SHILDT SAYS: Discussing Musgrove, Tatis, Cronenworth, Hoeing and home-field advantage in the postseason | by FriarWire | September 2024

Before Thursday night's rubber game at Dodger Stadium, Padres manager Mike Shildt discussed a number of topics, including Joe Musgrove and the importance of home-field advantage in the postseason:

“It’s important to keep the home advantage,” said Schildt. “But at the moment we are still focused on this area. So we're going to play tonight and be ready to compete, finish the game and go from there. We will go as far as we can while we can.

“As far as being able to play in this environment in front of our wonderful fans. Absolutely, we want it all. Obviously it's part of it. If we achieve our team goals, we will succeed.”

To Thursday’s starter Musgrove: “Joe is a talented guy, but he’s also a very prepared guy. His ability to learn the game and prepare for it is very high. He was paying attention. He knows the Dodgers anyway. He’s done his work and is ready to rock.”

Shildt on Fernando Tatis Jr.'s success at Dodger Stadium: “In general, I know that and it doesn't just affect Tatis. He obviously feels comfortable here. But if you talk to players over the years and have a hand in managing them… there are people when you talk to them who like the background of a place, the batter's box of a place. It just depends on a few variables. Tatis definitely seems to enjoy playing here.”

Shildt on Jake Cronenworth: “Jake is just a winning player. You can put Jake Cronenworth anywhere. He will make plays. If you put him in that environment, he's going to make plays. And he likes playing here too.”

Shildt on substitute Bryan Hoeing: “Hoeing was fantastic. He was a big part of what we did. He's an unknown guy, but he's a big part of it. He's a guy that comes in and gets you out of one inning and then grabs you the next inning. He gets lefties out. He is a very versatile guy in many areas. He often lets the ball land on the ground. He’s just a valuable guy.”

Shildt on length out of the bullpen in the postseason: “You don’t want to use a lot of length in the postseason. It's good to have guys who can win multiple innings… who are efficient and get outs. They matter regardless of the circumstances.”