NL DIVISION SERIES: PADRES VS DODGERS

October 5, 2024

Will Smith

Dodger Stadium

Los Angeles Dodgers

Pregame 1 Press Conference

Q. Just with Yoshinobu today, often when it comes to kind of just his preparation for this outing, people are going back to that Yankee Stadium performance. When you think about just kind of what you've seen from him coming off the IL, that outing in New York as well, what do you think just kind of stands out to you about Yoshinobu and what you expect from him this evening?

WILL SMITH: Yeah, Yosh, he prepares. He knows what he needs to do. I expect him to come in with his good stuff today. He always seems like he does when he needs it.

I expect his fastball to be there, good curveball, the splitter, slider, cutter sinker. It's a full mix. We'll come up with a game plan. And I expect him to come out and execute it.

Q. Without giving anything away, when you think of about the times you've faced the Padres what have you learned from their at-bats and just kind of how you're looking to plan to attack them?

WILL SMITH: Yeah, they're a good team. They're a good lineup, all of them. They're all good hitters. They've got a lot of guys that can drive the ball in the gaps. They move the ball well. They don't strike out a ton.

Yeah, we've just got to manage it, go out there and execute our game plan.

Q. Dave mentioned last week you're one of the guys that helped organize the watch parties this week. What has this week been like? And why was something like that so important for you guys as a group to do as a week?

WILL SMITH: It was a good week. We got a lot of good work in. Spent a lot of time with each other. I think just talking with some of the other guys, the leaders, it was, how can we stay in a rhythm.

It's hard to come out of a rhythm in baseball. We're playing every day and all of a sudden we get a week off. How can we stay in rhythm? Be at the field for a decent amount of time like we do in the season. Yeah, we feel prepared. We're ready to go.

Q. Does it feel like there's a heightened intensity level around the group coming out of that kind of experience this week going into this postseason that you guys have had?

WILL SMITH: Maybe. I mean, I feel like every year we've been prepared. It hasn't gone our way the last couple of years. But we were just as prepared as we are this year. We've just gotta go out there and execute.

Q. How different was that with those watch parties and just kind of the way you handled that from the last couple of years?

WILL SMITH: We just got together, ate and watched the game. We didn't do that the last couple of years. I guess it's maybe a story. But we're just preparing to play the series.

Q. Those last kind of ten-ish days of the season for you, did you feel something click offensively?

WILL SMITH: Yes and no. Better at-bats. I felt like I'm in a pretty good place the last few weeks. Just trying to carry the momentum.

Q. What kind of sentiments do you have when Doc comes in here and says Clayton's not going to be able to pitch this postseason? And with that and being under contract what he's going to do in the future is really up in the air?

WILL SMITH: He's been one of the best pitchers in the game, a no doubt a Hall of Famer, and Dodger his whole career, a teammate of mine for the last five, six years.

It stinks he's not going to be able to pitch for us. I know it stinks for us the team but also him personally. Yeah, so he'll be here every day I know cheering us on, being in the clubhouse, helping us out whatever way he can.

Q. With Shohei at DH, you didn't have the outlet you had in previous years to sort of get a pseudo rest day or whatever but you caught more games this year than you ever had. Is there anything you did different physically to sort of prepare for that and how you think you've handled that this year?

WILL SMITH: I feel like I've handled it pretty well. I don't feel fatigued at all. I feel ready to go, just finding a good routine you can maintain throughout the whole year, that's what I did. My body feels good; ready to go.