Dave Roberts: Tarik Skubal ‘Built Differently’

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has slowly gained a better understanding of Tarik Skubal as their time together now crosses three weeks.

The 29-year-old has two postseason campaigns under his belt, both coming in the past two years. However, the two-time American League Cy Young winner has yet to advance past the Division Series in both years.

Roberts believes Skubal is looking to make the most of his opportunity with the Dodgers and is on a mission to win the World Series this season.

“This guy, he’s as different as anyone I’ve ever been around in this short period of time,” Roberts began. “He’s special in every way. Yeah, he’s on a mission too. Very excited to get to know him more and be around him, watch him compete, see what makes him tick. But you drop a pitcher, a teammate, he’s it. It’s special.”

The reigning back-to-back World Series champions certainly give the left-hander his best chance to date of winning his first title. Skubal’s 2.04 postseason ERA pairs well with the other stars in the Dodgers rotation, making for a fearsome challenge for opposing lineups over the course of a playoff series.

Roberts poured heaps of praise on the newest addition to the Dodgers when asked for what exactly makes Skubal “different.”

“He’s built differently,” Roberts expanded. “The mind, the body, the focus, the humility, the teammate, the willingness to serve, to help. He puts himself out there. He’s different than any player I’ve ever been around, really. And this is again, it’s a small sample but I’ve dug on him, I got a pretty good gut, this guy is something like I’ve never seen.”

Roberts’ comments of course carry further weight considering he is now in a third season with Shohei Ohtani, who arguably is the most talented player in MLB history.

The excitement surrounding Skubal’s arrival in L.A. has extended beyond just the manager and the players, as SportsNet LA’s ratings experienced a spike for the left-hander’s Dodgers debut against the Chicago Cubs.

Tarik Skubal frustrated

Skubal has made three starts for the Dodgers thus far and believes he’s fallen short of a high standard. He demonstrated some frustration while grinding through an outing against the Milwaukee Brewers and explained it had to do with not meeting his own standards.

“I’ve just got to be more consistent,” Skubal said. “Continue to get quality contact on the ground, and sometimes you need a little bit of luck. You need some guys to hit it at some guys, and get some outs that.

“The stuff coming out of my hand is as good as it’s ever been. And honestly, my execution today was pretty good too. I need to go back and watch some stuff, but from what I feel from an early thought process, I thought stuff coming out of my hand was good and execution was pretty good.

“There’s always room for improvement in that sense, but in the same breath, you can’t beat yourself up too much. I’m not going to be perfect out there, but I need to need to be more efficient. That’s the standard that I hold myself to, is pitching deeper in ballgames and giving our team a chance to win every time out.”