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NL DIVISION SERIES: NATIONALS VS DODGERS

October 3, 2019

Clayton Kershaw

Los Angeles, California - pregame 1

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You have a fair share of familiarity with the Nationals lineup. In your opinion what's the best approach against these guys tomorrow?
CLAYTON KERSHAW: It's a great team, yeah, 1 through 8, they really swing the bats well. Obviously they got Rendon and Soto in the middle of the lineup that had great seasons and are great players all the way around. But really up and down the lineup they got a ton of guys that swing the bat well. And that's what you see in the postseason, you see great lineups. And there's not one way to get a guy out you just have to continue to make pitches you all the way through.

Q. As far as this year's concerned what's the big difference between your club this year as opposed to last?
CLAYTON KERSHAW: I have no idea. I don't really compare teams, I don't really do that. This team's a special group. We got lot of great players, had a great regular season, and we're looking forward to starting the postseason.

Q. By giving you Game 2 Dave told us there's a possibility you could pitch in relief in Game 5 if needed. Obviously you did that three years ago, Game 5, Nationals park. Did that experience sort of teach you something about the value and what needs to happen for you to be able to do that and enter in that situation?
CLAYTON KERSHAW: I hope it's not that situation, because I was 1, 4 and 5 so I don't envision that happening. You know how you feel coming out of starts. And this season I felt great the whole year after those first couple weeks, so I don't think I'll have any problem bouncing back. I'm not really focused on that right now though. I'm focused on tomorrow obviously. But if there is a Game 5 and I'm asked to be in the pen I'll be ready for that, for sure.

Q. As the years go by and these postseason appearances pile up does it get easier to tame whatever you need to before the game the heartbeat and things like that getting ready for these games?
CLAYTON KERSHAW: I'll let you know. I think it's the same every year. I think that extra adrenaline and the atmosphere is, yeah, you have to be able to calm it and it's usually for me after the first pitch or two or the first out you get going and it feels like a regular game after that. But it's almost the three days in between leading up to the first game and you just got a lot of time to think about it now with extra Wild Card game, so that's kind of the worst part, just kind of sitting around waiting. Once the game gets going, you're good to go.

Q. You have four rookies that made the NLDS roster. But they seem to have kind of a more mature heartbeat and mental capacity. Do you have any words of wisdom for them as they approach their first Division Series at this level?
CLAYTON KERSHAW: Yeah, I think that's the reason they made our roster and had such success during the regular season is that they don't act like rookies, they don't play the game like rookies and we're going to need them in the postseason. And we don't expect their performance to be any different and there's really nothing to say, they will experience it, they will get it out of their way in the first inning or if any of them are coming off the bench in relief that first appearance. And they will be great though and that's the reason that we have such confidence in them is that they did, their heartbeat, like you said, they don't act like rookies and that's why they're there.

Q. Are your kids aware, are they old enough to be aware of like what's going on and if so how has that affected this experience for you?
CLAYTON KERSHAW: I don't know, they get new postseason gear, so they get fired up about that. Charlie is a little bit mad, his access is a little limited right now with all the stuff going on. But honestly I don't know. I don't think so. I think when we get to celebrate after a series win -- they weren't in Baltimore when we got to clinch the Division -- but I think they realize that there's like a party after and things like that, but I honestly, I don't think so yet, not yet.

Q. I know you said you don't look back much, but what kind of edge does this give you that you're going into unfinished business again trying to win the World Series?
CLAYTON KERSHAW: We don't need any extra added motivation or incentive to win the World Series. Every team at the beginning of the spring training says they want to win a World Series, but now days there's only 10 or 12 teams that that's even a possibility for. And ours is no different. And then when you go into it, and you've lost the last two, it's not like that makes it even more, there's just the pressure to win the World Series, that's what the Dodgers means, we expect to win the World Series every single year, regardless of what's happened in years past. This season's no different with that.

Q. A long time ago you started talking about being in the arena and what that means to you. I'm curious today how the experience of being in the arena has gradually perhaps changed for you.
CLAYTON KERSHAW: Yeah, I love that quote.

Q. And then also --
CLAYTON KERSHAW: Oh, sorry, there's more.

Q. There's actually a second part of this. It gets deeper.
CLAYTON KERSHAW: Good.

Q. How your experience in that arena has changed as well. So your view of it and your experience in it.
CLAYTON KERSHAW: That's so deep. I think the biggest thing I can say is that every year that you make the postseason you realize that it's one less year on your career, one less year that you have a chance to win, so you become more grateful and more appreciative every single time you get a chance to win a World Series. I think that becomes more apparent, because who knows how long I'm going to get to play this game and who knows how long I get to play here. But it's a special thing to get to go to the postseason seven years in a row and nine years out of however many years I played and realize that you don't get this opportunity very often to play, to try to win 11 games.

So, grateful, but also maybe with each passing year maybe a little bit more sense of urgency for sure.

Q. You almost seem to fight that sense of being in the arena at times. Like it was almost like a defense thing for you. Maybe I'm reading into it.
CLAYTON KERSHAW: Not sure, yeah.

Q. You just, you would sort of wrap yourself in that sense of, hey, I'm in here fighting. Are you more accepting of it perhaps now, maybe more fun?
CLAYTON KERSHAW: Oh, I don't know. Yeah, I don't know. I don't think I'm that deep. But I think that it's just a special thing to get to compete and it's a special thing to get to be on this team and get to do it a lot. Looking forward to tomorrow and it's a great feeling when you win in the postseason, so I'm hoping for that.

Q. Just curious what have you learned about Walker the last two years that makes him capable and thrive in these kind of settings?
CLAYTON KERSHAW: He grows on you, yeah. I mean he's, I think that, over time, he kind of wears you down. No, I mean Walker is great. I loved being around him. His understanding of pitching is really actually pretty cool. I think that in the new age of spin rate analytics all that stuff he knows way more than I do and to get to hear him talk about it and maybe try to apply some of it is good. I think that we can kind of rub off each other because I'm a little bit more traditional old school, I guess you could say, and to get to kind of bounce ideas off each other and things like that is fun. His competitiveness, his ability to compete is really fun to watch and obviously his stuff speaks for itself. So I enjoy having him around and you never know what's going to say so it's great, it's fun.

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