Josue De Paula says he'll "shut a lot of people up" with his defense

LOS ANGELES — There was no hangover at Uniqlo Field at Dodger Stadium.

Not after clinching the National League West. Not with the champagne still fresh in the Dodgers’ minds. And certainly not with Josue De Paula getting his first real taste of the big stage in Chavez Ravine.

Instead, the Dodgers looked very much like a team preparing for October. And De Paula looked like a player who wants to be part of it.

The 21-year-old came through with the go-ahead RBI double in the sixth inning Friday night, turning a tie game into a Dodgers lead and helping spark what eventually became an 8-2 victory over the Giants.

“It felt amazing,” De Paula said. “To do that for the team, give us the lead. I’m just celebrating with the boys. I just want to see us win.”

That last part might have been the most telling.

De Paula isn't approaching his first week in the major leagues like a player trying to prove he belongs with a franchise full of veterans and established stars. At least publicly, he's approaching it like a kid soaking in every moment.

But his performance is making it increasingly difficult for the Dodgers to ignore what he might bring when the calendar flips to October.

Dave Roberts acknowledged as much after the game.

“He’s certainly doing a lot of things well,” Roberts said when asked about De Paula potentially being part of the Dodgers’ postseason roster mix.

For now, De Paula says he's trying not to look too far ahead.

“Yeah, it’s crossed my mind,” he said of making the postseason roster. “Like I said, I try to focus on the now, right here. I’m enjoying every moment with these veteran players.”

The now, on Friday, was pretty impressive.

De Paula came to the plate in the fifth inning with the Dodgers trailing 2-1 and opened the frame with a single, his first hit at Dodger Stadium.

Mookie Betts followed with a single of his own, and Teoscar Hernández brought De Paula home with an RBI single to tie the game.

One inning later, De Paula was back in the middle of it.

This time, he delivered the biggest swing of the night to that point, lining an RBI double to put the Dodgers ahead.

A player who had spent years dreaming about moments like this had just created one.

“It was awesome,” De Paula said of his first week in the majors. “Like I said, everybody, the manager, all the teammates have been amazing and accepting me.”

There is, however, one part of his game De Paula knows still needs work.

His defense. And he's not shying away from it.

“I know that's a big area and improvement for me,” De Paula said. “I know I got a lot of hate on it. So I'm that type: if I get hate on it, I'm gonna focus on it more. So I'm gonna shut a lot of people up with my defense very soon.”

That confidence is unmistakable.

So is the willingness to accept criticism and use it as motivation.

The Dodgers don't need De Paula to become a finished product overnight. They need to determine whether his offensive impact, approach and overall upside give them enough reason to keep him around as they prepare for a postseason run.

And his teammates are already noticing what he does at the plate.

Betts, who knows something about making an impression in a Dodgers uniform, spoke highly of De Paula's at-bats.

“He's swinging at strikes, taking balls, impacting the ball,” Betts said. “There's no matchup that is really a bad matchup, which is really neat to see someone so young that can handle it…. He's been awesome.”

That might be the most encouraging part of De Paula's arrival.

The results are one thing. The at-bats are another.

He's not simply getting by on raw talent. He's showing an ability to recognize strikes, lay off pitches outside the zone and impact the baseball against major-league pitching.

And on a night when the Dodgers needed a spark, he provided it.

Of course, De Paula wasn't the only Dodger putting on a show.

Betts got the night started with a leadoff home run in the first inning, crushing the second pitch he saw from Giants left-hander Cesar Perdomo, a 93 mph fastball, into the left-field pavilion.

It was the 33rd leadoff home run of Betts' career.

Later, after the Giants briefly took control, Betts came back with another home run in the eighth inning, his second of the night and his 22nd of the season.

That's two more home runs than he hit last season, with eight games remaining.

Max Muncy and Kyle Tucker then went back-to-back, before Will Smith joined the party.

Four Dodgers, Muncy, Tucker, Betts and Smith, homered in the eighth inning.

What began as a competitive game suddenly became a rout. Muncy's home run gave him 29 for the season, while Tucker continued to show signs of heating up at precisely the time the Dodgers want their lineup clicking.

But none of that changes what made Friday night particularly interesting.

The Dodgers already know what Betts, Muncy, Tucker and Smith can do. They are still learning what De Paula can become.

And on his first night in the big-league spotlight at Uniqlo Field at Dodger Stadium, he gave them another reason to keep watching.

Tyler Glasnow did his part, too.

After Betts gave the Dodgers an early 1-0 lead, Glasnow surrendered a solo home run to Jung Hoo Lee in the second inning before Jonah Cox's RBI single put San Francisco ahead in the third.

From there, Glasnow settled down.

He finished with six innings, allowing three hits and two runs while walking two and striking out 10 on 98 pitches, 63 of them for strikes.

The bullpen took it from there, while the Dodgers' offense eventually turned a close game into another comfortable victory.

They are now 94-60 on the season and remain two games behind Milwaukee for the top seed in the National League, while building a four-game cushion over Atlanta for third place.

The division has already been won. The real work is beginning now.

De Paula says he's focused on the present.

The Dodgers, meanwhile, have to be thinking about the future.

Because if Friday was any indication, Josue De Paula isn't simply here to experience the major leagues.

He's here to make it increasingly difficult to send him anywhere else.