Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts addressed the media ahead of the series finale between the Dodgers and the New York Mets at Dodger Stadium on Thursday. Heading into the series finale, the Mets led 2-1 in the four-game series against the defending champions. The visitors took games 1 and 3, while the home team won game 2 to keep them in contention of ending the series in a draw.
Los Angeles Dodgers Manager Reflected on Hyeseong Kim and Tommy Edman’s Health Updates
In the pregame interview, Roberts started by announcing that Freddie Freeman was given an off day and dropped from the starting lineup for the series finale against the Mets. He then addressed health updates regarding two positional players, Hyeseong Kim and Tommy Edman, who in recent days had suffered slight discomfort in their legs.
Furthermore, he also stated that the team would be sending home two other positional players in the face of James Outman and Esteury Ruiz, who were added to the 40-man roster to increase positional depth when Edman, Kim, and some other players were on the IL. But now most of the Dodgers’ active players are all healthy.
In the interview, he said, “Uh, James is here. Hyeseong fouled that ball off his foot the other day. So, we were just kind of just wanting to bring James and then Esteury here, with obviously Tommy kind of in flux a little bit too. So, we brought both guys, and it looks like we’re out of the clear with those two active guys. So, we’ll send those other two guys home later.”
Edman started the series finale at second base on Thursday, while Kim was on the bench as a probable utility player/pinch hitter.
The Dodgers Bounced Back on Thursday to Win the Series Finale Against the Mets
The Mets were bearing down on the defending champions as they attempted to win a second series against them this campaign. This was a fitting series finale in the 2024 NLCS rerun, as the Mets led the Dodgers for most of the contest until the World Champions, 5-3 down, scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to take a 6-5 lead in the game.
The Dodgers catcher drove in two important runs as Mookie Betts, Michael Conforto, and Teoscar Hernandez drove in a run each. The relief pitchers had their task cut out after starter Landon Knack gave up four runs and was taken out of the game after 3.1 IP. Jack Dreyer, Jose Urena, Alex Vesia, and Tanner Scott pitched well to seal the win for LA.
The Dodgers are now 38-25 for the season, sitting atop the NL West standings, and have a two-game buffer against the second-place San Diego Padres. The defending world champions will now be kicking off a three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium, starting Friday.