NL DIVISION SERIES: GIANTS VS DODGERS

October 14, 2021

Gavin Lux

Oracle Park

Los Angeles Dodgers

Pregame 5 Press Conference

Q. Just first, how are you feeling heading into Game 5 today?

GAVIN LUX: Really good. Definitely really excited to get out there and run around. And this is a big game and kind of what you dream of, if you're a kid, so I'm definitely looking forward to it.

Q. I know you've shared that you feel more comfortable just in left field. How is it just kind of getting the start there this evening and how does it help build your confidence with whether it's defensively, at the plate, and just really playing as a whole?

GAVIN LUX: Yeah, wherever Dave throws me, that's what I'm going to go do and do my best. So whether it's left, center, second, wherever he throws me. I'm a baseball player, so try not to put me in a box and I'm just going to go out and try and do my job.

Q. What challenges does this center field present compared to maybe a Dodger Stadium center field?

GAVIN LUX: Yeah, there's a little more dimensions, kind of, it's a little funky out there with the brick wall and kind of how things, the walls are angled. So just being aware of that going into the game and kind of scouting it out during BP, that will kind of help me feel more comfortable.

But baseball's baseball. Center field, just go run and catch it, and that's kind of how I'm looking at it.

Q. How excited are you to be part of a Game 5 between these two teams? And you guys have played it so close all season long, I would imagine that there's no secrets at this point.

GAVIN LUX: Yeah, like you said, we've played each other so much. So they're really good. We know that. This has been a really fun series to be a part of. And, yeah, it's coming down to the wire. I think this is what everybody wants and it's going to be a lot of fun tonight.

Q. You were near to get sent down to the minors. This series you didn't start the first three games. With other organizations you probably would have been at second all year long or wherever and not gone to the minors. You'd be in the lineup. Obviously the Dodgers are stacked. What are your thoughts on that in terms of, when you got sent down, did you think to yourself, hey, if I was somewhere else I probably wouldn't, not saying you wanted to be somewhere else.

GAVIN LUX: Right, yeah, I mean, it's pretty easy to look around the league and say like, oh, yeah, maybe it maybe on this team I wouldn't have got sent down, obviously. But there's a lot of really good people here to learn from, a lot of really good players to learn from, and guys who have been around and a lot of superstars, future Hall of Famers. So for me it's like, it's looking at it as a blessing as opposed to the other way around. And I'm still early in my career, so I'm just being a sponge and trying to soak up as much as I can from these guys.

Q. What's your take on the fact that one team is going to go home today with 109 wins, and teams with lesser amount of wins are already in the playoffs?

GAVIN LUX: Yeah, I mean, that's just the way the baseball playoffs are set up and next year it might be different. But it is what it is and we got to accept the fact that these are probably two of the best teams in baseball going at it and somebody's got to go home, like you said. So it just, it is what it is, and that's how it is.

Q. You were just talking about the vets on this team, the superstars, the MVPs. What's the most valuable piece of advice you've received from one of those guys or any of those guys?

GAVIN LUX: Yeah, going into the playoffs in 2019, JT pulled me aside, and Chase was in there too, Utley, and he was just like every time you step up in the box try to have that feeling that you're 4-4. That's like the best feeling you can have if you're a hitter. Going up there 4-4, there's no pressure. You feel good. So that's kind of the best take of advice I've gotten from anybody, I think, going into the playoffs.

Q. Your reaction after Game 3 when you thought you hit a home run and it seems like people are going to say, Oh, we have new memes with you. Have you gotten any teasing from your teammates about that or received any negative reaction from that?

GAVIN LUX: From my teammates, no, but obviously scrolling through Twitter there's a lot of memes going around. And I feel like everybody makes a meme of me anyways as it is because all the facial reactions I have. But that's just how I am. I'm kind of a goof on the bench a little bit. And so obviously, yeah, I saw the stuff on Twitter, but nothing from those guys, I don't think.

Q. About the advice that Chase and Justin gave you about stepping up to the plate like you're already 4-4. Compared to the first three games, where you just had that one pinch hit at-bat late, to Game 4 where you got four plate appearances as well, is there a rhythm to it? Do you need to see a little bit? Tell me the difference of the dichotomy between pinch hitting and starting and getting more at-bats?

GAVIN LUX: Yeah, I don't think, I just haven't had too many pinch hit opportunities where you are kind of sitting around, you try to stay warm the entire game, you might pick up a bat in the 4th or 5th inning, start moving around. So it's just a little bit different of what I'm used to as far as routine-wise, where, if I'm starting, you know you're going to have kind of two or three at-bats, and the way you navigate through those at-bats it definitely changes, as opposed to where you get one at-bat, you don't really know what you're going to get.

And I think you can kind of feel out what they're trying to do more to you as far as trying to get you out if you have multiple at-bats. So it's just a little more comfortable.