NL DIVISION SERIES: BREWERS VS BRAVES

October 10, 2021

Freddy Peralta

Truist Park

Milwaukee Brewers

Workout Day Press Conference

Q. Can you talk a little bit about how you feel you pitched after you came back off the IL, and how you would compare it to how you were pitching before you went on the IL, with your shoulder injury?

FREDDY PERALTA: Before I went to the IL, I was great, feeling really good. After I came back, I still, I feel really good. The only day that I wasn't feeling good was the day that I took the decision to tell Counsell that I wasn't feeling good. But other than that, I feel good.

Q. Looking back, how happy are you that you did that instead of -- some guys might pitch through it at that time of year? How happy are you that you decided not to do that?

FREDDY PERALTA: I feel really happy. In the moment it was hard to me because I know that I was doing good by that time. And I said, maybe I wasn't sure, like, what's going to happen, how long that's going to take to feel good again. But I asked him, don't put me on the IL. Let's see how it's going to go.

And Counsell told me, like, no, I'm going to put you on the IL. That way you're going to feel better soon and there's no rush because by that time we had a very good lead. We were in first place. And so it was a really smart move for him and for the medical staff to help me be back soon.

Q. It's going to be nearly two weeks since your last start. How do you think you'll come out just emotionally? You like to pitch with a lot of energy but also just controlling that, knowing what's at stake tomorrow in Game 3?

FREDDY PERALTA: I've been working these last few days. And the first game at home, so I was in the bullpen, available to pitch. And in the eighth inning I was warming up and that helped me a lot because I was feeling like if I was in the game, you know, I was feeling, like, if I was on the mound pitching. And for me that helped me a lot because my arm feels much better after that day.

Q. You were up in the bullpen, I think, Game 1, right?

FREDDY PERALTA: Yes.

Q. How many pitches do you think you threw? And do you think that will have any effect on your start tomorrow?

FREDDY PERALTA: I threw around 24, 26, something like that. And they knew what I was doing in the moment so they didn't let me pass the limit of the pitches that I can throw in the bullpen. I (indiscernible) that the limit was, like, 30, something like that. I didn't throw a lot. It was good enough, I figure.

Q. Do you wish you would have got in in the game?

FREDDY PERALTA: I was ready to go in there. I was wishing, yeah.

Q. Congrats on your first postseason start ever. Tell me what that means.

FREDDY PERALTA: It means a lot for me and also for the family, too. And it's a great moment. I know that it's going to be a great experience because as a player I always, like, dream about these kind of moments because I grew up watching these kind of games.

And it's great to know that I will be pitching one of those games. So, really good experience for me, it's going to be.

Q. I was going to ask you a similar question, but will your family be here?

FREDDY PERALTA: Yeah, my family's here.

Q. What do you think it will mean to them to watch you start a game in the postseason?

FREDDY PERALTA: So, right now I can tell, like, they're really excited. They are grateful to be here. And I enjoy that, too. Me watching them enjoying the moment, that makes me feel great, too.

So they say it was going to happen tomorrow. I'm going to give my best, and I will do my best to make them feel proud of me and of the team, too.

Q. We talked to Corbin a lot about what it was like in 2019. And I know it wasn't quite to his level. But it was kind of a tough year for you, too. I'm curious, do you think back about how hard it was to get from there to this point?

FREDDY PERALTA: You know those kind of moments always will be in a player's career. So it's going to happen. The good thing about it is we learn about a lot of hard moments that we had in '19, 2019. And it doesn't mean that something bad is now going to happen again, like, in the future.

But probably, if something happens again, and something -- maybe I'm going to remember and say, okay, this what's happening in '19 and what I did in that moment that helped me was this. And that's going to make me, teach me a lot.

And I know those moments, all we need is to have like good friends. That's why we have to have good teammates all the time because they're going to help you in those kind of moments. And players that are older than you that happened, passed through those moments before. And it's part of the whole career. So it's going to happen. It will help me a lot to be here today.

Q. We have always focused on you adding the different pitches, but it seemed like you had to learn a lot of mental lessons that were different than just pitches from that experiences?

FREDDY PERALTA: Moments, yes.

Q. Just having seen the Braves the last two games, what has stood out to you about their hitters that you can work into your game plan for tomorrow?

FREDDY PERALTA: I have a game plan already, and -- that we have a really good pitching coach and a lot of people in there that will take care of all of those moments, like videos, the video staff. And we always have a really good plan. We just have to try to add little things and see and how we can navigate in the game.

But most important for me is when I'm in the game, see how the game is going, what the hitters are doing. Sometimes we can see it, like what they're looking for. But we have to have that little plan, but the moment is going to tell me, like, what to use, how I'm feeling on the mound, what's working best and all that.

Q. Up to this year you've always been a guy who's bounced back and forth between starting and relieving. Now that you're just a starter, how happy are you that you know that that's your role? And how proud are you of the fact that you're now one of the really good starters on this team?

FREDDY PERALTA: Makes me feel happy because you have to earn. That part, nothing's, like, easy. But you have to work every day and understand and what you need to work in and what's going to make you be better and -- day-by-day. So it's something new to learn all the time.

When you have a very good game or a bad game, there's always something that you see like you can be better in the season, through the season, and is going to help you for the next game. And sometimes you have totally good games and then you have three bads and then three goods, and only one. So that means that always something is going to happen.

Just stay focused, work hard all the time and communicate with the other starting pitchers, it's really good. And that way they always have something to tell you because when we're pitching there's somebody else that's watching you. And they're going to know you and they're probably going to see you're doing something wrong or something that don't do, like you throw this different today -- or things that, little things that help you a lot.

It's really good when you're connected with all your teammates, with your pitching coach, with your teammates. That way everything goes a little easier and you can learn from.

And that way you're going to stay like more consistent, and that way you're going to stay in the rotation like I am right now. And I hope that stays therefore in the future for a lot more years.

Q. When you look back to the last month of the season, besides getting healthy again, what do you look to, what do you take away from that? Do you think balls are finding holes more, or what do you look back this last month that you hope to take away from going forward from here?

FREDDY PERALTA: Being honest, I was feeling really good, like I said earlier, the whole season. But when September came, I was feeling good enough for pitching and all that, strong, but my body was getting a little tired of -- like, faster than earlier.

But because last year I didn't throw a lot of innings. And this year it's a big difference. But I was doing my best, working with the people that I have to work with for feel better all the time, trainers and all that. And I come back -- right now I'm feeling like if we are in April again and it's more important for me right now. I feel healthy and strong for these kind of moments.

Q. Just a quick one. Do you remember watching postseasons as a kid? Who do you remember watching?

FREDDY PERALTA: I remember games like, I can't remember, it was like a wild-card game from Boston and Yankees, if I'm wrong. I don't know if it was a wild-card game or a division -- I don't know. But I remember Manny Ramirez by that time, Kevin Youkilis, Jason Varitek -- if I'm not wrong, I think Jon Lester pitched one of those games. So it was great. I enjoyed it all the time. Really nice games.

And also I remember -- I can't remember exactly the year, but when Texas and St. Louis played the World Series, that was a great one, too, really good. I remember that, going to the school and watching those kind of games. Yeah, great, yeah.

Q. St. Louis beat the Brewers to get to the World Series.

FREDDY PERALTA: I didn't know that one. (Laughter).

Q. But they remember.

FREDDY PERALTA: Yeah.