MLB WORLD SERIES: YANKEES VS DODGERS

October 28, 2024

Walker Buehler

Yankee Stadium

Los Angeles Dodgers

Postgame 3 Press Conference

Dodgers - 4, Yankees - 2

Q. Walker, that four seamer was such a great setup pitch and such a good pitch today. What was different about that pitch?

WALKER BUEHLER: It's kind of like it used to be a little bit, or a little bit closer obviously. Got a couple of swing and miss early in the game, and that kind of resets you mentally to think, oh, I've got a good one going today or whatever. Yeah, it felt good.

Q. When that pitch does feel good, what is it about the characteristics of it or how you're throwing that you think makes it effective?

WALKER BUEHLER: I think it's less about that pitch more than it just lets me get into some counts that you're protecting the other stuff. Then you can throw the bigger one with two strikes as opposed to with one strike. It just gives you a little bit more freedom.

Q. And you've talked about the big game thing, but just to have another strong World Series start like this, how gratifying are those moments to you?

WALKER BUEHLER: I've told you guys that's kind of all I care about, but it makes these -- it makes kind of the regular season worth it for me.

Q. You talked about late in the season that you didn't know at the time if you had this stuff to get guys out. Seeing what you've been able to do over the last two starts, what do you feel like you've been able to find?

WALKER BUEHLER: I think, as kind of brutal as it is to say, it takes that adrenaline and stuff to kind of really get me going mentally. I wish I would have felt that all year. I could tell you I'm excited to pitch every single game I've ever gone out there, but there is something different in the playoffs.

At least long term for me, to get through the playoffs in the way that I have, it's really encouraging for me personally because I know it's in there and I've just got to unlock it a little bit. But that feeling of there's an organization relying on me today to win a playoff game, I think it's kind of the weight that I like feeling and kind of gets me in a certain place mentally that it's kind of hard to replicate.

Q. What's the feeling being one game away from a World Series championship?

WALKER BUEHLER: I'm excited to watch our guys go tomorrow and see what happens. I'll be ready if there's a Game 7, but my hope is that I don't have to throw anymore.

Q. How does it feel going into five shutout innings in such a crucial World Series game?

WALKER BUEHLER: How does it feel before or after?

Q. During.

WALKER BUEHLER: It's great. Listen, man, we play professional baseball for a living. When it's going good, there's not much else you'd rather do on this earth.

Q. You had some pretty good outfield defense behind you tonight. What did you see first on the Mookie play and then on the Teoscar play in that fourth inning?

WALKER BUEHLER: The Mookie play was interesting. Obviously the ball is spinning a little weird and kind of stepped back for a second and made the play. He's won a few Gold Gloves out there, so that's something we kind of expect from him.

Teo threw Stanton out at home and I got in the dugout, and I said they don't know about you in New York. You'd think they would remember what he did when we played here in the regular season. Pretty cool for him to show off the other side of the ball and kind of put a perfect throw, and Will put the tag on.

That was a big momentum play. Obviously the first couple innings it was going pretty smooth. For them to get a little momentum and shut it down that way, it was pretty cool.

Q. Just with everything that you've been through injury-wise and for the team having kind of a weird World Series in 2020, did you at any moment today kind of allow yourself to think, wow, World Series game, Yankee Stadium, soldout crowd. This is pretty special.

WALKER BUEHLER: What was weird in 2020 to you?

Q. Just playing in a World Series in a stadium that was like not normal.

WALKER BUEHLER: Listen, this was my third World Series game, and they've kind of gone similarly. There's a thing for me that whatever pride or whatever weight I feel seems to come out somehow beneficial for us.

I think this team is just different than the teams we've had before in terms of the way we operate in there with the 26 guys that are active that day. There's this bond that's kind of different. We play for each other.

That play from Teo is kind of significant in terms of what I'm saying in that like, okay, I slipped a little. I gave up a couple hits, and we cover it.

Like I haven't been on that many teams that we cover each other the way this team does. I've also never been on a team that's up 3-0 in the World Series.