Roberts' winery unscathed amidst wildfire

Wood unfazed by speculation of potential bullpen use

October 10th, 2017
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts owns a winery in Northern California with former Major League infielder Rich Aurilia. (AP)

PHOENIX -- Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the Red Stitch Winery he co-owns escaped unscathed from Monday's Wine Country wildfire in Northern California.
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"We got lucky. Very lucky," Roberts said of the fire that has claimed at least 10 lives, destroyed more than 1,500 structures and burned numerous wineries.
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Roberts, former big league teammate Rich Aurilia, John Micek and their wives started the label a decade ago and have been producing Napa-sourced Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec wines under the name Red Stitch, a tribute to the baseball careers that made the enterprise possible.
"I tried to reach out to our winemaker and he said everything was fine," said Roberts. "But I've heard one of my best friends lost his house in Santa Rosa. It's really bad. I didn't realize there were 50-mph winds. Ten deaths. Horrible."
Wood comfortable as starter
Alex Wood seemed slightly amused when asked when he was told he would start in the postseason, considering all the speculation that he could be used out of the bullpen. Now that the Dodgers have advanced to the National League Championship Series presented by Camping World after a 3-1 win on Monday night at Chase Field, it's unclear when or how Wood will be called upon.
"I've always been the type of person that whatever is best for our team. Everybody has one goal in mind, and that's to win the World Series," said Wood, who would have started a potential Game 4 of the NL Division Series presented by T-Mobile. 
While Wood acknowledged he understood why he started the season in the bullpen, the southpaw has always felt he is best suited for the rotation.
"Yeah, I understood it, just because the point we were at at the beginning of the year, I was the only one that had been in the 'pen before when I first came up," the All-Star left-hander said. "So I had the experience and I had done well. So I got it. Did I agree with it or think that was the way we should have gone? Candidly, no. But it's just about playing well and taking advantage of your opportunities, and it worked out pretty good."
Said Roberts: "Our challenge to [Wood] was to go out there and pitch well, and he answered that challenge. So there was nothing that he needed to follow up on. I'm glad he made us eat our words."