Shoutbox. » Friedman appealing to the Dodgers

Are there any relievers who are unavailable?
Rays: The Rays enjoyed two days off before the start of the World Series, so the bullpen should be in good shape heading into Game 1.
Dodgers: Treinen pitched in three consecutive games in high leverage, so he might need more than just the off-day to bounce back. May threw only 18 pitches in Game 7, but his wildness is sure to give management pause. Gonsolin was equally ineffective and threw 41 pitches on Sunday, so he's probably down for Game 1A long World Series drought is about to end
Any injuries of note? Rays: Kiermaier is still battling a sore right hand, but the center fielder played in Saturday's Game 7. He should be full-go in the World Series.
Dodgers: While celebrating his home run, Bellinger's troublesome right shoulder popped out while performing a forearm smash with Kiké Hernández. But he finished the game and has played with the same injury before.
Who is hot and who is not?
Rays: Arozarena is having one of the best playoff runs in Major League history. The 25-year-old rookie has seven home runs, the most by any rookie in a single postseason, and is just one hit away from tying Derek Jeter's rookie record (22).
While Arozarena is red hot at the plate, the Rays are still waiting for Austin Meadows and Lowe -- All-Stars in 2019 -- to get going offensively. Meadows is 4-for-35 with two home runs, while Lowe is 6-for-52 with one homer in the postseason. Dodgers: Seager won the NLCS MVP despite going 0-for-5 in the clincher because he was unstoppable the other six games (five home runs, 11 RBIs). Hernández, who had two game-tying homers against the Braves, is one of those players who rises to the occasion of the postseason. Smith repeatedly delivered big hits in the NLCS, and Betts was game-changing with his glove. Anything else fans want to know?
Rays: The Rays were the ninth team in Major League history to play a winner-take-all game in the Division Series and League Championship Series, but only the third team to win both, joining the 2012 Giants and 1981 Dodgers. Both the Giants and Dodgers won the World Series in those seasons. Dodgers: The Dodgers are in the World Series for the third time in the past four years. They have won 21 pennants, most of any NL club and second-most all-time to only the Yankees (40). A conventional schedule, with scheduled off-days, returns for the World Series. But don't expect conventional pitching strategy from the Dodgers to follow.
“I don't know what conventional is,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said on Monday after announcing that Clayton Kershaw would start Game 1 on Tuesday and Walker Buehler would start Game 3 on Friday.
World Series Game 1: Tues., 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on FOX
“Beyond Game 1, it's easy to see Walker starting Game 3. Then outside of that, it'll be kind of hard to figure out. We've got to still think through Game 2 and how that kind of unfolds, and that should kind of bleed into Game 4, as well.” Roberts explained that everything else is undecided. Even with Kershaw and Buehler also lined up for Games 5 and 7, the undecided includes how Games 2, 4 and 6 would be navigated; what roles will be given to swingmen Julio Urías, Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin; and how late-inning leverage situations would be distributed now that closer Kenley Jansen has returned to form.
With seven games in seven days for the National League Championship Series, Roberts started Buehler twice and Kershaw only once because of the latter's back spasms. Gonsolin started Game 2, Urías Game 3 and May Games 5 and 7 as an opener.
“Considering who's rested leading up to Game 2, we have guys that are starters, but you still have to have guys rested and in the right spots for Game 2 with the days off,” said Roberts.
On Sunday, May and Gonsolin pitched one and two-plus innings, respectively; Blake Treinen pitched for the third consecutive day; and Brusdar Graterol pitched one inning before Urías pitched the final three-innings to earn the win.
“Even with the off-day today coming into Game 1, we're still kind of been taxed, as far as usage in the 'pen,” Roberts said. “For Clayton to start and go deep would certainly help the usage get realigned.” Urías has proved to be the most versatile and reliable pitcher Roberts has, but having thrown three innings Sunday eliminates him as a true starter for Game 2 and could result in a bullpen game that night, like in Game 7 on Sunday.
“Having options to cover that game is big, because we don't have somebody that's fully rested that can give you 90 to 100 pitches for Game 2,” said Roberts. “So, you have to be creative. Having Julio to have done both roles and thrived certainly makes us feel a little bit better.”
Based on the NLCS, the Dodgers are feeling better about Jansen having worked through mechanical issues. After Game 7, however, they no doubt have concerns about rookies May and Gonsolin, who pitched like rookies and combined for only nine outs when management was hoping for double that.
World Series Game 1 FAQ | Position-by-position analysis
Treinen proved to be a bullpen workhorse in high-leverage innings, getting more work than Graterol, Joe Kelly or Pedro Báez.
Although Jansen was used to pitch the ninth inning in Games 5 and 6, both times he was facing the bottom of the Atlanta batting order. While it wasn't specifically addressed, matchups might have been a deciding factor.
A different opponent and different part of the batting order could result in a different pitcher in the ninth inning this week. Roberts has said there are no set roles by inning. Six years and six days before Game 1 of the 2020 World Series, Andrew Friedman left his longtime post running the Tampa Bay Rays' front office to become the Los Angeles Dodgers' president of baseball operations.
World Series Game 1: 8 p.m. ET on FOX
He departed with a promise disguised as friendly banter, one that will be fulfilled when his current team lines up against his former club on Tuesday night in Game 1 of the World Series at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
“We joked when I left the team that we were going to meet up in the World Series one day,” Friedman said, “and for it actually to happen is surreal.”After taking over as Tampa Bay's general manager in 2005, Friedman guided the Rays to their first World Series appearance in ‘08. The club continued to thrive in the American League East, reaching the postseason in ‘10, '11 and '13 as Friedman and his staff outmaneuvered higher-spending competition with shrewd moves, innovative tactics and a cohesive culture from owner Stuart Sternberg down to the clubhouse.
That small-market success made Friedman appealing to the Dodgers, who could complement his savvy with financial might. On Oct. 14, 2014, Friedman officially left Tampa Bay for Los Angeles. Consider the impact of that decision, which is still resonating in the baseball industry.
The Dodgers have enjoyed sustainable success under Friedman, winning six straight National League West titles while reaching the World Series three times.
Friedman's departure from the Rays triggered a little-known contract clause that allowed then-manager Joe Maddon to opt out of his deal with the Rays. Maddon then signed with the Cubs and led them to a World Series championship in 2016.
Without the architect of their roster, the Rays promoted Erik Neander (now their general manager) and Chaim Bloom (now running the Red Sox's baseball operations department) to more prominent roles in the front office. (James Click, now the Astros' GM, was further elevated when Bloom left for Boston.)
Without the well-known leader in their clubhouse, team president Matt Silverman began a managerial search that led the Rays to Kevin Cash, who owns a higher winning percentage (.522) in Tampa Bay than even Maddon (.517).