MLB WORLD SERIES: ASTROS VS BRAVES

October 29, 2021

Yuli Gurriel

Truist Park

Houston Astros

Pregame 3 Press Conference

Q. The energy and how much energy in the clubhouse being a participant here in the World Series.

YULI GURRIEL: He has a ton of energy. I wish a lot more ball players would have as much energy as Jose Siri does. I think that would help win a lot of games.

Q. In a game that's so much younger now, you came here after 30 years old. The question is were you confident that you would be able to do the things that you did coming here? Then the second question is how have you accustomed yourself to the long seasons compared to other leagues that you had been in?

YULI GURRIEL: I'm a person that takes care of myself a lot. I try to eat healthy. I try to get a lot of sleep, just to be able to face a season that's so long. Even then, it's more than you imagine sometimes. It's a very long grind.

Q. And the first question?

YULI GURRIEL: When I got here, I never even imagined that I would be participating in a World Series. I just came here with the mentality of playing alongside the world's best, playing with the best players in the world, and I didn't even think about the possibility of playing in a World Series. Now look, it's three now.

Q. What does it mean, one, to be a finalist for the Gold Glove and to also have four of your teammates finalists as well?

YULI GURRIEL: I'm really happy for my teammates. I know the work that they put in. They're really special defensively. So the work that they put in to be able to be a finalist makes me really happy.

And it's the third time being a finalist for a Gold Glove for myself. As they say in Cuba, third time is the charm basically. Hopefully, this is the time I'm going to win.

Q. It seems like Altuve has gotten a lot of plays in the postseason in the shift, and his throws look a whole lot -- how much better have his throws gotten in the shift and just his throwing in general this season?

YULI GURRIEL: It's really tough. I think people don't understand the difficulty just watching it of playing in the shift like that. When balls go from the dirt on the infield to the grass in the outfield, it's a really tough change. A lot of times guys are really close at first base as well. It's really incredible. You've got to give him a lot of credit for the work that he's done defensively.

Q. There are some Houston fans here. There's not a ton of them, but they're very vocal. What does it mean to the players to have the support here as well as the support back home in Houston?

YULI GURRIEL: It's a lot more important than I think people realize sometimes, just to know that your fans have your back like that. It gives you more confidence to go out there and do the job, especially in an event so big like the World Series. So it's really important that our fans have our back like that.

Q. Luis Garcia, what did you observe in the adjustment that he made on the mound in the final game of the ALCS?

YULI GURRIEL: It's been incredible, just the job that he did in his last time out. I think the velocity was more surprising than anything. He was throwing harder than he has at any point in the season. It was incredible to see that. And just the location of the pitches, he was really accurate with what he wanted to throw. I think it speaks a lot to his maturity this year.

Q. I think a lot of the pitchers are excited to get to hit while you're playing here. What have you seen in practice? How do they look?

YULI GURRIEL: It's something I really thought just happened in Cuba, where the hitters wanted to pitch and all the pitchers wanted to hit, but I see that the guys here are even more excited to hit than they are to throw. So it's something that's been really fun.

Q. Dusty spoke yesterday saying he was concerned that so many of the Houston players have not had experience at Truist Park. Now that the weather has taken away really pregame batting practice and a chance to get in the outfield, what kind of disadvantage is that for you guys to know the field, to know the way the outfield plays, et cetera?

YULI GURRIEL: We haven't had the chance to be outside too much, but neither have they in the last couple days. So I look at it as pretty much equal and there's no advantage there. For us, it's just the mentality of going out and trying to accomplish the same objective, which is play good baseball and play to the best of our abilities any way we can.

Q. A lot has been talked about this playoffs about Carlos Correa, his upcoming free agency. These could be the last few games for you guys as an infield. Have you thought about that? If you have, what have those thoughts been?

YULI GURRIEL: We try not to think about that too much, but we obviously know that's a reality that it could be the last series we all play together. Hopefully not. There's still the hope that he comes back. Since I've been here, I've felt really comfortable and felt really good with the infield we have here. So I still have hope that it's not the end for it.