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AL DIVISION SERIES: RED SOX v ANGELS

October 9, 2009

Terry Francona

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Game Two

MATT McKENDRY: Questions for Terry Francona.

Q. Could you talk about the development of Buchholz in the second half and how he really took off for you?
TERRY FRANCONA: Yeah, who is pitching tonight?

Q. I know it's Beckett, but?
TERRY FRANCONA: Okay. The last -- I'd say probably ten starts which is roughly one third of the season, maybe, he was one of the better pitchers in the league. Which is, at a time we were getting a little bit banged up, it certainly made our glass look a lot more full.
They were talking about a younger pitcher that's come through our organization, and now he's going out there being somebody that we want to pitch in a playoff-type game. We went through the whole thing last year where it didn't work, and he had to go back to Triple-A. Now having him pitch for us in this type of atmosphere, and he's earned it. It really, really helps, not just our team, but our organization.

Q. After last night I wanted to ask how are you feeling today and how were you feeling after you left the stadium with the sickness?
TERRY FRANCONA: I had a bad night. I just got flat out food poisoning. Everybody's probably had it. Believe me when I tell you, I got rid of it (laughing).

Q. Better today then.
TERRY FRANCONA: I just have a headache. I'm fine. Thank you for asking. I was miserable yesterday. What are you going --

Q. The game probably didn't help?
TERRY FRANCONA: No. No, it really didn't.

Q. You're obviously very confident about Josh. Can you describe a little bit about your time with him and what it is that's made you feel so good about him in a situation like the one he's in tonight?
TERRY FRANCONA: Well, I wish we could take credit, but he was doing these types of things before we got him back when he was with the Marlins as a young kid. We all know about that.
He works so hard. And it's just for these type of games. He looks forward to tonight's game.
That doesn't guarantee anything, but we like when he has the responsibility of a game like this. He's going to go out and going to give you everything he has. And everything he has is pretty good.
You can't just have the will to do it. You've got to have the stuff. But when you combine that, it ends up being some type of pretty special. And that's what he's done.

Q. I wanted to ask you a question about Scott Kazmir. When you saw the Angels obtain him late like they did, was it in your mind at all that they might have been thinking about a possible match-up with you guys or the Yankees given that Scott's pitched pretty well against those two teams?
TERRY FRANCONA: You might be giving me too much credit. What I do remember is we were going to Tampa, and I was excited. Then I realized we were coming back and playing the Angels, so it tempered that a little bit. Again, they made their move. We have our hands full. I don't sit back. As I said, you're probably giving me a little too much credit.

Q. He has pitched pretty well against you guys and the Yankees in his career?
TERRY FRANCONA: Yes, he has.

Q. And for a kid he did that when he was pretty young, too. Is that something that has impressed you that he's been able to be that good?
TERRY FRANCONA: His first couple of outings against us were borderline overwhelming us. I mean velocity, slider, he was real young and he was probably -- I don't want to say wild in the zone. Just enough where we had some horrible numbers against him. He's evolved a little bit. He doesn't throw quite as hard as he used to, hopefully. For a while he got away from the slider, but now I know that's come back.
So he's good. He's been good for a long time. He's been pitching for a long time. I know he's not that old.

Q. Is there a common threat to guys who pitch well in this month on this stage? Is there something about the temperament that allows them to channel all of the pressures?
TERRY FRANCONA: I would think so. I would think so. The guys that I've been around, Schilling or Beckett and Lester, this stage brings out the best. They don't -- again, sometimes you just get beat because you're playing good teams, but it doesn't happen because of nerves or because you're shying away from the competition.
Again, they're going to get the best of Beckett, they might beat him. I hope not. But he's obviously very excited about this challenge, and it usually shows in the way he pitches.

Q. About Abreu, is he the same kind of headache in the Angels lineup as he was in the Yankees' lineup? Or is there some different dynamic that he brings to their team?
TERRY FRANCONA: Well, you ask me some weird questions (laughing).

Q. I'm hoping to get the best out of it.
TERRY FRANCONA: I mean, last night in a situation where we're playing back, trying to get him to just maybe take a grounder and get out of the inning with a run. He doesn't give in. He's such a professional hitter. He'll take his walk. He always has done that.
This is on a team that maybe didn't used to do that as much, so he probably has brought a little bit of a different look. I think he still has some guys that are pretty aggressive, but maybe not quite as much as in the past.
MATT McKENDRY: Thanks, Terry.

End of FastScripts

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