At the beginning of the season, Dodgers fans were prepared for Miguel Rojas’s swan song as a big league player. That was the case until he stated that he would have one more go-around if the Dodgers won a third consecutive championship.
There is still much to be discussed between Rojas and his family, as the infielder spoke with David Vassegh of AM 570 ahead of Tuesday’s win over the San Diego Padres about the certainty— or, lack thereof— of his decision to announce his retirement after this year.
“This is my last year— that is something that I said last year,” Rojas told Vassegh. “There’s one possibility, and it’s winning another championship. I’m going to have to sit down with my wife and see what is out there for me, especially with this organization, because I would not want to play for any other team that is not the Dodgers at this point of my life and my career.”
Mookie Betts had Angels outfielder Jo Adell as the most recent guest on the On Base with Mookie Betts podcast, where the two of them discussed how both their teams have or had managed Shohei Ohtani, with both downplaying why Ohtani might be struggling on either side just because he is simply that talented.
Per Betts: “If he doesn’t get a hit or he has a couple bad games, it’s like, ‘What’s wrong with Shohei?’ I mean he did just go seven inning, two hits, he does have a 0.7 ERA. You forget all the other ways he really affects the game.”
Per Adell: “His tenacity and focus when it comes to getting it done, he’s just a force.”
Newly acquired Dodgers left-hander Eric Lauer was activated on Tuesday and is slated to make his Dodger debut in the starting rotation next week. Along with joining the team that beat his Blue Jays in the World Series last year, Lauer will be reuniting with pitching coach Mark Prior. Their previous relationship within the Padres’ farm system has Lauer hopeful that they both can get the left-hander back to form, per Sonja Chen of MLB.com.
“He was pretty spot-on as far as what I was thinking, what I was feeling and what I’m looking to do. What I think can get me back to where I was and just being the best version of myself,” Lauer said. “He’s very open to what I think, too, and that’s the nice thing. It’s conversation. It’s not just, ‘Hey, do this.’ It’s not a drill sergeant or anything. It’s very based on how I feel and what I want and what I think.”
