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NL DIVISION SERIES: DODGERS VS NATIONALS

October 9, 2016

Dusty Baker

Washington, DC - Pregame two

Q. Just your thoughts on Tanner, just getting pushed back a day, any concern there? What are your hopes for him today pitching a big game for you guys?
DUSTY BAKER: No, I don't have any concerns about that. I actually think it will help him. It was pretty nice to get home and get some rest last night and pack and kind of get situated, and that would make for an extremely long night had we have played yesterday. You would rather have played and not lose the off-day today, but sometimes you've got to look at things as a blessing, so that's how I'm looking at it.

Q. Does anything change for you in terms of planning because of the rain?
DUSTY BAKER: No, not really. Everything sort of stays the same. You know, lineup's the same. Ours is the same. Theirs is the same. You know, you just plan on winning the game, just like you did yesterday.

And so, yeah, everything remains the same.

Q. With Tanner being a sinker baller, do you worry about with the extra day of rest that he may be throwing through the sink and as well, his first time, pitching his first playoff game this season, do you worry about him jacked at all?
DUSTY BAKER: It's kind of natural for him to be jacked, but, no, I don't worry about Tanner at all. I think that extra day's rest might have helped him. Had it been early in the season, might have been too strong, but this time of the year, you know, if anything, guys are too weak because he's thrown a lot of innings. This is the first time he's ever thrown this many.

No, I'm not worried about Tanner. Not only does Tanner throw sinker, he throws sliders. Tanner is the best that we have today and, you know, he's been our second best behind Scherz.

Q. When you look back at Game 1, did the amount of time outs bother you from the Dodgers? Did it hurt momentum at all for you guys where constantly Kershaw was in some trouble, they would meet on the mound, especially Grandal?
DUSTY BAKER: No, actually, you kind of like when they are meeting on the mound like that. It means there's confusion of some type. I hate it when they are just getting it rocking and firing and then you know that they are on the same page and they are sharp.

You know, so no, it don't bother me when they call time out. You know, what can you do about it, number one. And number two, that shows me that most of the time, your stuff is not together as much as you'd like it to be.

Q. With the rainout, and I know that during the regular season, teams fly East Coast to West Coast without a day off, but in this situation with the post-season, how do you think it will affect your team, if any?
DUSTY BAKER: Oh, I don't know. You don't know until tomorrow. You know, depends on if there's any rain delays today.

You know, we're both at a disadvantage without a day off. At least we're going to the hotel and they are going home, and depends on how far their house is from the airport, depends on, you know, what time they will get to bed.

You know, they are always tough at Dodger Stadium, but I'm just hoping that we play the late game rather than the early game. I would wish that. But, hey, whatever time they say we've got to play, we've got to play, and you've got to put it out of your head on whatever time it is.

Q. Given that you lost the off-day yesterday, now you've got three games in a row, your starters are you going to be your starters versus the Dodgers starters, your guys tend to be higher-pitch count, more workhorse types, Kershaw is coming off injury, Hill has got the blister. Do you feel like the three days in a row will serve your team with respect to the bullpen because you've got starters that are more accustomed to going deeper in games?
DUSTY BAKER: Well, all depends. All depends how far the starters go. Just because they are accustomed to going, doesn't mean that they are necessarily going to go. Hope that they go.

Three days in a row, we're used to three days in a row, actually, because there's no -- I mean, heck, we had 19, 20 in a row, whatever it was. But this time of the year, it's a little inconvenient getting in the hotel and then checking -- to unpack and then checking in and then getting to the ballpark.

Like I said, I hope -- the one advantage is probably for them is if they play the early game versus a later game and let us sleep some. Not much more but a little bit more.

Q. Do you have a set plan for Game 4? Do you expect Ross to start that game?
DUSTY BAKER: Well, you guys have been asking me that every day and I'll give you the same answer I gave you yesterday: It all depends on what happens in these games.

I mean, I'd like to say -- I'd like to give you the starter, but I can't. You know, I mean, we're kind of -- because of injuries, we're kind of upside-down, you know, in our pitching. You know, after Gio, then until we get to game No. 5, we really don't know. Do we go to a combination of guys; do we go with -- Ross is coming off an injury himself. So depends on how far he can go.

Like I said, we're just mixing and matching and trying to piece this thing together, and if I could give you a definitive answer, I'd love to. I'd love to give it to myself.

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