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AL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: RED SOX v RAYSOctober 10, 2008Terry FranconaST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA: Game One Q. After the first inning with Matsuzaka, how brilliant was he for the next at least five innings after that? TERRY FRANCONA: He went through one stretch where I think it was innings four, five and six where he threw ten pitches in each inning; and he was power, and his two-seamer and his cutter. Again, he had a little bit of a high-wire act in the first inning, but I guess -- what do they say, go with what got you here? But as he got into the middle of the game, he really threw the ball well, got into a good groove, and the ball had a lot of life through the strike zone. Q. What factored into your decision to send him back out for the eighth, and was Upton at all a factor in that? TERRY FRANCONA: That was the big factor. We actually warmed up Masterson a little bit before the inning started just so we could keep all of our options open. We didn't intend to have him start the inning, but we don't have three miles down there. So we had Oki, Pap and Masterson hopefully all available, and it paid off. Q. In the two years you've had Daisuke, he's been exceptionally tough on hitters with runners in scoring position or bases loaded. Why do you think that is that he has so much success when the situation seems to get stickier? TERRY FRANCONA: Well, he gives himself a lot of opportunities, but he doesn't give in. He throws all his pitches so hitters have to respect, even in tight situations, he doesn't become a one-pitch pitcher, throw his two-seamer, cutter, changeup, fastball, so they can't sit on one pitch even in tight situations like that. Q. Youk had a little bit of a quiet series in the Division Series. How good was it to se him bust out tonight, and how important he is to the middle of that lineup? TERRY FRANCONA: He's hitting right smack in the middle in the clean-up spot, and Shields had been so tough on him coming into the game. He took some really good swings tonight. Again, any time you're sandwiched in the middle of the order or hitting right behind David, it's an important spot in the order. Q. For those of us who haven't seen a lot of Masterson this season, especially in the postseason, can you talk about the poise that he shows up there, especially for a relatively young reliever in a key situation? TERRY FRANCONA: Would you mind repeating the beginning of that? Q. For those of us who haven't seen Masterson this year, if you could talk about the poise he shows in clutch situations. TERRY FRANCONA: I think I'm stating the obvious when I say we have a lot of confidence in him. He's earned that right for us to have trust in him. That was a huge situation in the game, and he executed exactly like he was supposed to. There's no reason for us not to have the trust in him, put him in those situations. He throws the ball, he executes pitches, the situation isn't too big. The game doesn't start speeding up. He's done a terrific job for us. Q. I think you've now won Game 1, I think, of the last five playoff series you've played in. Is there any significance to that? Does it matter? Does it not matter? TERRY FRANCONA: Oh, it matters a lot. In this series, the fourth win would be more important. We're not going to downplay a win. At the same time, if we lost, we wouldn't give up. But any day you show up, it's certainly a lot more rewarding to win. End of FastScripts |
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