Most fans don’t care if players talk to the media. I would argue that players benefit when they engage, showing their personalities, giving their takes on events. But I can’t argue that speaking to reporters in any way benefits their performance.
It can have a secondary effect, though.
When a player declines to talk, he leaves his teammates to answer for him, at times creating an uncomfortable dynamic. Players can grow resentful if they perceive a teammate is not accountable, and the clubhouse chemistry can suffer, no small thing in a season that lasts six months.
Don’t take my word for it. Listen to what Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Friday when asked if he is concerned some of his players might be upset if Shohei Ohtani speaks to the media only occasionally, as he did with the Angels.
“Yeah,” Roberts said. “Speaking frankly, yeah.”
Roberts then recalled playing for the Giants in 2007 when Barry Bonds was chasing Hank Aaron’s all-time home-run record. Bonds was not the type to stand at his locker and wax poetic on his chase for 755. Roberts was one of the players who would talk when Bonds and other Giants refused.
“I’m not trying to compare the two, but in the sense of the magnitude of (Bonds) going for his home run record, dealing with the buildup … I was that player, a teammate, that had to answer a lot of questions. Because other teammates didn’t care to,” Roberts said.
“I think we’re all aware. The newness, what a special ballplayer Shohei is and obviously we’ve got (Yoshinobu) Yamamoto and people are curious about Yoshi as well. So that’s part of it and the bottom line is he makes us a considerably better ballclub. But I think, yeah, a conversation is going to be had.”
Judging by their reactions at DodgersFest, the team’s fan event, players such as Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman are genuinely excited to play with Ohtani, and fully prepared for the circus atmosphere surrounding him. That excitement is not likely to wane if Ohtani and the team are playing well, a likely scenario.
During his time with the Angels, Ohtani generally only spoke to the media after his pitching outings and certain breakout offensive performances. He already has spoken three times as a Dodger: when the team introduced him on Dec. 14, at DodgersFest last Saturday and before the team’s first day of workouts for pitchers and catchers on Friday. The Dodgers have not yet said how often he will talk during the season, and might not even determine such a thing in advance.
Considering Ohtani’s intense pregame preparation and workload as a two-way player, it was unrealistic to expect him to provide daily media updates during his time with the Angels. His schedule this season also will be hectic, albeit in a different way, as he rehabilitates from elbow surgery while serving as the Dodgers’ everyday designated hitter.
He is unique. The players seem to recognize as much. And Roberts had an interesting answer when asked which player in his clubhouse he would nominate for the “Dave Roberts role” on days Ohtani is not talking.
“Put the questions towards Jason Heyward,” Roberts said, smiling. “I think Jason is going to be my first person. So the Japanese media, just go to Jason Heyward.”
Heyward is already at camp, but the Dodgers did not re-open their clubhouse to the media after Friday’s workout, leaving him unavailable to comment immediately on his new “assignment.”
He is forewarned: On Saturday, he could draw a crowd.
Explaining the decision on Eppler
Why did commissioner Rob Manfred punish former Mets general manager Billy Eppler for improper injured-list placements when it’s believed that virtually every team has committed similar infractions?
Simple answer: The commissioner wanted to set an example, and Eppler made for an easy target.
Manfred did not anger any owner by placing Eppler on the ineligible list through the end of the 2024 World Series. Eppler, already…
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