AL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: RANGERS VS ASTROS

October 21, 2023

Dusty Baker

Minute Maid Park

Houston Astros

Workout Day Press Conference

Q. Dusty, last night after the ejection, were you able to still be involved in the decisions for pinch-hitting in the 9th, or who was making those?

DUSTY BAKER: Well, those are things that, like I told you before, I'm always an inning or two ahead. So I was telling guys to get prepared long before the action. So it doesn't matter who made the decision, we won.

Q. But obviously it paid off in a big way, but what went into the reasoning to put Díaz and Singleton up in those big spots?

DUSTY BAKER: Well, I guess that I don't really feel like I really need to understand, just to think that it worked and we won.

Q. You guys going 3-0 in your orange jerseys. Is there any thought to wearing them tomorrow night?

DUSTY BAKER: I don't know. I haven't even talked to Carl. I know Framber likes to wear the blue. And so I've got to talk to Carl and Framber.

Q. Building off that, everybody has talked all season about the struggles at home. What is the message now? Obviously, they know you have to win. Is there anything you're saying about that?

DUSTY BAKER: No, what can I say? I mean, if I had the magic words, I'd have said them like two months ago. So just got to get it done. There are no words that can describe what we have to do. Simply action.

Q. Yesterday after you were arguing with the umpires, they eject you, and then you sat back down on the bench. What was your thought process in doing that, and can you kind of take me through that?

DUSTY BAKER: My thought process is I wasn't ready to go because it shouldn't have happened in the first place. That was my thought process.

Q. Did they eventually come back over and said you're ejected, you have to go now, or how did that work?

DUSTY BAKER: Well, they came back over. Were you watching yesterday?

Q. Yes.

DUSTY BAKER: Okay, then you saw them come back over, then, right?

Q. I was wondering what they said to you.

DUSTY BAKER: Well, they didn't say much. They kind of just turned around and said, He's not leaving. Then they turned around and said they can't start until I leave.

Q. Tomorrow should have a ton of emotion and kind of intensity involved with the game. With Framber, just how important is it that he controls himself and his emotions?

DUSTY BAKER: Well, it's always incumbent on that. But Framber's pitched big games before. I think we're making a lot out of Framber's emotions. In the last couple of games, it wasn't so much his emotions, it was his location. He wasn't sharp.

So the main thing is that we have to -- or Framber has to, and Maldy, you know, we talk about emotion emotions, but you've got to throw strikes and quality strikes in a quality location. If he does that, then emotions never come into play.

Q. Texas has really ridden a roller coaster over the last month. They found ways to bounce back from what seemed to be demoralizing losses. Obviously yesterday was a real gut punch for them. How dangerous of an opponent are they tomorrow?

DUSTY BAKER: There aren't any more dangerous tomorrow than they were yesterday. We've had some tough losses, too. I mean we've had a roller coaster, too. At the end of the year, you know, if we both weren't on the roller coaster, then we both would have had big leads on each other.

We were losing to Kansas City, I don't know, five out of six games. I mean, we lost two out of three to Oakland, and we came real close to that and wound up beating Seattle, and then we turn around and beat Arizona. I mean, that's a roller coaster, too.

So the season has its ups and downs, twists and turns. And like I said, we have both been on a roller coaster.

Q. Do you expect any sort of carryover from last night into tomorrow regarding the tensions or anything like that?

DUSTY BAKER: Regarding what?

Q. Regarding the tensions coming out.

DUSTY BAKER: Probably.

Q. How do you think that might manifest itself?

DUSTY BAKER: Man, I don't know. I don't have no crystal ball. I mean, it's going to be what it's going to be. You have to wait and see, just like me. Like we don't script it, it just happens.

Q. Along those lines, you've talked about kind of feeding off the energy. There have been some times these past few seasons under your leadership that incidents have maybe sparked this club. Can you kind of speak to what that does, maybe kind of adding a little bit of fuel to the bunch?

DUSTY BAKER: Well, we don't necessarily want the people and the kids and the country, the fans and the players -- the players don't want to get into fights and skirmishes. And most of these guys know each other. Especially Latin guys are closer than anybody.

But when emotions get high -- have you ever gotten in an argument with your mom or your dad or your brothers?

Mean, it happens. And you don't script it. It's a spontaneous, combustible reaction that gets out of control.

And most of us want to be under control. Most of us want to play ball. Most don't want to box. But if it comes to that, most of the time you feel terrible after, but during it gets out of control.

Q. Talked to John Singleton in Minneapolis, and he said he was going to be ready when his number is called. And that's easier said than done. You know that rhythm thing. What went into the decision of knowing or thinking that he could deliver at that time? And then how impressive was it for him to come out there and not be overanxious?

DUSTY BAKER: I've been telling him that, that he was going to come up big. I told Kessinger the same thing. I said, You're going to have a big role sooner or later in this park, you stay ready. That's their job. And it's up to us to keep them ready and remind them to be ready.

I told Singleton, I said, Dude, you might hit the home run that sends us to the World Series. That's part of my job as a manager and part of my job to believe in the players.

I don't know if you remember, remember I told you all that the circle is not complete unless the lesser is equal to the greater. So this is all part of the things that I've been saying, I hate to repeat myself.

Q. It kind of got lost in the shuffle, but Tucker's double off of Chapman, to get Leclerc in the game, the domino effect that had, do you think that swing is something that can maybe get him going?

DUSTY BAKER: That was big. I mean, his last two hits have been a blooper and then off of Chapman. I mean, that was huge. That went unnoticed, to get Leclerc in the game. And those extra pitches that -- that's why I'm not crazy about putting reliever in one-and-a-fraction in the eighth inning, because if he has a semi long at-bat or whatever it is and then set back down and has to get back up, that's -- I mean, that's become very difficult.

Back in the day when there were three-inning saves, you know, which you'll never see again, unless by accident, yeah, that was huge. You didn't know if it had an effect on Leclerc or not, but most of them are more used to one-inning saves.

Q. You guys have kept Corey Seager and Marcus Semien for the most part --

DUSTY BAKER: Oh...

Q. You guys have had some success against them so far.

DUSTY BAKER: You leave them alone.

(Laughter.)

DUSTY BAKER: Pick somebody else. I'm serious about this.

Q. Maybe your pitching staff as a whole and how you've approached their lineup and to win these three games and to pitch well over the course of the time in Arlington?

DUSTY BAKER: That's a good question, but I refrain from answering it because we don't need to tell them anything or give them any more motivation because those two dudes are two of the best dudes in the league.

Q. Getting back to Chandler's question, I mean, does a lot of setting up for yesterday for Kyle go back to Game 3 of actually watching pitches, seeing them go through, getting those walks, kind of getting the recalibration, almost?

DUSTY BAKER: Yeah, well the more pitches you see, the more your eye recognizes pitches to hit. I had hoped when I moved him down to 6th that he would see more pitches, but he would at least get some pitches to hit at the same time.

So am I crazy about him being in 6th? No, but I need to get him going in order for me to move him back up. And pretty soon I think he'll be ready.

Q. After you won your first World Series last year, you immediately told us: Now I want to win another one. Now that you're one win away from the chance to do that, what's the feeling for you personally?

DUSTY BAKER: Nothing. You've got to get there first. You can't look at the finish line before you get to the finish line. You've got to cross the finish line then look back.

And then hopefully if we win tomorrow, then I'll tell you what the feeling is like tomorrow. It's another step in the journey. I mean, this is -- we've got five steps to go. But number one step is tomorrow.

Q. The Altuve homer --

DUSTY BAKER: This is a long session.

(Laughter.)

Q. The Altuve homer yesterday, are there any other moments in your career playoff-wise you've been involved with that compares to maybe the Rick Monday homer in Montreal?

DUSTY BAKER: I was on deck on the Rick Monday homer. No, I wasn't on deck, I was on base. I had gotten a hit up the middle off Woodie Fryman before that, and then -- yeah, there have been some. Barry Bonds' homer. I can't remember all these homers. The most recent one seems like the best one so far.

Q. You've told us how quickly you can fall asleep. I wonder after an emotional game like that, the significance of it, what last night was like for you, what it feels like today?

DUSTY BAKER: It was the same thing. I fell asleep immediately. I unpacked, fell asleep immediately, and woke up in the middle of the night. My allergies were bothering me, like I said. I couldn't breathe. Still can't. I told you the other day I had a virus; I wasn't lying. I have a fever blister now. I was up at 3:30 just lying there until like, on and off, 8:30.

Q. (Off microphone.)

DUSTY BAKER: No, I did the lineup last night on the plane.