AL DIVISION SERIES: ASTROS VS WHITE SOX

October 12, 2021

Carlos Correa

Guaranteed Rate Field

Houston Astros

Pregame 4 Press Conference

Q. Carlos, we haven't had a chance to talk to you since this all went down. What was your take, your thoughts about the stuff that Ryan Tepera said a couple of nights ago?

CARLOS CORREA: Actually, I have no thoughts. We're ready to play Game 4, and we're trying to win this game, so I'm not going to get into it right now, so, yeah, we're ready to play this game. We have Lance McCullers on the mound, and we're looking forward to getting this win today. It's a very important game.

Q. Carlos, what did you do on the day off? It was an unexpected happening. It doesn't happen, of course, in Houston, but what did you do, and was it a chance to regroup after letting that game -- for the team to regroup after letting that game get away from you in Game 3?

CARLOS CORREA: Yeah. Yesterday I was in the room for pretty much the entire day just chilling, resting, getting ready for today, ate pizza, deep dish pizza, which I love. Every time I come to Chicago, I got to have one, and just enjoy the day with my family and my wife and just watch some great baseball. There were some good games yesterday, so I enjoyed them very much.

Q. Carlos, what do you expect from Rodón, just considering what he has gone through the last couple of starts -- or his last start with his velocity down? Do you expect him to come out and be the guy that pitched well during the season?

CARLOS CORREA: Yeah, I think he will be that guy that we face back when we came here after the break with the extra rest and, you know, I think he will be ready for today. I think his speed will be back up. I think he will be excited to pitch in a big game like today, and we're looking forward to it.

If we get the 90 miles an hour like we saw in the last start, then that will be great, but if not, then we will be ready. He is a great pitcher. He was great all year. It's unfortunate that, you know, later in the year, he was a little banged up because I really enjoy watching him pitch, but today, you know, we're going to compete, and we're going to try to get this win from him.

Q. Carlos, yesterday Dusty said you're not only one of the most talented players he has been around, but you might be the best pressure player that he has been around. Can you kind of take us through what those moments are like for you and I imagine looking at the scenario today, it maybe gets the blood going too?

CARLOS CORREA: Yeah. I appreciate Dusty saying that. Obviously, he has been around the game for so long. He has seen so many great players, so for him to say something like that, it's truly humbling, and it means a lot coming from him. Yeah, I cherish these moments. I love these moments. You know, I try to find the inner calm where I focus even more, and I don't try to do too much in key situations and, you know, it seems to work out, so hopefully I can do it again today.

Q. Lance is obviously a much different pitcher than when you guys first broke in in 2015. How have you seen him evolve? I guess not just to 2015, but since 2012 and just evolve as a pitcher over the years?

CARLOS CORREA: I have seen his growth firsthand playing with him in the Minor Leagues at every single level. We were roommates, and we've been great friends. He is a brother to me. He always has that curveball, but he keeps adding every single year stuff to his arsenal. And now with his new slider and nasty sinker, his command has been better.

The last game I don't think he had any walks, and when he is in the strike zone with the sinker, it's going to be a tough night for anyone. So I'm looking forward for him today to attack the strike zone once again and give us a chance to win this game.

Q. You said you watched some baseball last night. What did you think of the Red Sox winning and especially your relationship with Cora? He was pretty emotional on the field afterward. What did you think of that considering what he has been through?

CARLOS CORREA: I think it was a great game both sides. Very happy for Cora. Obviously, he was here with us, and it's a guy that I love very much, so I was very happy. I text him after the game. Obviously, nobody had them win that series. Nobody had them getting to the playoffs. Especially after the way they played last year, and he came in and put the team back on the map and, you know, they've accomplished so much more than people thought they would accomplish this year, so, obviously, I'm proud of him. Very happy.

But if we get this win today, obviously, he will be the enemy, so that love will be gone for a couple of days, but I'm very happy that he is able to accomplish that after everything he went through, not only him, but also his family, so it's -- it was a beautiful moment for him, his daughter, his family, and, you know, I'm very proud of him.

Q. Carlos, I remember maybe eight years ago watching the most impressive workout I've ever seen at Wrigley Field. You hit balls. I think you hit 15 balls to every part of the outfield, played shortstop immaculately. Does any of that stick in your mind? When you say your family is here looking around Chicago, does any of that stick in your mind what Chicago is like?

CARLOS CORREA: I love the city of Chicago, and I remember very well that workout that you are talking about. It was actually -- I did seven predraft workouts with the top seven picks of that year's draft, and the one at Wrigley Field was by far the best one, which, you know, they had told me if I would have fallen into the sixth pick, they were going to pick me.

But that being said, I'm a Houston Astro. I'm very happy that it played out the way it played out, and got a World Series under my belt, trying to accomplish another one, and I'm focused right now on winning this year. So I haven't given it too much thought even though I love the city here. I haven't given it too much thought because, obviously, I'm focused on winning right now.

Q. By the way, the wind was blowing in that day too? The wind was blowing in that day too.

CARLOS CORREA: Yeah, I remember. I was crushing some baseballs that day.

Q. Carlos, what did you make of the atmosphere for the game Sunday night, and kind of what are your impressions of the way that the fan base here in Chicago has kind of gotten up for this series?

CARLOS CORREA: It was great. It was a great atmosphere. I enjoyed playing that game. I was talking to my wife after the game, and the fans were involved the whole time. Even when the team was losing by four runs, the fans were still involved. They were getting up every chance they got when there were two strikes. It was a great atmosphere, great playoff baseball. Looking forward to it today again.

Q. Carlos, one more question on Lance. How special is it for you and your teammates to have him out there in this situation?

CARLOS CORREA: Very special. It's always good when you have your ace going out there for a chance to move into the next series. So, yeah, we're very confident when he is on the mound. We feel like this is a must-win game for us because he is on the mound, and, you know, we got to play our best cleanest baseball today in order for us to win that game. There's a great team on the other side, so we got to go out there and get the job done.

Q. Carlos, Tim Anderson has been a guy that's been tough to keep off the bases this series. You know, he really makes the lineup go. What do you think it is about his game that makes him such a dynamic hitter and just hard to shut down?

CARLOS CORREA: I think what makes him a good hitter is that he knows himself very well, and what I mean by that is he doesn't try to hit the ball too hard. He doesn't try to hit homers. He doesn't try to pull the ball. He knows what he is good at, and that's going the other way, letting the ball travel. He knows he is very fast, so he just wants to put the ball in play. And we've seen it throughout this series, a lot of soft contact hits because, you know, he is really fast.

I notice on the last game that he look at me, whatever I'm playing, like I'll be looking at him because, you know, I want to pay attention to everything, and he looks at me. And if I move this way, he is being hitting the ball to the middle. And when I move to the other side, I see the swing getting around the baseball a little bit. I don't know if he does that on purpose, but I notice him looking at me, so I'll be trying to switch it up when the pitch is coming, but when you have that hand-eye coordination and you can control the bat as well as he does and you don't strike out, then good things are going to happen. And that's why he has been getting on base so much, which is key for that team.

So one of the keys is to try to keep him off the base bags, and that would be a good start for us because he is dynamic. He can steal bases, but he manages the barrel very, very well.