Dodgers navigating World Series bye week by ‘sharpening’ their skills

The Dodgers have their bye week after all this October.

Although the club didn’t earn a top-two seed in the National League playoff bracket — meaning they didn’t get a first-round bye in the playoffs like they had the previous three years — its sweep in the NL Championship Series meant they had plenty of time to kill.

By the time the first game of the World Series begins Friday, the team will have had six days off, similar to the break it had at the start of the postseason in each of the last three seasons.

And while the Dodgers haven’t handled such extended layoffs well in 2022 and 2023, getting bounced in their first round of the playoffs thanks to an inconsistent offense, they have dusted off the playbook that worked so well for them early last fall, when they changed up their bye routine en route to a World Series title.

Today, as they did then, the Dodgers are incorporating more simulated game activities into their schedule. On Sunday, they played a seven-inning simulation game. On Monday, they participated in more rounds of live batting practice.

The team also makes a point of spending time together at the ballpark. On Sunday and Monday, players stayed until the end of each practice, as Games 6 and 7 of the American League Championship Series were played on the stadium scoreboard.

But mostly, the Dodgers are simply trying to keep the momentum from their 9-1 start to the postseason and carry it into a World Series in which they will attempt to become MLB’s first repeat champion in a quarter-century.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, center, sits between Tommy Edman and Michael Conforto during a workout at Dodger Stadium on Monday.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

“All we’re trying to do here is get four more wins to win a World Series,” veteran infielder Miguel Rojas said. “Last year when we had a bye, and the year before that, we were trying to get in one more month of baseball. You try to prepare for that. You try to keep some guys healthy.

“I just feel the difference with this one [versus] the one we’ve had the last few years is everyone is determined to win the World Series. We’re really close to doing it. And winning four more games is the most important thing.

Of course, this week’s break comes with some downsides.

This year, the Dodgers didn’t seem to mind playing in the first wild-card round immediately after the regular season, in part because it helped them — and their late-season offense, in particular — maintain the advantage that fueled their 15-5 run at the end of September.

“I think it’s good to rest and let everyone take a deep breath and rest or whatever,” shortstop Mookie Betts said. But, he added, there is value in “playing and staying in a rhythm.”

“We didn’t have that choice,” Betts added, “so we’re just going to enjoy the break and be ready to go.”

Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts speaks with reporters during a workout at Dodger Stadium on Monday.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

This is where the Dodgers are hoping the experience from last October will come into play.

Not only did they get through their bye week at the start of the playoffs, but they also successfully managed four days off between the end of the NLCS and last year’s Fall Classic.

The lesson to be learned from this?

“Rest up and continue to hone your skills,” Betts said. “Get ready for anyone on Friday.”

Scott likely available for World Series

Not only do the Dodgers have few concerns on the injury front, but they might have another option to choose from when figuring out their World Series roster.

After being removed from the NL Division Series roster due to a back abscess that became infected, former closer Tanner Scott said he felt healthy enough to play in the World Series.

“It probably showed up, the first game [of the NLDS]I started to feel something,” Scott said. “And then the day off [between Games 2 and 3 of that series]I noticed something was seriously wrong. By the time we got back from Philly, it was like, “Hey, we need to take care of this.” »

Now that that’s the case, the question will be whether Scott will be added to the Dodgers roster again after posting a 4.74 ERA in the regular season.

“I feel a lot better now,” said Scott, who didn’t make the playoffs before having an abscess incision Oct. 8. “I’ve been throwing, I’ve thrown a few relievers, see where that takes me.”

“[The abscess was] bad timing, but healthy now, so keep going. That’s about it.

By the time the World Series begins, it will have been almost a month since Scott’s last pitch. However, he said he wasn’t concerned about how such a long break would affect his business, and joked that he was looking forward to facing Freddie Freeman in a live fight this week.

“He’s so good and it’s so hard to get him out,” Scott said. “He lets me know that the last time he faced me, he hit me. But the time before that, I struck him out. So I always talk about it.”