NL DIVISION SERIES: DODGERS VS PHILLIES

October 5, 2025

Blake Snell

Citizens Bank Park

Los Angeles Dodgers

Workout Day Press Conference

Q. When you look at what the Phillies were doing yesterday offensively, obviously different game plans for different starters, but what did you take away from yesterday as you prepare for your outing tomorrow?

BLAKE SNELL: Just watching the lineup, watching aggressiveness on pitches, what they're swinging at, taking -- just learning. Can't give much away, but, yes, just learning.

Q. What did you make of just the atmosphere in that ballpark yesterday? And how do you kind of prepare yourself to pitch in an environment like that?

BLAKE SNELL: I've done it before, but this place is special. The fans show up. They're passionate. They have energy. And, no, I can't wait to pitch here tomorrow.

Getting ready, there's not like really anything you can do to prepare for it. As it's happening, just focus, breathe and enjoy the moment.

Q. With the rotation, I mean sometimes people talk about how confidence can be contagious in a bullpen. When you have as many starting pitchers that have been pitching the way you guys have over the last couple of weeks, does that kind of lift everybody when you're going turn after turn and seeing everybody pitch deep into the games and throwing well?

BLAKE SNELL: Yeah, I mean, we're all pushing for each other, but competing with each other as well and trying to be the best we can be. We know the deeper we go, the better it is for our team and the better chance we have to win. It's a lot of fun to be in this rotation.

Q. I know you don't want to give too much away but is there anything you can pick up from how aggressively you guys were able to pitch against guys like Schwarber and Harper yesterday, the success you guys had as a team against those guys?

BLAKE SNELL: Yeah, the guys did a good job. I don't know, they did a good job. I don't know how to answer that without giving something away.

Q. You often talk about reading swings as being an important part of how you learn from your outings. How is that something that you became good at?

BLAKE SNELL: Just watching baseball, asking questions, learning. Had some really good pitching coaches over the years that have really pushed me and helped me just evolve who I am as a pitcher.

Just always finding ways to get better and to be the best me, I think that's kind of how, just pushed me throughout the year and how I can learn and get better. I just had a lot of good people around me that have taught me a lot.

Then learning from veteran pitchers that I've been around as well, just been very fortunate with the people that I've been around to really learn and help me become the player I am today and the person I'm chasing.

Q. Is that something that throughout your time as a professional you've kind of steadily gotten better at? Or was there a point when you made that more of a focus?

BLAKE SNELL: Yeah, I mean, I feel like I've always had a knack for just the feel of the game at a young age. But as I've gotten older and advanced and facing adversity and failure, it's just those are the things that I've picked up on that have kind of helped me build confidence and gain trust throughout the years to just become better and to be consistent longer.

Q. Just for trivia, seems like when you and (indiscernible) have good friendship. How did you two become good friends, and how is this type of relationship with him?

BLAKE SNELL: With Kim? Jung Hoo Lee and Hyeseong, I've been really close with both of them. When we signed Kim, both of them just said, like, great guy, take care of him, really good person.

And me and Kim started hanging out, talking. He's just been an awesome teammate and an awesome friend. Just I love the way he shows up to work, competes. He wants to be the best. It's fun to talk with him and be around him just because of how much passion and energy he brings every day to the field.

Q. I'm sorry, I'm talking about the soccer player, Son Heung-min (indiscernible). Seems like you and him have a good friendship.

BLAKE SNELL: I thought he said Kim. (Indiscernible), he came up the first pitch and I was already a big fan of his because I used to play FIFA all the time and he was the best player on the game. I was a big fan of him just from that and then watching him play.

We just became really good friends after that. We were talking, and I went to his game and he came back out to the playoff game and we've just been building a friendship. Yeah, we're friends and talking and we'll see where the relationship goes, but we support each other and it's been a really fun friendship.

Q. You've talked about Roki a little bit. After watching his pitching yesterday, what did you see in his pitching?

BLAKE SNELL: I like how much he's confident when he comes out of the pen to close games. He's throwing strikes. He's attacking. He's fearless. It's a different Roki.

The starter Roki was more cautious and a little nervous, from what I could see. And he has such good stuff, but he was just nervous of what the hitter could do.

Now he's going out there, he's more confident in what he can do and that's so much fun to watch. And the team's really behind him and pushing and he's coming out just extremely confident, and it's so much fun to watch him pitch that way.