NL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: DIAMONDBACKS VS PHILLIES

October 24, 2023

Paul Sewald

Citizens Bank Park

Arizona Diamondbacks

Pregame 7 Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: We're going to get started with Paul Sewald.

Q. We spoke a little bit last night. Torey mentioned today that he felt that maybe some of the extra time off in between games and series really helped you kind of recharge and lock in some of your command, and that's the biggest issue for your effectiveness this postseason. Would you feel like that's pretty much accurate?

PAUL SEWALD: Yeah, came over, wasn't nearly as crisp as I was in Seattle, which was a little frustrating maybe for the first six weeks. You really want to get off to a good start and make a good impression with the new team, and I didn't do the best I that could on that.

We worked hard on trying to make sure we had everything clicking as late in the season as we possibly could. I just feel like I kind of started to get everything clicking right into the postseason. Yeah, we've done a great job of making sure that with all these off days, I've been fresh and made sure that -- not getting rusty, but just fresh and crisp, and it's led to a pretty good postseason so far.

Q. What do you think is important to your team's success in terms of making sure the result is just the game and not because it's Game 7?

PAUL SEWALD: Yeah. It's just a regular season game is the best way to try and make it look. You know, obviously we know it's Game 7 in the NLCS. The winner gets to go to the World Series. But when you start to put too much pressure on a result rather than a process is when you start to get out of your process and start to not perform the way you can.

We could lose today and the season would be over. That's a reality. But we're going to give it everything we have to try and fight and make sure that we have games next week.

Brandon is ready, and that's the most important thing. And I know the guys in there are ready. The vibe, feel is very, hey, let's go out there and see what we can do.

Q. I know Spring Training doesn't mean much, but when you saw these guys in Spring Training, did any thought come to your mind like, hey, they're a lot better than people may think?

PAUL SEWALD: I didn't even get to see them in Spring Training. As a veteran reliever, I don't really watch a lot of the Spring Training games. If I'm not pitching, I rarely tune in other than checking the box score on my app.

I hadn't even really thought about it. Seattle, Arizona, not going to play each other. Not really kind of concentrated on them unless it got to the World Series.

Obviously MLB Network is on in every single clubhouse as you play all season, so you kind of see, hey, they have the best record in baseball in June and in July. I was very impressed with how they had it the first half of the season. And then I come over, and I get traded, and I get to see a little bit of what they have.

And just a bunch of resilient guys that just keep battling. I think last night was the perfect example of that. With our backs up against the wall, we responded just as we have all season. Proud to be here.

Q. Paul, how does the kind of distribution of the pressure feel to you? It kind of seems to me like maybe the team that was expected to be here and has kind of lost their way into a Game 7 now, maybe there's a little bit more on them? Does that feel that way to you?

PAUL SEWALD: It's a really good, battle-tested team that went to the World Series last year. They know what it's like to deal with pressure. There's pressure on both teams. Like I said, the loser's season is over tonight, whether you are the favorite or the underdog. There's pressure on both sides, and whoever handles it the best, will get to celebrate at the end of the day.

We have just felt like we've played with our backs against the wall all postseason. Maybe all season. So I think we've played in that underdog mode more so far this year, so I think if we can just keep playing like that, that's our best chance.

Pressure is huge, and everyone knows that, but the team that handles it the best is probably going to celebrate.

Q. When you get this deep into a series, the top relievers on one team and the top hitters on another will have seen each other a few times. Do you view that as the same battle every time out? And if not, does seeing each other over and over favor one side or another?

PAUL SEWALD: Yeah, it's tough. If you keep getting guys, then maybe the hitters feel, like, man, he's got my number. For me I only have two pitches, and all those guys know the two pitches that I have, so I'm not throwing anything crazy out there that they haven't seen before. It's a matter of executing. That's the most important thing.

As a pitcher, if you can execute your pitches, you're going to have a better chance. If we don't execute and the hitters get those mistakes, and they execute, that's when they're going to win.

Yeah, it's different having a seven-game series and facing those guys as many times as we have, but I don't know if there's necessarily one way that favors somebody or not. They say that more at-bats helps the hitters, but if you feel like you have something on somebody, maybe the pitchers have the advantage.

It's hard to say. I feel bad saying 50/50, but I think it's probably just 50/50 to that. Whoever executes the best has the advantage. I'll say that.

Q. I was just thinking from your time coming over, what was the most surprising thing to you or unexpected thing to you about this team, the players, the organization? And who helped you transition? Which coach, player, manager helped you transition the easiest into this club?

PAUL SEWALD: I would say probably Corbin Carroll is even better in person than he is watching highlights on TV. I think that's probably what caught me by surprise most. I was so lucky to have Julio as the Rookie of The Year last year, and now I get to have him as the Rookie of The Year on my team. I'm just very fortunate to get to surround myself with absolute superstars like that.

I think he just plays even faster in person than the stat sheet says or what you would see on TV. That's probably what kind of surprised me the most about the team was that he just really is everything that anybody could write about him.

Getting acclimated, just to your teammates is the most important thing. And for me the bullpen guys. That's who I spend the most time with, the pitchers. We have a different stretch time than the hitters. The hitters have their meetings. We have ours.

Just spending more time with the pitchers. I have found that relief pitchers are goofy and silly in every single city and every single team, and it didn't really take me that long to get to be one of the guys.