreon.com slash bleed dodger blue. Also an opportunity links in the description below. For Marcus, I am Jeff. Enjoy the rest of your night, everyone. As always, go Dodgers and yes, still champs.
Marcas: Yeah.
Jeff Spiegel: is coming out Monday. You may have seen me this morning with Marcus and Greg Bergman over there. Marcus, I I appreciate you joining me. The vibes have shifted, so it's good to be chatting with you after a brutal game two loss.
Marcas: Yeah, frustrating. No doubt about it. Although it it sort of brought up all the things that I think we were worried about coming into this series, right? I mean the pitching wasn't really gonna be a problem. I know it was kind of sloppy in game two, but good enough it was the offense that they just didn't get it done in in game two.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, it's weird how how much the vibes can shift. Obviously, they win game one, Scuble is great, Tayoscar hits a home run, Tucker hits a home run. you know, aside from Tanner Scott, the bullpen kind of does their job. Then you find out, hey, Chris Sale not pitching in game two. And there was a weird part of me that felt like the pressure shifted pretty significantly to the Dodgers when that news came out, because you start playing out the scenario, which is what happened, which is well, what happens if the Dodgers can't win game two in a bullpen game? And then Chris Sale is still yet to pitch, which is the world we now find ourselves in.
Marcas: Yeah, I do think there was a little bit of that, right? And I think maybe after game one, I I won't say there was complacency or overconfidence, but I do think it's like, hey, you know what? They figured it out in game one. The slug was there, which is something that was kind of had been missing. You know, you mentioned Tay Oscar, he stays hot. Kyle Tucker, who was hot down the stretch, he continues to to hit the ball well. So you felt like, all right, well, maybe they figured something out. And I think even worst case scenario, you were like, okay, well, even if the offense isn't great. You got Blake Snell, right? If Blake Snell gets you through six innings and you give it to the bullpen, sort of like you did in game one, everything's going to be fine. So it did feel like game two was kind of the worst case scenario in that Snell was not on his game. The offense could not come through with a big hit. It it's still, but they scored seven runs in this series. All of them were. By the home run. So you're right. Now I think the pressure is fully on the Dodgers side of things because the Braves get to go back home and they've got their guy going in game three.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, you mentioned the hits. I it's hilarious. The Dodgers are for eight with runners in scoring position. That's not funny. The Braves are one for ten with runners in scoring position. So these two teams combined are one for eighteen. It has been entirely the home run ball that has gotten teams across the finish line. I wanted to ask a series of questions. Normally it's five. We'll see if we get there. But through two games for you, what's the biggest storyline for the Dodgers? There's there's guys that have struggled. there's guys that performed well. Like what jumps off the page to you as the headline for games one and two now that we're Sitting in the middle of an off day.
Marcas: Still waiting for Shohei. I think that's sort of the biggest thing, right? And in game one, even though what he had the one hit, he had the single, I I you felt good about his at bats. It looked like, even though he he didn't necessarily punish a baseball, that he was patient, he was looking for his pitch to hit. It looked like maybe the timing was slightly off, but I felt like in game one, I'm like, it feels like he's close. It didn't feel like that in game two. In game two, he was chasing, they're throwing everything middle away. And as long as he keeps chasing, they're gonna stay out there on the at that edge of the plate and trying to go as far off the edge as they can to see if they could get him. But he's chasing, the swing looks bad again. He's late on fastballs. So through two games, suddenly when it felt like after game one, maybe Shohei was close to figuring something out and turning things around. Now, after game two, this looks, I mean, he he looks healthier than he did. Before he went on the IL, but in terms of just his approach and his production at the plate, it sort of looks like the guy we saw in late August, early September.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, pair of one for fours for Otani. Steven Nelson tweeted this. Shohei Otani hasn't looked or felt like Shohei Otani for a minute. Had a few flashes in the San Diego series late in the regular season, but he's been chasing everything in sight with the NL's second worst whiff rate post All Star game, suboptimal. You you kind of mentioned he looks physically healthy, but it's the approach that it is is a disaster. I guess I'm wondering like, is that good news? Is which which is easier to fix? Is it the physical side of things, do you think? Or is it his ability to not swing at breaking balls that have no chance of being strikes?
Marcas: I mean, I wanna I wanna say it's the the approach. I think you can fix that. Cause it felt like when he wasn't healthy, it was he was not healthy and the approach was bad. I mean, I just you know, those swings before he went on the IL where he had nothing in the lower half, right? It was just all upper body swings. He was late, there was no punch to it whatsoever. At least we've seen him go through these stretches before where it just seems like he's guessing and he's chasing, and then all of a sudden he'll rip one off the left field wall and you're like. Okay, now it seems like it's okay. And even like the single he had, right? It's kind of an inside out swing. It was, you know, a hard hit ground ball that got past the third baseman. You kind of felt like, okay, well, maybe there's there's something there. the other at bats certainly didn't look like that. But I do think with him, you know, he could have a bunch of bad at bats. Maybe he goes and takes batting practice on the field when they get to Atlanta. I don't know. But if he can just just hit one hard somewhere, put one in the gap somewhere, then you start to think, okay, maybe now he's coming around.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, and you've had people, I mean, I I'm sure you see the same folks I do on social media saying this guy's a mess, bench him. Like, obviously, first of all, he's two for eight, right? Like like he's there are guys we're gonna get to in a moment who are far worse than two for eight, but this is just the bed that the Dodgers have made and they have to lie in it. Like you you are going to live or die with Shohei Otani as your designated hitter, right?
Marcas: Yeah, I mean, bench him for who? I mean, what I is is this the is this do we we Josue Topala? I mean
Jeff Spiegel: That is exactly it.
Marcas: that look, man, I'm I'm not trying to put that kid in that pressure pack situation right now. Like I know he got the bat at the end of game two and he popped up. you know, I I I I don't fault him for that in that situation, but I also don't think you wanna put the burden of getting this offense going on his shoulders. Look, maybe maybe if they were to DH him, he wouldn't hit in the leadoff spot. But I no, you you have Shohei Otani for a reason. You're putting him in the lineup for a reason. I I don't I don't think there's any universe in which Andrew Friedman or Dave Roberts or anybody on the Dodgers side entertains the idea of putting Shohei Otani on the bench in a playoff series.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, I I'm with you. other by the way, guys, when I talk about the biggest storyline, Will Smith is 0 for eight so far through two games. Andy Pays, who struggled all of last postseason, he's 0 for 7. It hasn't been pretty for him. We mentioned Otani. Tanner Scott struggles in game one. If you want to go positive, like I think Edwin Diaz's performance tonight is probably a silver line, Terek Scubel in game one, right? But like I see you nodding when I mentioned Edward Diaz. he put together a last week or so of the season that If you look at the box score it it kinda looks like the old Edwin Diaz. It seemed like maybe that's the guy they found today.
Marcas: He he was the best arm that they had today. He had the best, cleanest inning of anybody that they threw today. And yeah, I mean, yeah, I sort of took it with a grain of salt when we saw him late in the season because of the teams he was pitching against. It was not great competition down the stretch there. But he comes in and he looks fantastic. And the slider. looked like the slider that we were hoping to see for most of the year. The fastball had that velocity. He had that sort of level of confidence of that. So, you know, I I don't know what this means going forward. I don't know if this means he's moved up the trust tree and he suddenly gets a higher leverage situation. but but there were definitely encouraging signs from the outing that we got from Edwin Diaz in game two.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, and it's funny because the other guys who I felt like were in contention for that ninth inning, obviously you've got Tanner Scott, who gives up the two run home run in game one. You've got Evan Phillips who is now pitched in both games. I wouldn't say he was amazing in game one, walking a guy and then getting a ground out. He gets an out today, but Edgardo Enriquez was a name that people were throwing around. He gives up two hits in a run today. Roki Sasaki was the name people were throwing around, who you look at the box score, hey, no hits, no
Marcas: Ha ha.
Jeff Spiegel: runs and two innings. It was about the ugliest no hits and no runs over two innings you could ever imagine, though, right?
Marcas: I mean, he was he was a high wire act, man. I mean, just he couldn't find the plate. He walks a guy, he hits a guy, he he's got guys all over the bases. And somehow, of all the guys he gets to hit into a Ronald Acunya. Like Acuna was the guy he gets to bounce into a double play. he he's able to work out of that. But no, it was not clean at all. It it looked sort of like r spring training early season pre-giant glove Roki Sasaki.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah. question number two for you here. Blake Snell. Decision to to make him pitch to not make him pitch, select him to pitch
Marcas: Ha ha ha.
Jeff Spiegel: in game two. I I'm sure he chose to pitch in game two. The final line is three and two thirds, one earned run, but five walks, three hits, and three strikeouts. It's eight base runners in three and two thirds. They end up having to tax the bullpen for five and a third. They do have an off date tomorrow, so I don't think it's that big of a deal. We're gonna get to the decision for him to be in game two in a moment, but What did you see out of Blake Snell? Is there anything in there that makes you believe that the next time he's called upon, it's going to be a much better sort of result?
Marcas: Just that this is part of the Blake Snell experience, right? Is that you every now and then get these kinds of starts from him, and you you hope that they're not in the postseason, but it's always a possibility that he's gonna give you one of those where he just can't find the plate. And it was a thing that I said, you know, we have our group chat, and I said, you know, after that first inning, I'm like, this feels like one of those four inning, 85 pitch sort of performances. I mean, I wasn't too far off. He went what three and two-thirds, three and a three
Jeff Spiegel: Two thirds. Yeah.
Marcas: and two-thirds, and threw 90 pitches. I mean, that's just sort of what it is. But the other part of the Blake Snell experience is that next time around, he could give you, you know, six and a third, where he's just on point and he strikes out eight guys and and doesn't really walk anybody. So if it wasn't great, obviously you would prefer that it was a better situation. But again, he left. And the Dodgers were still in the ballgame, right? They still had a chance to to win this thing. y you just hope that that next time, if there is a next time that he gets the baseball, that he looks more like the Cy Young Award winning version of Blake Snow.
Jeff Spiegel: It had been a full two calendar months since since Blake Snell had last walked five plus batters. That would be August 24th, 2024. He walked six against the San Francisco Giants. So it's been a while. He had a four-walk game in 2025. But yeah, I'm we knew that was the scouting report when he came over. And it's just disappointing for a guy who basically made his worst start of the entire season, not a large sample size in the game when they needed him, which leads me to question number three. And I sent this tweet out. Prior to anything happening, which was, man, if the first two games don't go really well, I think there's gonna be a lot of questions about why Yoshinobu Yamamoto didn't pitch in game number two. For my estimation, Tarek Scuble, Yoshinobu Yamamoto flip a coin. I thought Blake Snell was in the same tier, but just to tick behind those two. You can make the arguments, hey, the Braves struggle against left handed pitchers, throw your two lefties. You could say, Well, Yamamoto on the road, you probably feel best about him on the road. Also probably the one that was most prescient was well Blake Snell, if he doesn't give you length, at least the bullpen gets taxed on Sunday and then gets an off day on Monday. Is there any sort of Monday morning quarterbacking going on in your estimation about why did we get to a point where Yoshinobu Yamamoto wasn't pitching in this game?
Marcas: Not for me. I'm sure there are plenty of other people out there who will who will second guess this and and wonder why it was. I mean, I think, yeah, I think for most people, it's like, hey, you go Scoobyl and Yama in one or one and two in some order there, and then you go with with Snell and Glass now in games three and four. But I think for for a lot of people, you look at those four guys that you've got, and you could pull names out of a hat in almost any order, and you could feel okay, right? I mean. Especially in a when when the Braves are going with another bullpen game, right? If you're looking at this and you're like Blake Snell versus Ray Kerr and whoever else is coming out of the Braves' bullpen, you're gonna feel okay about it. And you know, again, if he goes six innings and he's clean and he only gives if he even gives him one run, strikes out six, gives up a couple of hits, you still feel okay about it. It's because the final result wasn't what you wanted. Then, you know, then then everybody kind of looks sideways at it. I I did see a a post from Steven Nelson during the game that like, you know, also some of the logic I think was you give Snell the the second game because the the the temperature, both you know, metaphorically and realistically was cooler, right? You were play you were pitching in the evening, you weren't pitching in the heat of the hot sun. But also, it's not game one where everybody's eyes are on you and it's super pressure-packed. It's also not game three where you're going to an incredibly hostile environment there in Atlanta. It felt kind of like a nice sweet spot for Blake Snell. You just didn't expect that he was not going to have any kind of feel on pretty much anything he threw that night.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah. I totally agree, by the way. I I think it was a totally defensible decision by the Dodgers to put Blake Snell in game number two. I think it would have been totally defensible if they just said, you what, Yamamoto's our second best pitcher. We know the lefties thing. We know all that. We're just gonna go with him. And the reality is for Dodgers fans, now you have Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitching for you in what is the most important game of the season against Chris Sale, game three in Atlanta. The tables have turned. The Dodgers no longer have home field advantage. Two of the last three games. Will be played in Atlanta. but again, it it's Chris Sale they get in game three, and then after that, it's a big shrug of the shoulders, and Atlanta's gonna try and piece this thing together, much like they have in the first two. But I think that leads to back to the conversation on the offense. This Dodgers offense has scored entirely by the home run ball. They're 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position. And yes, Tay Oscar had a big swing. Kyle Tucker had a big swing. Max Munsey was not in the starting lineup, had has now had two big swings. I'm not gonna fault Miguel Rojas, he had a double in his one at bat. Until Tommy Edmund couldn't get the the scoring excuse me the bunt down. But I mean, today the Dodgers put runners in scoring position with one out or less in the third inning, fourth inning, and fifth inning. And it's one thing not to cash those runs in, Marcus. They didn't move them. The guy never moved off of second base in an inning with one out, one out, and zero outs. That's I I understand launch angle and swing and and like all of it. How do you how do you not? Professionally at bat move guys over, that that's the confusing part.
Marcas: That's the confusing part, but that's the thing that we saw for a long stretch of the season. I mean, it it felt like game two, it was the July and August version of the Dodgers that came back again. And I remember going through those stretches and being frustrated by watching this offense get guys on, but not able to get them over and get them in. And even during those times, you heard Dave Roberts in post-games talk about not. Being situationally aware and guys not taking team at bats necessarily to figure out how to get guys in position. And it sort of felt like that again tonight. Just not, just not able to move runners along, not able to move runners over. I mean, it just is really, really frustrating. And you gotta hope that they can sort of pull it together, right? Because as you mentioned, time's running out to kind of fix this thing, right? You you only You're only guaranteed two more games left in this season. So at some point you've got to kind of you get yourselves together and figure out, hey, we've got to figure out how to manufacture ones. The long ball is great and you hope it comes back. It was great to see Freddie Freeman hit one in game two, but you've got to figure out how to take advantage of those opportunities when they come your way because they don't come your way that often in the playoffs.
Jeff Spiegel: Yeah, and it's strange because you look at the list of guys who had at bats with runners in scoring position, and it's all of the guys that you would expect to be able to do this. Like Will Smith was 0 for two, Tommy Edmund was 0 for two, and the others were Freeman, Mudsey, Tao, and Otani. Like if I gave you a list of guys, like, look, I don't think Tommy Edmund is a great hitter. I've been absolutely crushed for believing that basically for the last couple of years. But like if there's one thing I expect Tommy Edmund to do, it's to be able to move a guy over, put the ball in play and and sort of manufacture the small ball. I would put Will Smith at the top of that list as well. Obviously Freddie Freeman. And yet these are all of the guys who had the opportunities and none of them could get them done, which is what makes it so confusing. So last question here before we go is how do you see these next three games playing out? Obviously it's Chris Sale versus Yamamoto in game three. It's Tyler Glasno in game four and Tyrick Skubel in game five. Again, we have no idea what the Braves are going to do in game four and game five. The way their bullpen games have worked, they might just keep going with this, but like the vibes have changed dramatically since after game one to after game two. How confident are you that the Dodgers can still get this done?
Marcas: I still believe. I definitely still believe. And and I think we've seen this team, especially when they have had adversity, when they've gone on the road, figure out ways to just get it done. I still think the Dodgers have a decided pitching advantage from top to bottom. Now, like look, the sale Yamamoto, definitely a lot closer than than say the Snell Kerr matchup, at least on paper. So it's not going to be easy. I I Like to believe that we're not gonna see a repeat of that one-nothing game where Chris Sale was just absolutely unhittable. I don't I don't think we're gonna see that again. But you know, this is gonna be another one where the opportunities that are presented to you, you've got to take advantage of them. So, you know, I I think even look, I like to believe they come back and they figure out how to win game three. But even if they don't, I still would like to believe that you could put glass now against Tyler Molly or if they go bullpen game again. Like I still believe the Dodgers have the advantage there. you know, I I go back to to last year to twenty twenty four and that division series against the Padres where their backs against the wall and they figured out how to get it done. And, you know, again, until until somebody knocks out the Dodgers, I'm gonna believe they still have a chance to win a World Series.
Jeff Spiegel: in the same spot, and and if you kind of do the fan math here, it's if you win one of the next two, you get Tarek Scuble pitching for you at home in game five against Shrug emoji for the Atlanta Braves. I mean,
Marcas: Right.
Jeff Spiegel: basically. So that that's really the math is can you win one of two in Atlanta, get this series back to game five, and you're gonna have Tarek Scuble fully rested, ready to roll at Dodgers Stadium against a Braves team that you mentioned. I mean, the Dodgers have a starting pitching advantage. I would say they have a bullpen advantage, it seems like, and and on paper. They should have an offensive advantage, but they just haven't been able to tap into it. So give me one like player prediction that you have for the next couple of games. Like is it, you know, it could be Chris Seale gets blown up. It could be Yoshinobi Yamamoto, complete game shutout. It could be a guy who goes yard, but give me one thing that sort of sort of a a positively intrusive thought you have about the Dodgers in the next few days.
Marcas: I think Kyle Tucker's in the middle of some really good things for the Dodgers.
Jeff Spiegel: Let's go.
Marcas: I mean, like he's figured it out, he figured it out in September. He's he's hit the ball hard. He had the home run in game one, he hit the ball hard in game two. And if we go by the trends, he was a lot better on the road than he was at Dodgers Stadium. So if he started to pick it up at Dodging, now we get him away from that, put him in a hostile environment where maybe. Maybe he just sort of thrives on that negativity or something, but I think for whatever whatever happens over the next couple days, I somehow think Kyle Tucker's gonna be in the middle of it.
Jeff Spiegel: I like it. I think Otani's gonna homer off Chris Sale. It just feels stupid. There's no logic to it. And it's just exactly what Otani does. Like he's gonna turn
Marcas: Would love it.
Jeff Spiegel: around like a ninety-eight mile an hour fastball in the first inning, and everybody's gonna be like, What just happened? I'm sorry. Chris Sale versus slumping, disastrous looking Shore Otani home run in the first inning. Pencil it in for me, Marcus. Yeah.
Marcas: Love it. Love it.
Jeff Spiegel: okay. Thank you everybody for watching, Marcus. We appreciate the time. Of course, the Dodgers will be back. In action on Tuesday. I am at the All Dodgers podcast. We will be live after Tuesday's game. Marcus, Greg Bergman over at the Blue Review on the ESPN LA YouTube page. If you have not already subscribed to that, if you do not watch them, it airs at six thirty AM live and then am I remembering right that it reairs later on?
Marcas: Re airs at ten thirty in the morning. Yep.
Jeff Spiegel: Okay, there you go. Six thirty AM if you want the real thing fresh and hotly delivered, ten thirty AM if you're a normal person that's not awake at the same hour that the rest of us. But for the record, by the way, Greg Bergman was invited to be a part of the
Marcas: Yeah.
Jeff Spiegel: show and he said it was past his bedtime. So I have no problem saying that publicly to Greg. I'll probably make fun of him on the show tomorrow morning for it. But Marcus, a trooper, staying up late on Sunday, both of us waking up early. You're just a true professional, Marcus. I'm not saying Greg's not, but you are.
Marcas: You know, I do what I can to help the people. Plus like just it's fun
Jeff Spiegel: Like
Marcas: to talk to hydro baseball, you know.
Jeff Spiegel: exactly. Exactly. we appreciate everybody for watching again. This is Bleed Dodger Blue. You can check out the supporters of the show Foco and Amis. We've got some links below. If you want to support this, patreon.com slash bleed dodger blue. Also an opportunity links in the description below. For Marcus, I am Jeff. Enjoy the rest of your night, everyone. As always, go Dodgers and yes, still champs.
