Max Muncy reveals how the Dodgers used the 5-day break differently this year

When Major League Baseball changed the postseason format to reward teams that finished the regular season with the best two records in their respective leagues, there weren't supposed to be surprises every year.

After being eliminated from the National League Division Series the last two years, the Los Angeles Dodgers have finally solved the secret of the five-day break.

Instead of coming to the ballpark for practice for two or three hours a day, the Dodgers put in a full eight-hour workday and spend as much time together as possible.

“This is one of the tightest groups I've ever been a part of,” third baseman Max Muncy said after the NLCS. “For the last two years we had five days off and didn't know how to deal with it. When we came to this, we tried several things. They let the fans into the stadium for a simulation game and tried to make it a real situation, and this year as players we went to the front office and said, “Hey, this is what we're doing.”

“We told them what we wanted to do. Everyone worries about the five days off and we treated it as a reward because it is a reward.”

The Dodgers brought “incredible catering,” pool tables, ping-pong tables and Pop-a-Shots.

“We had a really good time,” Muncy added. “We were here as a group for eight hours a day.”

The hours spent together paid off as the Dodgers defeated the Padres in five games in the NLDS and then the Mets in six games to advance to the World Series.

In Game 6 on Sunday, the Dodgers opted for a bullpen game due to a lack of rotation depth, which is typically required for a long postseason push. First baseman Freddie Freeman was also missing from the starting lineup as the team opted to rest him during a 1:15 slump caused by an ankle injury that affected both his swing and defensive range.

The team lined up rookie Andy Pages in center while veterans Kiké Hernández and Chris Taylor, both of whom batted under .230 in the regular season, manned the infield. Behind the plate was a struggling Will Smith. At a crucial moment early in the game, they even brought in rookie pitcher Ben Casparius, who had only three appearances in the regular season.

“It clearly shows that there is no one way to get things done,” said manager Dave Roberts. “And we kind of put it together.”

Photo credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

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