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NL DIVISION SERIES: BRAVES VS DODGERS

October 5, 2018

Kurt Suzuki

Los Angeles, California - pregame 2

Q. Kurt, we know obviously what Sanchez has done, how big he's been on the field for you guys. Can you kind of just put into words what he's meant off the field, sort of that veteran leader in the clubhouse this year?
KURT SUZUKI: Yeah, I think it's always important to have a veteran leader on the staff, especially when you come into times like this with postseason, a guy who's been there before, done that. You know, I think it's real good for the young guys to watch how he prepares, how he handles in-game adjustments and accepts failure really, how he bounces back from failure. For these young guys who really haven't experienced it very often, to watch how he handles adversity and makes adjustments on the fly to keep you in the game and give you a chance to win, I think it's huge.

Q. Kurt, what most impresses you about Ronald Acuna, either on or off the field and what has he meant to the team's success this season?
KURT SUZUKI: He's really been our spark plug. Obviously I think when he moved into a leadoff role, that was a pretty huge swing of events for us. He led off the game with all those home runs, and just that youthful energy that he brings, Ozzie Albies brings to the table, Camargo -- they bring to the table -- kind of ignites us a little bit, and really important to our team, and we definitely were very happy when he arrived.

Q. Obviously this postseason is really important for everybody, but for you, not knowing how many more you'll get to go to these, how much do you want to capitalize and make sure you get the most out of this and advance if at all possible?
KURT SUZUKI: Yeah, I think -- shoot, I think every year, the last couple of years and then this year -- obviously, I think every game that I've played, every year I've been in the postseason, you never know when you're going back. I know -- you know, you never know how much longer I'm going to play. I'm starting to get up there in age, no offense to whoever. But you never know what can happen.

Obviously in Washington, you know, they always -- that was our year, and they said -- well, the whole Strasburg shutdown thing, and you never know when you're going back, and the next year we obviously didn't go back. And you take every postseason like it's going to be your last, no matter how old or how young you are. You gotta look at it that way where anything can happen.

So I think you always play with that sense of, you know, once you get to the postseason, that's your shot to go for the World Series because you never know when you will get back there. So I think it didn't matter for me, every year you're in it, you're going for it.

Q. From your time playing against him in Minnesota and now, how have you seen Sanchez evolve?
KURT SUZUKI: You know, the funny thing, when I played against him when he was in Detroit, he was a lot -- he was younger, and his stuff was obviously sharper. He threw harder, still had the same repertoire of pitches. It was like eight different types of pitches. He can manipulate the ball with the best of them. He can spin the ball with the best of them. Now I think it's more the fact that he's learning what he has in his arsenal, how much he has in the tank, and really, it's going out there and pitching to his strengths, you know. Not necessarily nibbling so much, but going right at these hitters and putting them on their heels, kind of similar to like a Cliff Lee kind of thing where the guy just keeps throwing strikes, keeps throwing strikes, keeps throwing strikes and puts the hitters on their heels. And when he's doing that and throwing quality strikes, he's tough. He throws so many different pitches and can spin the ball really well that it makes him really tough when he's throwing strikes and coming right at hitters.

Q. Was there a start this year that stood out where you said this guy does have something left in the tank, he can be an asset, Sanchez?
KURT SUZUKI: You know, the funny thing was I think the first day that he came to Spring Training when he got released by the Twins, I was in West Palm. I think that's where the Astros are; right? He had started it in West Palm, and first I didn't know why I was on that trip. It was like a three-hour trip. (Laughs). But, you know, we were playing the Nationals, and he started, and I thought it was pretty cool. I'd faced him a bunch of times, never really caught him. And I was just kind of wondering how he got released from the Twins with the stuff that he has.

And he went out that day and threw, I think, three or four shut-out innings, I want to say. Maybe he had one run, but he struck out a few guys and really threw the ball well. I looked at Sal, and I said I think he's got something left in the tank. And Chuck asked me and Snit asked me, and they all saw the same thing from the side, and I told them from behind the plate it's even better. Because you could see that the guy still knew how to pitch. The guy knows how to set people up, he knows how to pitch, he knows what he's doing, he's a veteran. And I thought that he would help us this year. I didn't know he was going to be as good as he was. But you knew that he would give you some quality innings and give you a chance to win every time he went out there on the mound.

Q. Kurt, during your career, there's been just this trend towards this amazing explosion of velocity all across baseball, out of the pen, guys coming up from the minors. Do you think there's anything to the idea that it's important for a staff to have a guy like a 2018 Sanchez who can offer a different look?
KURT SUZUKI: Yeah, I think so. You know, like you said, the velocity. I mean, you guys have seen all over. You got guys coming in the fifth inning throwing 98 miles an hour. I always joke with the young guys, I tell them thank God I'm on my way out. Good luck to you guys.

But it's pretty impressive. And then you have a guy like Sanchez -- even Julio, you know, when Julio goes on the mound, he knows how to spin the ball, he's been around, he knows how to get people out. To have those guys, that's where me and Sal and Tyler, we always say this is the fun days where you can really set hitters up, manipulate hitters, keep them guessing and play that guessing game where it might not work out all the time. But it's the fun part of being a catcher when you can call any pitch anytime, set guys up knowing your pitcher is going to execute what you call. We really take a lot of joy in that. It's fun.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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