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MLB WORLD SERIES: DODGERS VS RED SOX

October 24, 2018

J.D. Martinez

Boston, Massachusetts - postgame 2

Dodgers - 2 Red Sox - 4

Q. Just talk about the guys in front of you extending that two-out rally and setting the table.
J.D. MARTINEZ: Huge. That was a great example of just how you grind out an inning, grind out at-bats. Everybody, you know, something we preach about. And we were talking about it after the game -- after that inning, actually. Underneath, that was such a perfect example of just grinding at-bats out, finding ways to get guys on and keeping the line moving.

Q. When you stepped up in the fifth there, Pearce had just walked on five pitches, none of which were really close. What's your approach in that situation? And the pitch that you did get seemed like a decent pitch from his perspective, what kind of swing did you get on that one?
J.D. MARTINEZ: I faced him yesterday and it was a very similar situation. He was a little wild, and I went up there kind of passive. I said, this is the time, I said, trust your eyes. Go up there and trust your eyes and if it's a ball, it's a ball, but don't go up there being passive.

It wasn't a bad pitch. It was a good pitch. I was just fortunate enough to stay inside of it and dump it in, really.

Q. Did you learn a lot from the at-bat last night with him? Take that into this at-bat?
J.D. MARTINEZ: Yeah, absolutely. The at-bat last night, like I said, the situation is a very similar situation. And I felt like I kind of made the adjustment today of going up there and trusting my eyes, not just going up there and thinking, he's wild and he's not going to throw a strike.

So that was pretty much kind of what I learned from the night before.

Q. Alex told us a little while ago that one thing that makes you guys unique is in this era of hitting .215 or .210 with 39 home runs and 100 RBIs, that's acceptable. Well, for this team it's not, because the idea is not to go up there and slug all the time, it's to try to make contact, especially with two outs. I want to get your read on how important that is in making those type of adjustments, not swinging for the fences?
J.D. MARTINEZ: You know, it's a big argument in baseball, big topic that everybody wants to talk about. We always talk about just focusing on obviously we want the ball in the air as hitters, here. We're not up there trying to hit everything in the air and swinging for the fences. We go up there and the pitch dictates what we're going to do. We're not up there forcing balls in the air. I feel like it's the common mistake with hitters these days. And I think it's something that we all talk about and we have a really good understanding of it, where we kind of think we're hitters before sluggers in a sense. And that's how I think. I take pride in hitting and being -- not just a one-dimensional hitter, a complete hitter. And it's something we all talk about.

Q. Talk about David coming out in the next inning. Did you feel he got pumped up by the way you guys rallied for those two runs?
J.D. MARTINEZ: Yeah, he was definitely pumped coming out. He was out there battling his butt off and you have to tip your hat to him. These last two outings he's been unbelievable.

And I'm so happy for him and proud of him, going through all that criticism that he's been getting here to bounce back to what he's been doing. He's a huge part of our team and I couldn't be happier for him.

Q. You touched on it a little bit earlier about the guys in front of you grinding out at-bats and grinding out that inning. But specifically with Vazquez, two outs, two strikes, have you seen those guys at the bottom of the order, whether it's Jackie or Sandy or Christian turning it over and starting those rallies?
J.D. MARTINEZ: Yeah, those are huge. They ask about it all the time. Everybody wants to talk about two, three, four guys on this team, but to win 108 games you've got to have a complete team. And I think that's what we do so well. It doesn't matter who we put in there. It can be Nunie pinch-hitting or Brock coming off the bench. We just have guys that really do a really good job of, like you said, grinding at-bats out and turning the lineup over. I think everybody takes pride in that.

Q. It looked like you were favoring your ankle a little time, how is your ankle and what does it mean for playing the outfield in games 3, 4 and 5?
J.D. MARTINEZ: Obviously I rolled it yesterday. It was sore today. But I was able to play and be competitive.

Right now I plan on playing. I feel like it's going to be fine.

Q. What's your approach with two outs? Does it change?
J.D. MARTINEZ: No. I don't think it does. I don't know, I just -- no, I really don't think it does. Everyone is talking about that, we're coming through with these two outs things. But to me I just feel that we do a really good job of not giving up, not giving that last out away.

Q. Is it more important almost to not have a two-out approach, to have it the same as the rest of it?
J.D. MARTINEZ: I think the approach is kind of the same. I think it doesn't really change. Obviously, unless there's a guy on third base and you have one out versus two outs, it's different. There's a guy on second base, it doesn't really matter, I think the approach stays the same, and you're trying to just really put the barrel on the ball.

Q. Congratulations on a fine start to the World Series. It's being broadcast in Japan, as well. I have the task of having to translate everything you say. When you say "grind out a great at-bat or two-out at-bat," it's probably a mental approach thing, or it's a small change in the swing-type thing. Can you tell me about what "grind out a good at-bat" means.
J.D. MARTINEZ: To me grinding out a good at-bat is pretty much fighting. And it's not trying to do too much with pitches, just finding a way to spoil a good pitcher's pitches, really. If a pitcher goes up there and he's throwing a ball and it's a breaking ball down and away or a fastball up and in, a perfect pitcher's pitch, and you're able to just foul it off and stay alive in the at-bat, just keep grinding, keep working through the at-bat and hoping for that mistake that he's going to make. And if he doesn't, then you walk. And if he does, then you hit the ball and you have a chance that way. I think that's kind of what I mean by "grinding out at-bats".

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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