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NL WILDCARD GAME: ROCKIES VS DIAMONDBACKS

October 4, 2017

Phoenix, Arizona

Rockies - 8, Diamondbacks - 11

Q. Archie, the triple, just what can you say what was going through your mind? At any point, did stopping a second go through your mind?
ARCHIE BRADLEY: No, they say hindsight's 20/20. I would have much rather just taken a nice jog into second base, stood up and taken my double there. But it's just kind of who I am. I don't know any other way to play. So I was going to run as hard as I could until they told me to stop.

But the whole at-bat, the triple of the moment, that's something I'll never forget. It's the type of at-bat you dream about, you know? Being a guy in the bullpen and getting to have a big at-bat in the 8th inning of a Wild Card game with guys on base, and then to drive them in is a moment I'll never forget.

Q. You had quite a 20 minutes or so experience in this. It all ends up in a win, some high points and low points. How are you going to look back on this game? How are you going to conceptualize it?
ARCHIE BRADLEY: I'm going to look back at it as a win. We won, we're moving on. There are all these things in a game that you wish you could go back and take back. Throwing a hanging curveball there to Arenado is not something I wanted to do, but in the end it resulted in a win. That's what we'll do tomorrow. We'll regroup. We'll definitely enjoy tonight, but we'll take a look at some of the things we did, and really just kind of turn the page. We're on to L.A. and on to the divisional series.

Q. Torey was in here a couple minutes earlier, and he said the Dodgers intimidated a lot of teams this year, but you guys were not intimidated. Does your success give you confidence in the postseason though it's such a different animal and what happened the last six months doesn't matter?
JAKE LAMB: I think it's one of those things. We know how we played them all season. But at the end of the day, that doesn't really matter. It's a fresh start. It's going to be our first game. We're coming off a big win, but, yeah. As a team, we have confidence going in there and I think we match up really well. I think at the end of the day it's going to be a really big series anyway.

ARCHIE BRADLEY: Yeah, to reiterate what he said. Today's awesome. Trust me, I'm really pumped we're moving on. This is what you dream about. But at some point tonight we're going to turn the page and realize this was one step of the process, one step of what we want to accomplish, and now it's about going to play the Dodgers and finding a way to beat them.

As much success as we've had against them in the regular season, nothing matters before today. Everything starts Friday night. It's a fresh start. It's going to be exciting, and I'm ready for it.

Q. Jake, when you look back at that Game 4, you had four hits, but four triples, how would you describe that game if you had to describe it to somebody that didn't say it?
JAKE LAMB: We won. No, I mean, I keep saying this for people that are asking, but our pitchers did a great job and we kind of knew this was going to be a slugfest as far as that lineup over there is one of the best. And they did a great job. I thought our pitchers did a great job.

It was huge to score in pretty much every inning. Getting on them early. Yeah, all I can say, if you weren't here, the place was really loud. It was a lot of fun to play in front of.

Q. Archie, earlier this season I think when you guys came into L.A. last time, one of their guys had talked about, well, it doesn't matter that we're not playing well right now. We're the better team. Given how well you guys played down the stretch and how well you guys played against them, is there any reason you guys would feel you're the underdogs?
ARCHIE BRADLEY: No. People can portray us or give us underdog or chip on our shoulders, whatever. We know how we played them in the regular season, and as I said before, none of that matters now. It's going to be a new group, a new feeling. Kind of like today, you got to experience you live and die with every pitch. Regardless how big a lead you have or how big the situation is. It's about understanding that. We're going to go into a really hostile environment. L.A.'s going to be ready for us we're going to be ready for them.

Q. Is that something he doesn't normally do or his emotions as you saw him coming into the ballgame?
ARCHIE BRADLEY: I gave him a hug, and held on to him for a long time. That's what these moments are for. Guys stepping up and doing things that they haven't necessarily done throughout the season. That's what good teams do. That's what winning teams do. Doesn't matter the situation, doesn't matter what's going on. They take the ball, they take the at-bat and step up and get it done. That's what we pride ourselves in.

Q. Archie, just curious from your perspective, what residual effect was there from the triple that led to what happened in the next half inning?
ARCHIE BRADLEY: Like you said, hindsight maybe I wish I would have jogged a little bit and I wouldn't have been as tired, but it was just bad pitches. I view the game in a very simple way, and I made two really bad pitches to two really good hitters. That's what it comes down to. Tired or not, you have to be able to refocus, you have to be able to regain your control and make quality pitches in big-time situations. So that's what I'll take away the most. Regardless how pumped, how excited, how big a lead you have, the guys in the box can hit. You have to regroup and make quality pitches to get them out.

Q. Off the bat are you thinking triple as soon as you see the ball?
ARCHIE BRADLEY: Yeah, I felt like I got robbed in San Diego, they only gave that a single, and I was pretty upset about that because I never had a base hit in my career. So, yeah, I did say it earlier. There is only one way I know how to play, and that's to go as hard as I can until someone tells me to stop and that was the situation.

When I looked down and I looked up and went I'm going to get to third here, and that was kind of my thought process.

Q. For each of you guys, I'm curious, in a game like this, it's sort of hard to get your mind around the one big element. Was there one specific moment you feel like turned this game, made the game for you? An at-bat, a pitch, anything?
JAKE LAMB: I'm going to regret this, but it has to be Archie's knock. It was one of those moments where I hate to say this in front of him, but the pitcher's up, two outs. You're not expecting a whole lot, and he puts this Hall of Fame-type swing on a pitch, and yeah, the whole place went nuts. Obviously, what happened in the next inning happened. But I think it's just one of those things that you are not expecting that whatsoever. Maybe a base hit, but not a triple like that. So that was a big moment.

ARCHIE BRADLEY: Yeah, I'll go to A.J. Pollock hitting ninth inning. As good as my triple was to go out there and give up two big homers, to close the gap with a one-run lead. I was happy to leave the game with us still having the lead. But facing Holland who has had a hell of a season, and he's been one of the best relievers in the big leagues all year. So for A.J. to put together an at-bat like that, score big runs and give us another three-run lead to get the ball to Rodney. Anytime you have a cushion like that.

Q. Archie, could you describe what appears to be a special relationship you have with the fans here. They go nuts when you come into the game of course they went nuts when you tripled, and then you're over there just pumping your fists and egging them on. Can you describe that relationship?
ARCHIE BRADLEY: I just want to win. When you think about the dynamic in the state of Arizona and how baseball has been over the last few years, it hasn't been the greatest, and I understand that. There's a lot of reasons to that. People are tired here and Diamondbacks have only been around so many years. But a lot of these talks come from Jake and I at the house dreaming about what this place could be. Tonight was one of those dreams coming true.

Why would you not want to be involved in a city and state and immerse yourself in a town and put yourself out there and show people that we're out here grinding every day. We're throwing our bodies on the line through blood, sweat and tears and doing everything we can to win the games. All we want is people to come out and appreciate it, man.

We're not asking for a lot. We love the support. We love the fans that already do come. But why not make Chase Field a place that teams come into and they're scared of it? They're scared of the environment. They're scared of the way our offense is. They're scared of the crowd. Zack Greinke on the mound. Why not make Chase Field a place people don't want to come and play? And every time you play the Diamondbacks, you know you're going to get a huge crowd, a great team, and an all-around good baseball city.

Q. For either of you guys, you know this is a game where all hands are on deck, but I'm wondering if it still amazes you when you see the resourcefulness that you need for a game like this? The triple, Descalso's two-run homer, Robbie Ray coming out of the bullpen for more than two innings? What are your thoughts when you see all those developments?
ARCHIE BRADLEY: I just think, someone said it before, we were very fortunate to watch the AL Wild Card game yesterday and to have an idea of what today could be like. But every pitch, every swing, every play just carries so much weight. Whether it's a six-run lead or you're down by four, up by one, it doesn't matter. You feel the pressure and the intense amount of focus and just energy that's involved in every single play that's going on.

So it doesn't matter if it's a lead-off single or a guy hits a homer off you, you understand this next pitch could change the game, this next at-bat could change the game. I think everyone in the clubhouse understands that. They're ready for it. You're ready, you're prepared, and you're just ready to win.

Q. You've been in the big leagues, the Dodgers have been really good for that time. If there's any element of the coming series, it's just like I'm tired of hearing about the about the Dodgers, I'm tired of hearing it's their time. It's our time. Is that part of what you're going to bring into the ballpark on Friday?
JAKE LAMB: Yeah, in our clubhouse, we're saying it's our time. This is our year, and we feel like we've got the best chance to win the World Series. At the same time, that's what's being said in every clubhouse that's doing it. So we have all the confidence in the world that we can go in and have a good series.

That's a great team. You've obviously seen the year they've had. They've got a great team over there. But in our clubhouse and with our guys, we know how good we are and we have a lot of confidence going in.

ARCHIE BRADLEY: Obviously, I made some public statements about how I feel about our team and other things. I don't see why that's a problem. They feel they're the best team in the MLB and they are. Their record indicates it. But kind of like we mentioned earlier. Everything resets, everything is back to square one and game one is Friday night, and this series will determine who the better team is. As a player, as a fan, as a coach, as everyone involved, this is what you want. You want two of the best teams in the league going against each other, and two of the best staffs. We just match up, and it's going to be one hell of a series, and I'm excited to get it going.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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NL WILDCARD GAME: ROCKIES VS DIAMONDBACKS

October 4, 2017

Archie Bradley

Jake Lamb