A Los Angeles Dodgers crew member paints a logo on the field before practice in preparation for Game 1 of a baseball NL Division Series against the San Diego Padres, Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024, in Los Angeles.
11:58 JST, October 4, 2024
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers beat Jack Flaherty and rookie Yoshinobu Yamamoto in their National League Division Series rotation against the rival San Diego Padres.
Yamamoto will start Game 1 on Saturday and Flaherty will participate in Game 2 on Sunday at Dodger Stadium. The changes were made so Yamamoto could be available for a potential Game 5 on an extra day of rest, as he has had in every outing this season.
“It’s about having more options,” Andrew Friedman, president of baseball operations, said Thursday. “It just creates flexibility for things that we can’t possibly know right now. For example, our pitching is used in Games 1 through 4 and we just have as many options as possible.”
He said both pitchers felt great about the decision after the logic was explained.
The NLDS pits the Dodgers against the Padres for the third time in five years. The Padres went 3-1 in 2022, and the Dodgers went 3-0 in 2020 on their way to winning the World Series in the pandemic-shortened season.
“It felt like it was on a collision course,” Friedman said. “It’s a good team. We know it will be really good baseball.”
Friedman likens the match to a game of chess because the division rivals know each other so well. The Padres were 8-5 against the Dodgers in the regular season with the NL West title on the line.
“Will you continue to hold on to your strong points? Do you alternate things? How are they going to handle it?” he said. “If you did something specific with a certain guy during those regular-season games, do you stick with that? Are you deviating? I think it varies from case to case.”
Possessing the best record in baseball gave the Dodgers a bye this week. They used a high-speed pitching machine for batting practice Thursday, worked on the fundamentals and played a simulated game as the decisive Game 3 of the NL Wild Card Series between the Mets and Brewers played on the stadium’s video boards.
Shohei Ohtani grounded to second during the sim game against Tony Gonsolin. Freddie Freeman hit a pop-out into left foul territory in the eerily quiet stadium.
A number of players had hosted watch parties during the NL Wild Card Series, which the Padres won in two games against the Atlanta Braves.
The extra time off has proven valuable for injured players like Freeman and shortstop Miguel Rojas.
Freeman sprained his right ankle after landing awkwardly while running to first during the team’s NL West clinching game against the Padres last week. Manager Dave Roberts is confident Freeman will be in the lineup for Game 1, though he admits the All-Star first baseman’s mobility could be compromised on defense.
Freeman also hit the batting cage on Thursday and is making progress daily. At the end of August, he also clamped his middle finger on his right hand.
“It’s hard because every time you talk to him about it he says, ‘I’m fine.’ I’ll be good,'” Friedman said.
Rojas has a tear in his left adductor muscle, an injury he has been playing with for a few weeks.
“Miggy looks really good,” Friedman said. “The time off really helped him.”
Friedman confirmed that Ohtani will continue his throwing program as he rehabs from a second elbow surgery he underwent a year ago. The Japanese superstar will not move on to live batting training.
Not pitching this season allowed Ohtani to focus on his offense and the results were record-breaking. He became the first player in Major League history with 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a season.
