NL WILDCARD GAME: DODGERS VS CARDINALS

October 6, 2021

Cody Bellinger

Justin Turner

Dodger Stadium

Los Angeles Dodgers

Postgame Press Conference

Dodgers - 3, Cardinals - 1

Q. Cody, what does it mean for you to have the type of game you did tonight?

CODY BELLINGER: Yeah, I think at this point it's time to forget the season and just move on to postseason and try to help this team win in any way you can, offense, defense, baserunning. There's a lot more aspects to the game. I feel good and I'm feeling healthy. Any way I can impact the game, I'm trying to impact it.

Q. How inevitable did this feel to go out there and have to face the Giants now, settle things?

JUSTIN TURNER: Yeah, obviously that was the plan. We were going to have to win tonight to get to those guys, and we did what we had to do. Now we're looking forward to this series with those guys.

Q. Could you describe after he hits that home run what the stadium was like?

JUSTIN TURNER: Yeah, it was incredible. I was telling Trea when we were standing on the line for the anthem, I said, you haven't really felt Dodger Stadium until you're here for a playoff game. I was like, just wait until you see a homer. Just see how loud this place against.

Obviously it doesn't get much louder than that swing, the walk-off homer. You see the fans going crazy, beers going, flying, everything on the field after the game. Just for 50,000 plus to be screaming, jumping on their feet up-and-down in excitement in one moment is just -- it's something you don't forget.

Q. Cody, did you know it was gone off the bat?

CODY BELLINGER: Yeah. (Laughter). Yeah, I knew he hit it well. If I could do it over again I'd probably run a little harder. But, no, I felt like I nearly got that one.

Q. When you're working a bat like that late against a lefty, what does that let you know about what's working right for you, how you're seeing it, the mechanics, everything like that?

CODY BELLINGER: Yeah, like I said, I've been feeling good. In that moment right there, I got some swings off early, and at that point when you miss a pitch, you just try to work the count. I knew CT was behind me. I knew if I could get on base it would give us a good chance to win the game. Worked the count, and saw the 3-2 pitch pretty well and took my walk.

Q. Do you think this game sort of helps your confidence moving forward the rest of the way?

CODY BELLINGER: Yeah, most definitely. The results are definitely always nice to see, but -- I would say yes.

Q. Cody, Tommy Edman said their strategy was to exploit that weakness of stealing on you guys. You had two stolen bases as well against them. Was that the plan for you?

CODY BELLINGER: Yeah, I knew it was going to be close. Obviously Yadi is behind the dish. He's got really good arm, one of the best defensive catchers the game has ever seen. I knew I had a decent jump and I looked in and I saw that it was a fastball, so I just tried to slide in as hard and fast as possible.

I wouldn't say it was in the plan before the game, but I think once the game is going on, you're just kind of in it, things just kind of happen.

Q. Justin, I know there was a couple times this season where you talked about the bullpen carrying this team. I'm sure you don't expect Max to go as short as he did. What can you say about the bullpen today?

JUSTIN TURNER: I mean, in regards to Max, it's the postseason. You go out there and you empty the tank every inning and give it everything you've got. I'm sure if you talk to him he'll say he wasn't as sharp as he wanted to be, but he did an outstanding job just battling through it and keeping us in the game and limiting it to one run that first inning.

Then turn the ball over to our bullpen and they have been our backbone all year long, and for them to go out and give us four plus shutout innings and give the offense a chance to keep coming up and take a big swing, you can't say enough about those guys.

Q. To have a 1-1 game, what is that struggle like all the way through, and kind of just expand on propelling you guys to another series, what's that battle like when you're in it?

JUSTIN TURNER: I wouldn't call it a struggle. That's exciting. Those are fun games. You're locked in on every pitch. Every pitch feels like it's a big pitch and a momentum swinger and you're locked in, and even in that ninth inning there, you send Albert up and Sosa up and they two balls right on the screws for outs and you're just feeling it and the anticipation is exciting.

I mean, we all thought Albert was going to hit a homer to end it. It couldn't have been written any better. He hits a ball 107 miles an hour and just a little too low. But you have two guys go up and hit rockets, and then Belly takes the quality at-bat that he does to get on there, and the rest is history. CT has a big swing.

Those games, those moments are exciting, and we've been in a lot of them, and I think our experience really helps us in those situations.

Q. What can you guys say about what the bullpen did tonight?

CODY BELLINGER: Yeah, they've been outstanding. I mean, they've been doing this all year. They did it on the big stage, so a lot more people could see. They came out and did four scoreless, and those are the, like J.T. said, the backbone of the team. They've been doing it all year, and just props to them for being able to do it and continuing to do it. It's not easy. It's not easy.

JUSTIN TURNER: Couldn't say it any better myself.