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NL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: DODGERS VS BREWERS

October 17, 2018

Dave Roberts

Los Angeles, California - postgame 5

Los Angeles - 5, Milwaukee - 2

Q. Were you guys prepared for what Counsell did with Miley or did it come as a surprise?
DAVE ROBERTS: Well, obviously our lineup today was different than the other lineup when we faced Miley. So you've got to prepare for the unexpected. So I like where we were at.

Q. So you weren't surprised when he came out of the game immediately?
DAVE ROBERTS: Again, you just -- we've got to be -- you never know. It was very unconventional, but we were prepared for anything.

Q. Taylor's hustle, Machado's hit by pitch, Kershaw's walk, how big were the little things in the game offensively?
DAVE ROBERTS: The little things played a big part today. You can go down a list of ten things, probably; the baserunner, the stolen base, the walk, the base hit the other way, the fight with Dozier to put the ball in play. There's so many good things that we did today. And helped us win a baseball game.

Clayton was outstanding today. Mixed his pitches really well. He was stressed there in the third inning where he was up to 30 pitches and big punch on Aguilar, and settled in and gave us that length that we needed. And so we kind of fed off that.

But the hustle by CT, the stolen base and that at-bat by Austin right there, tough matchup for him. Woodruff is one of the best in the National League, great arm. And for Austin to hit a ball hard through the middle and tie the game up was big for us.

Q. On that Austin at-bat, it looked like during it and right before the single you were talking to Clayton, explaining the situation. How significant given the fact that it enabled you to get two more innings out of him?
DAVE ROBERTS: It was huge. When you're talking about a seven-game series, there's usage with the relievers that's involved. And so at that point in time if Austin doesn't get a hit, I've got a decision to make. And whether you hit for him right there and try to log four innings of pen use, or let the pitcher hit. And so I let Austin hit. I was kind of talking through the situation. But once he got the base hit it was moot.

Q. You hadn't decided either way?
DAVE ROBERTS: No, I was going to send him back out there. I was going to send Clayton back out there to hit if he didn't get a hit.

Q. Yesterday you described the catcher position as game to game. Has Austin earned a little bit longer leash considering the way the last two games have gone?
DAVE ROBERTS: He's doing a great job. His rapport with the pitchers, as is Yasmani's, is very good. The fingers are good. The receiving good. And bat quality, this is what we've seen from him in years past. And at times this year not so much as much as we would have liked or he would have liked.

But his ability to stay in the strike zone, the quality at-bat. He punched three times today, but I thought all of his at-bats were quality. So he's making our decision a lot tougher, which is a good thing.

Q. The way that you guys went up the middle, went the other way at crucial times and especially in this game, is that something that's kind of evolved from the beginning of the series when you see the quality of pitching that they had?
DAVE ROBERTS: It has. Our hitting coaches do such a great job of trying to ingrain in our guys and make it land as far as shortening up and taking what they give you. And for it to play out like that and Cody, especially, to shorten up on the bat. Those are big hits. Even Yasiel not coming off the ball and staying through the middle. J.T., Austin, Muncy, to stay on that ball away and give us a lead. Those are big things.

So it's always a process. You're always trying to get better. But for us to see that and for those guys to get rewarded I think is encouraging.

Q. Kind of following up on that, you didn't hit any home runs in these three games, no extra base hits yesterday. Was that part of the conscious plan today, the hitters doing all those things?
DAVE ROBERTS: Well, it was more of -- yeah, it was. You look at last night and I don't think that we were, with Guerra, I think we could have been better and made him look a lot more. And today Cody starts off and they make the switch and Woodruff had good stuff.

But I think once we saw him the second time I thought our bats were better and just trying to get him in the strike zone and not taking those big swings. I don't know how many times we struck out tonight but I felt that the intent -- and that's something our guys have talked about a lot lately and when you're facing good pitching, you've got to give a little something. If it's slug to keep the line moving or to spoil a pitch, that's not always a bad thing.

Q. In terms of Clayton Game 1 versus Clayton Game 5, what was the biggest difference? And how was he able to find the put-away pitches that weren't there early in the series?
DAVE ROBERTS: I think there was execution. I think he sequenced much better today. He had his arm-side fastball and I think the slider from what I saw with the swings had the depth that we like. And so with any pitcher it comes down to execution, but you could see the same look that you always see, there's a determination and when you get a champion like him that gets hit around a little bit, he's going to respond and that's what he did today.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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