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AL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: BLUE JAYS VS INDIANS

October 13, 2016

Corey Kluber

Cleveland, Ohio - Workout day

Q. Francona had said after Game 2 that pushing off the leg was the slightest issue for you affecting the velocity just a little bit. Your thoughts on how big of an issue that was, if at all for you?
COREY KLUBER: It was just a sleeve that we were trying -- I don't want to say trying out, because we tried it before -- that I was wearing, and it just kind of irritated things a little bit so I took it off. I was fine after that. Whether that had an effect on my velocity, I'm not sure. But if I can go out there and give the team seven innings, I'm not really concerned with how hard I'm throwing.

Q. Did the way you pitched and the way you felt in that outing just kind of assure you that you were over the quad issue, that going forward it's not going to be a problem?
COREY KLUBER: I think I was assured of that beforehand. We had a chance to throw a couple of bullpens before that start, in between my last one. I was pretty confident that it wasn't going to be a problem just because I was able to get after it in that second bullpen pretty well. And I didn't feel anything. It was more precautionary than anything, we weren't trying to protect against anything major.

Q. Obviously Blue Jays, a talented offensive team. What are some of the challenges you face, facing a team that sees a lot of pitches but certainly has no problem walking or hitting the ball out of the ballpark, being aggressive, anything they need to do?
COREY KLUBER: They're a solid lineup, one through nine. It's not just two, three, four guys that can hurt you. Everybody in that lineup can hurt you. They have a lot of power, but they're also patient. You have to go out there and execute pitches. There's not really a magic formula. Just like what we asked about with Boston, it's not a magic formula, they're just a really good offense. We all have our work cut out for us.

Q. The fact that you guys are going to go with potentially a bullpen game in Game 4, you guys went through that scenario a few times in September with Clevinger and other guys. Given that you've already weathered a couple of games like that, how much do you think that experience can help going into that game?
COREY KLUBER: Yeah, I think that with every playoff game there's that sense of urgency. If the starter is not getting the job done, it has the potential to turn into a bullpen game, anyways. It's not really that big of an issue for us. Like you said, we've done it a couple of times. Tito knows what he's doing. He knows how to manage a game. I don't think it's something that we're necessarily worried about.

Q. The numbers showed your release point was a little lower in your last start than the whole season. Are your mechanics where you want them to be?
COREY KLUBER: I don't look at numbers as far as release points or spin rates or any of that stuff. Trevor could probably give you better answers on that than I could. Mechanically I feel fine. I don't feel like I made any adjustments because of my leg. I still feel strong physically and stuff, so I think I'm in a good spot.

Q. If the scenario presented itself do you feel you could go on short rest in the series if need be?
COREY KLUBER: Yeah, definitely. I think we're at the point in the year where anybody is going to do anything they can to help the team win. If that means starting on short rest, pitching out of the bullpen on short rest, if it comes down to it and that's what the team needs to get a win, then I'm all for it.

Q. How welcome was the time off in between these series given that it's such a grind down toward the end of the season?
COREY KLUBER: Yeah, I think that obviously it's ideal to win a series in as few games as possible. Like you said, you get those couple extra days for us to get home and have a couple of days to work out. If guys had anything that was bothering them they could get it worked on. Once you get into these games there's so much adrenaline that takes over, I understand it being a grind, but I think that all goes out the window once the first pitch is thrown.

Q. Very similar question, you've had a lot of rest between your last two starts. At this point in the season do you think that helps you, hurts you or is it a matter of adjusting your routine?
COREY KLUBER: Yeah, I guess it can be whichever way you want to look at it. You can make the argument that we might not be as sharp, or make the argument that it helps you physically. I didn't feel like it was a problem, I felt like I was in the good spot. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise, having a chance for the rest of my body to recover and stuff. But I think I have the last game to go off of, that I had a long rest and it didn't necessarily affect the way I felt out there so I'm planning on that being the same this time.

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