As the 2017 regular season enters its final days, it’s fun to reflect back on the many great moments and memories this season has brought us. There are the many remarkable record-setting occurrences, such as the Dodgers setting a new Los Angeles home winning record of 57-24 and tying the all-time LA wins record at 102-57 (with three games remaining), and Dodgers rookie phenom Cody Bellinger setting a new franchise record for most home runs by a rookie with his (current) 39 round-trippers. And then there’s Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw recording his seventh 200-strikeout season (in 10 major league seasons) while en route to his (likely) fourth National League Cy Young award.

But as crazy as it may sound, none of these remarkable accomplishments are the single greatest memory of the 2017 regular season for second-year Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, who may very well himself win a second-consecutive NL Manager of the Year title.

So what, then, is Doc’s favorite Dodger Stadium memory of 2017?

“Home memory? There’s been many. But I think if I had to choose one, it’s probably the debut of Kyle Farmer and that walk-off against the Giants,” Roberts said, with an almost fatherly-like grin. “To see Alex (Wood) and how joyful he was, to take the field and get to Kyle and the teammates. I found myself on the field for him and seeing him get his shirt ripped off, and his parents there. That was probably a special one.”

Who saw that one coming?

There have been many incredible memories at Dodger Stadium this season, but Dodgers manager Dave Roberts considers Kyle Farmer’s walk-off double in his first major league at-bat on July 30, 2017 his most memorable.
(Photo credit – Jon SooHoo)

Farmer, a former University of Georgia Bulldog and former roommate of Alex Wood, was selected by the Dodgers in the eighth round of the 2013 MLB First-Year Player Draft. The 6′- 0″ / 214-pound catcher and utility infielder worked his way through the Dodgers minor league system posting a very impressing slash-line of .297 / .349 / .442 for an excellent OPS of .791 over his four and a half minor league seasons – good enough to earn him a call up to the Dodgers on July 27, 2017 and making his MLB debut three days later on July 30 against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium. All Farmer did in his first major league at-bat was line a pinch-hit two-run double into the right field corner in the bottom of the 11th inning to give the Dodgers a dramatic 3-2 walk-off win over the hated Giants.

Farmer worked an 0-2 count into a full count before lining a game-winning two run double into the right field corner in his first MLB at-bat. (Photo credit – Jon SooHoo)

Ironically and entirely coincidentally, I spoke with Kyle Farmer only minutes before Roberts made his favorite-memory comment during his pre-game media scrum on Wednesday afternoon.

“It’s more than I ever expected, the guys in this clubhouse are awesome,” said Farmer, when asked what the experience has been like for him. “There’s not one bad guy on this team. Great team players, they welcome us all with open arms. If you would have told me I’d be in this situation about three months ago when I was in [Double-A] Tulsa, I’d call you a liar.

“This is a great experience for me, and especially being part of this great team, especially with this epic run that we’re going on. The champagne showers were something that I’ll always remember,” Farmer added.

But with only three games remaining in the regular season – all against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field – is there a realistic possibility that Farmer will make the National League Division Series playoff roster, especially with the unbelievable hot streak that current Dodgers back-up catcher Austin Barnes is on that almost necessitates him being in Roberts’ everyday lineup somewhere?

“We’ll see. You never know. I’m not sure what will happen,” said Farmer. “Hopefully I am, but if I’m not, I’ll still be in the right state of mind and pulling for the team to win.

“As long as Barnes keeps doing well, it will open a spot for me because they’re going to want him in the lineup more and more,” Farmer added. “Instead of having three catchers, it will be about him getting more playing time. I mean, his on-base percentage is like .420, so I think that, as long as you can get him in the game more and more in different positions, I think I’m there just to back-up to help them in the opportunity to do that.”

The million dollar question is, does Dave Roberts see it this way?

“It’s a conversation and I think that with our players and the depth that we have, we have some great options,” Roberts said, a few minutes later. “It does help that the way that Austin has played … to understand that he is an asset off the bench if he’s not starting, and to see what Kyle’s got. So we’ve got, certainly, a lot of viable options. It’s going to be some fun debating.”

Although not spoken – at least not in words – it’s impossible not to sense a closeness between Dave Roberts and Kyle Farmer, not in a favoritism sort of way but in a professional and mutual respect sort of way.

What did Farmer have to say about his epic first MLB hit in his first MLB at-bat that would soon become known as Dave Roberts’ favorite 2017 Dodger Stadium memory?

“It’s something I’ve always dreamed of. You know, you play in the backyard, you always pretend you’re going to hit a walk-off base hit to win the game,” said a very humble Kyle Farmer. “I’m just glad my parents were here to witness it because they put in more effort than I have throughout my baseball career. I wouldn’t be here without them. I’m just glad they were able to experience it.”