AL WILD CARD SERIES: MARINERS VS BLUE JAYS

October 7, 2022

Scott Servais

Rogers Centre

Seattle Mariners

Postgame Press Conference

Seattle Mariners - 4, Toronto Blue Jays - 0

THE MODERATOR: We'll open it up for Scott Servais.

Q. Scott, I think we kind of saw why you guys went out and got Luis Castillo, but just how much did that dominant performance and just the way he started the game put you guys at ease a little bit? Also, how difficult is it to hit 99 miles per hour with that much movement?

SCOTT SERVAIS: Obviously, when we acquired Luis Castillo, I was as excited as anybody because I know the talent, and getting to know the player and the personality and how he was wired. You could clearly see early on he's wired for these moments, when it's on the line on the biggest stage and the crazy environment.

Being able to put him out there today was a no-brainer for me. Then you take his talent on top of that. It's a 98-, 99-mile-an-hour fastball that's sinking and cutting and running. Wow, some kind of performance by him.

It's something we talked about. When you go to the trade deadline, you're trying to acquire players that will get you over the hump, so to speak, or be difference makers. They're hard to find. They really are. The combination of stuff and make-up and being around him. You know, the first couple of weeks I was around him, it was clear to see that it's how he's wired.

I couldn't be any more proud of him and the effort he gave us today. And our whole team, that's how we have played all year long. We belong here. We really do. Our team believes it and getting off to the start in the game today in a very challenging environment. We knew that coming in.

But we talked about it. I thought we handled it very well today.

Q. Scott, we're in a point of the season where these starting pitchers have made 30-plus starts, running up on 200 innings or so. You wonder how guys are going to hold their stuff throughout a start. He didn't just hold his stuff until the very end. The velocity ticked up. The movement on the sinker. It sort of seems like if he was amped up, he channelled that into all the right things today?

SCOTT SERVAIS: He really did. The key to the ball game was he was in control of the strike zone the entire time, and people that have been around the Mariners for a while understand that it's become our mantra. We control the zone. We dominated the zone today.

He got ahead in the count which allowed him to get deep in the game. It got them into swing mode. What are you going to wait around for? If you look around, you're going to be behind in the count.

Credit to Luis. He was in total command today. The stuff did tick up. It's ticked up since we acquired him. He is throwing harder now than he ever has.

Like I said earlier, he enjoys being on the big stage.

Q. Scott, the two times that a couple of guys on, it's Guerrero and then it's Bichette. He gets out of those jams. What did you see there?

SCOTT SERVAIS: I thought he talked about it. He was able to slow it down, stay in the moment, understanding that all these games come down to about two or three at-bats throughout the course of the game. You just have to recognize where they are at. It was clear where we were at in those moments.

I thought our catcher did an outstanding job today. Can't give enough credit to Cal Raleigh in the pitch calling, mixing it up, going back and forth, mixing enough sliders in there to keep them honest. It was awesome what he did behind the plate today.

Those guys worked very well together. It was fun to watch. Again, it all goes back to dominating the strike zone, and that's what he did today.

Q. What was the game plan against Manoah, and what impressed you most about your team's first inning?

SCOTT SERVAIS: The game plan against Manoah, he's thrown very well. He's had an outstanding season. He threw well against us last time. He has the good sinker and had a really good breaking ball today. Maybe not as good of a changeup as we saw last time out. He's a good competitor, so knew it wasn't going to be easy.

The big at-bats in the first inning were huge. Geno Suarez all year long has been that guy for us, and huge double down the corner. Cal Raleigh, as that at-bat worked through it, the 3-2 at-bat was very similar to the home run he hit about a week ago today. He got a good pitch. He didn't miss it. Cal has been on fire.

Not so much with hits, but with homers. Home runs really -- they make a difference in the postseason. That's what we saw today.

Q. You just touched on Eugenio Suarez just now. I want to ask you, his contribution throughout the year, how big has it been? He just said to me before the game that you guys are just going to execute the plan, you're not going to force anything. You in the first inning just got what you wanted. How big was that?

SCOTT SERVAIS: Geno has been awesome all year long, and I think the thing that stands out to me with Geno is he's a really good player, no question. He has power. He has hit more home runs than basically anyone in the league in the last five years. Kind of an unknown name for a guy who's done all he has done in the game offensively.

The thing that stands out for me with Geno, he is every day the same guy. He is not riding the wave. That is critical when you play a season like we play, as long as we played, as many ups and downs that we have. He has been the one, just the standard in our clubhouse.

He is coachable. Even the guy that's been around the league as much as he has, his defense has improved. He's made adjustments at the plate. It's a credit to him. It doesn't matter, get better. He is focused on getting better. It doesn't matter what he has done in the past, and he's really the epitome of that.

Q. It won't go to a lot of highlights, but the play by Mitch to cut the ball off and get the ball to limit Springer to a single and J.P. making the diving stop in that inning to keep 90 feet away from them. How big and how important is that? You guys have preached not giving up the extra bases.

SCOTT SERVAIS: Our guys were locked in on every pitch today, as they should be in the playoff game. Pitching and defense, I think we lead the league in the least amount of errors made. I thought a key play in the game was the start of the double play in the second inning by Geno Suarez on kind of a tough slow-rolling hop. He had to be aggressive, come get it. It's what Perry Hill talks about all the time. Ball hits dirt, come get it. He did it, and it paid off.

The diving plays that J.P. made. The cutting the balls off. All those things in these games are critical. Just to keep it at 90 feet, keep the double in play in order.

Our guys were locked in today, and that's how we play. When we're in our game, playing our game, that's what we do. We executed it very -- just perfectly today.