ATLANTA , — Dave Roberts, Dodgers manager, wants Max Scherzer to be at his best against the Atlanta Braves.
Roberts believes that Scherzer will be ready for action if he gets an extra day of rest.
Los Angeles will instead start Corey Knebel in Game 1 NL Championship Series on Saturday night, instead of Scherzer who will instead start Game 2 on Sunday.
Roberts stated Saturday that the decision was made after speaking with Scherzer after Friday’s Atlanta workout. Scherzer learned that Roberts was “arm tired” from his relief pitch on Thursday in Game 5 in the Division Series.
Roberts said that Scherzer was able to take the ball and would go as long as he can. He added that if he had another day of rest, he could “give us a complete start” on Sunday.
Roberts stated, “So for us that is a no-brainer.” It might have been different conversation if you were talking about a series of five games, but when we talk about the potential seven games you need to win, it was a no-brainer.
Roberts stated Friday that he intended to start Scherzer in Atlanta just two days after the right-hander’s first career save at San Francisco.
The plan was however contingent on Scherzer’s final approval.
After his relief visit, Scherzer said that “my arm was tired”.
Scherzer stated Saturday that “you close that game, you would expect your arm to be tired.”
“The larger question was how would it be to bounce back today?” I don’t know how to pitch on one day of rest. I have had experience pitching on two days. When I pitched against the Dodgers in 2019, I was able to relieve Game 2 and then start Game 4. Even in Game 4, I must have gone to over 100 pitches, which was quite taxing.
“I knew that I would be limited in some capacity if I pitched today. It was somewhere between 60 and 90 pitches. I don’t know.”
After speaking with Roberts, Scherzer agreed that it was best to just pitch Game 2 so you have a full slate. We also know how to navigate the games when I’m at my maximum capacity.
Knebel’s opener assignment isn’t a new one. He was 4-0 this season with a 2.45 ERA in 27 of his games, four starts included. Knebel opened the San Francisco game on Thursday.
Roberts stated that Tony Gonsolin would work behind Knebel, and will be available for 60-75 pitches.
Scherzer went 15-4 for Washington and Los Angeles with a 2.46 ERA. He was also 7-0 for the Dodgers with a 1.98 ERA in 11 games. In the playoffs, Scherzer has thrown 12 1/3 innings and allowed two runs and six hits. He also had 16 strikeouts.
Scherzer was able to earn his first career save with a 2-1 win over San Francisco in Game 5 of NLDS.
Atlanta’s Game 1 starter will be Max Fried, a left-hander. Ian Anderson and Charlie Morton will follow. Brian Snitker, Braves manager, plans to host a bullpen game in the second half of the series. It will likely be in Game 4.
The Braves’ NLCS roster was affected by the plans for the bullpen. Snitker will be able to use pinch-hitters in the bullpen earlier than usual, with 14 position players and 12 pitchers.
13 players are available for the Dodgers, as well as 13 pitchers.
The Braves have added right-hander Chris Martin to their 26-man roster, along with infielder Johan Camargo. Camargo and Martin replaced Dylan Lee, left-hander, and Terrance Gore, outfielder for the Braves’ NLDS win over Milwaukee Brewers.
The Dodgers added left-hander Justin Bruihl to their pitching team for the best-of-7 series. Evan Phillips was also added. They will replace David Price, left-hander, and Billy McKinney, first baseman from the Dodgers’ NLDS roster.
Roberts stated, “We wanted an extra arm.” McKinney was taken off, and McKinney was removed from the equation.
Roberts stated that Bruihl was wanted for matchups against left-handed hitters. Roberts stated that it was difficult to remove Price from the roster.
Roberts stated, “With David’s experience and it was a difficult call for us.”
Roberts will be able to make better decisions during Saturday’s game because of the bullpen’s additional depth.
As they wait for Soler ‘s clearance, the Braves will not be able to open the series without outfielder Jorge Soler and leadoff hitter Jorge Soler . After Soler was removed from the lineup, Dansby Swanson took the leadoff spot.
Snitker has Eddie Rosario in left field, starting in Game 1 and hitting leadoff.
Snitker stated, “I thought Eddie would make a good choice,”
ATLANTA (AP), — Dave Roberts, Dodgers manager, wants Max Scherzer to be at his best against the Atlanta Braves.
Roberts believes that Scherzer will be ready for action if he gets an extra day of rest.
Los Angeles will instead start Corey Knebel in Game 1 NL Championship Series on Saturday night, instead of Scherzer who will instead start Game 2 on Sunday.
Roberts stated Saturday that the decision was made after speaking with Scherzer after Friday’s Atlanta workout. Scherzer learned that Roberts was “arm tired” from his relief pitch on Thursday in Game 5 in the Division Series.
Roberts said that Scherzer was a good listener and would take the ball. He said that he could “give us a full start” Sunday with another day of rest.
Roberts stated, “So for us that is a no-brainer.” It might have been different conversations if you were talking about a series of five games, but when we talk about the potential seven games you need to win, it was a no-brainer.
Roberts stated Friday that he intended to start Scherzer in Atlanta just two days after the right-hander’s first career save at San Francisco.
The plan was however contingent on Scherzer’s final approval.
After his relief visit, Scherzer said that “my arm was tired”.
Scherzer stated Saturday that “You close that match, I would expect my right arm to be tired.”
“The larger question was how would it be to bounce back today?” I don’t know how to pitch on one day of rest. I have had experience pitching on two days. When I pitched against the Dodgers in 2019, I was able to relieve Game 2 and then start Game 4. Even in Game 4, I must have gone to over 100 pitches, which was quite taxing.
“So I knew I had to pitch today if I wanted to be effective. It was going be somewhere between 60 and 90 pitches. I don’t know.”
After speaking with Roberts, Scherzer agreed that it was best to just pitch Game 2 so you have a full slate. We also know how to navigate the games when I’m at my maximum capacity.
Knebel’s opener assignment isn’t a new one. He was 4-0 this season with a 2.45 ERA in 27 of his games, four of which were starts. Knebel opened the San Francisco game on Thursday.
Roberts stated that Tony Gonsolin would work behind Knebel, and will be available for 60-75 pitches.
Scherzer went 15-4 for Washington and Los Angeles with a 2.46 ERA. He was also 7-0 for the Dodgers with a 1.98 ERA in 11 games. In the playoffs, Scherzer has thrown 12 1/3 innings and allowed two runs and six hits. He also had 16 strikeouts.
Scherzer was able to earn his first career save with a 2-1 win over San Francisco in Game 5 of NLDS.
Atlanta’s Game 1 starter will be Max Fried, a left-hander. Ian Anderson and Charlie Morton will follow. Brian Snitker, Braves manager, plans to host a bullpen game in Game 4, most likely.
The Braves’ NLCS roster was affected by the plans for the bullpen. Snitker will be able to use pinch-hitters in the bullpen earlier than usual, with 14 position players and 12 pitchers.
The Dodgers currently have 13 position players and 13 pitchers.
The Braves have added right-hander Chris Martin to their 26-man roster, along with infielder Johan Camargo. Camargo and Martin replaced Dylan Lee, left-hander, and Terrance Gore, outfielder for the Braves’ NLDS win over Milwaukee Brewers.
The Dodgers added left-hander Justin Bruihl to their pitching team for the best-of-7 series. Evan Phillips was also added. They will replace David Price, left-hander, and Billy McKinney, first baseman from the Dodgers’ NLDS roster.
Roberts stated, “We wanted an extra arm.” McKinney was taken off, and McKinney was removed from the equation.
Roberts stated that Bruihl was wanted for matchups against left-handed hitters. Roberts stated that it was difficult to remove Price from the roster.
Roberts stated, “With David’s experience and it was a difficult call for us.”
Roberts will be able to make better decisions during Saturday’s game because of the bullpen’s additional depth.
As they wait for Soler ‘s clearance, the Braves will not be able to open the series without outfielder Jorge Soler and leadoff hitter Jorge Soler . After Soler was removed from the lineup, Dansby Swanson took the leadoff spot.
Snitker has Eddie Rosario in left field, starting in Game 1 and hitting leadoff.
Snitker stated, “I thought Eddie would make a good choice,”
