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MLB WORLD SERIES: ASTROS VS DODGERS

October 28, 2017

Dave Roberts

Houston, Texas - pregame 4

Q. Get this out of the way first: Your thoughts on the suspension of Gurriel, did you think it was an appropriate punishment?
DAVE ROBERTS: I'm happy that the Commissioner of Major League Baseball dealt with it very swiftly. I think that it gives us all some closure in the sense that it was something that happened. The way that it was dealt with I support. The way that Yu responded, I think on camera, through social media, I completely commend him, support him, echo his thoughts that we need to learn from this. It's obviously not acceptable. But, again, just echoing what Yu said.

And for us, speaking for the players, the coaches, the Dodgers, just really trying to get back to focusing on baseball. Two very good ballclubs, two great organizations. And to take the focus off the players at this point, I think the focus should be on the games.

Q. When the team went through its slump in the second half of the season, is there anything that you learned from that that will help you now?
DAVE ROBERTS: I think, yes, learned that, obviously, we can come out the other side during that stretch we went through. But I think even on this micro level, we have a great ability to refocus. And the last two games we've come short. But today, again, we're refocused and ready to win a baseball game. I think we're prepare, our mind's right, and the confidence is still there. We know we're a good ballclub, and we've got to go out there and prove it, so, yeah.

Q. You mentioned last night Kenta Maeda is not available tonight. How about the shape of the rest or your bullpen? I know Brandon Morrow has pitched a lot.
DAVE ROBERTS: Brandon is fine. I talked to him. That's why I didn't want to extend him too much last night, to be able to have him available tonight. Both Tonys, the Watson and Cingrani, combo, everyone is fine. Kenley obviously hasn't pitched in two days. I think we're in good shape. Stripling we can run back out there. So you look at the eight guys we have in the pen, we have one guy that's down. Obviously it starts with a good start from Alex Wood, which we expect, and we'll go from there.

Q. A quick follow-up, if Alex gets in trouble early, who would be your long man?
DAVE ROBERTS: I think it's more of if that were to happen, where they're at in the order and figuring out how we can sort of limit damage, and then kind of patch together a way to get 27 outs, or obviously on the road it's 24 outs.

So just kind of seeing where we go from there. I don't really have it preset. I don't expect that to happen, but if it does happen, I'm sure we'll be prepared, yeah.

Q. The team all season has been consistency of approach from at-bat to at-bat, pitch to pitch, and your guys often are willing to pass the baton. Two things related to that: Have you seen any sign in the last couple of games of guys getting away from that? Two, does that trait benefit you now that you're needing to get out of a little bit of a hole?
DAVE ROBERTS: Two games? No. I think the result is that we've lost two in a row. But I think that that sort of comes into play last game, Game 3. We had a chance, I think, that we had McCullers on the rope in the third inning and we were stressing him. And we did take the walks to get on base. But there were other spots that you look at that inning and beyond, I think or beyond that inning, I think there were some times that we did get out of the strike zone and didn't win pitches that could have changed the counts or essentially the game.

But that's going to happen when pitchers make good pitches. But, yeah, when we are at our best, we do stay within the strike zone. But if you look at the Keuchel start and the Verlander start, I thought we did a great job offensively with our approach.

Q. You mentioned last night about Bellinger and the fact that he needs to slow down a little bit, how much have you guys talked to him before the game about reinforcing that?
DAVE ROBERTS: They talked to him. They've got a plan together and part of it is having a plan and also executing it. So there's a plan in place. And I talked to Cody a little bit and saw the boyish smile, didn't want to get too deep in things, because he's a few games removed from the CS, which he swung the bat very well. So to put so much weight into a couple of games of not swinging the bat well I think is unfair.

He still brings it defensively. Again, things are obviously more magnified here in this small sample. But I still like him in the batter's box.

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