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AL DIVISION SERIES: YANKEES VS INDIANS

October 9, 2017

Joe Girardi

New York, New York - pregame 4

Q. Joe, do you expect a bounce-back game from your ace from what you've seen and what you've witnessed all year long?
JOE GIRARDI: I do. You know, I think sometimes we can forget how young Seve is with how he's pitched all season long. I think that possibly he got too amped up the last time. And probably going through that experience and watching these last few has probably really helped him, and I expect him to bounce back.

Q. Joe, we've been talking all year about the mood of this team, the light mood, the fun they've had. Do you think that factored in at all to the way they played last night, under so much pressure?
JOE GIRARDI: I do. I think it's really important that moods don't swing dependent on games, in a sense. Obviously, your mood before a game can be a little bit different after the game, but your mood the next day before the game needs to be the same. And I think our guys have really been able to maintain that, have done a really good job in being who they are. I think the coaching staff has done an outstanding job in being who they are, and it's something that you kind of learn in this profession, because it's day after day. And I think if you become too emotional, the players can feed off of that and it can be negative.

Q. Joe, kind of along the same lines there, your team has played in two elimination games, you've played well in both of those games and have been able to advance. What do you think it is about those situations that seems to have so far brought out the best in your players?
JOE GIRARDI: I think it's some of the experiences we went through during the course of the year. I think it's the fight inside of them. I think it's their ability to relax and just continue to grind out at-bats and make pitches when they have to. I mean, I think they've done that all year long.

We've been through our share of hard times this year, but we've seemingly been able to bounce back and play our best baseball in the month of September and I think that's all part of growing up.

Q. Joe, last night, we saw Bird with the home run. With your young hitters, Bird, Sanchez, Judge, is what we've seen in the playoffs a continuation of what you expected to see, or is there anything new? Are they surprising you at all in the playoffs with how they've performed?
JOE GIRARDI: No, they're not. If people recall, when we left spring training, I said I felt really good about this club. And it wasn't going to be so much dependent on what our young players did, it was going to be dependent on what our veterans players did leading. I thought our young players were really going to contribute. I felt really good about them. And it's really what happened.

I know we didn't have Greg Bird for most of the season. The month of September, he played outstanding. He's played outstanding in the month of October. These kids have really accomplished a lot in a short period of time, and I'm not surprised.

Q. Joe, with your lineup adjustment, is that essentially to try to inoculate yourself against a Joe Smith, the right handers they have in the pen?
JOE GIRARDI: Part of it, yeah. You always talk about breaking up the lefties, but were breaking up our righties today because of the power they bring out from their right -- the stuff they bring out from their right handers, as well. Then you've got to worry about the left side, as well.

So we broke them up.

Q. Joe, have you had a chance to talk to Chapman yet? Is he available to you tonight?
JOE GIRARDI: Larry has talked to him. I want him to go out and try to play catch to see how he feels. I believe, as of right now -- now, things could change after he goes out -- that he's going to be maybe available to us.

But it's a situation where we feel that you can't get him up in the eighth and not bring him in and have to get him up in the ninth and bring him in. Once you get him up, he has to come in, and it's probably no more than an inning.

Q. Joe, do you think about using Tanaka from bullpen in Game 5?
JOE GIRARDI: I mean, that's something obviously I would talk to him about before I made a decision. I know he's done it before. If I'm not mistaken, it was in the playoffs in Japan. He's done it before, but I got to see how he feels. I mean, I think that's the important thing with him.

It's one thing to say, yeah, I'm going to use him out of the bullpen. But if the guy doesn't feel good and his stuff's not up to par, then it doesn't make a lot of sense.

So it's more of let's get to Game 5 and then I'll see how he feels.

Q. Joe, knowing how much you hate to look ahead, I must ask you, have you come up with a Game 5 starter if you get there?
JOE GIRARDI: Well, I think our plans would probably be CC, yeah.

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