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NL DIVISION SERIES: DIAMONDBACKS v BREWERS

October 1, 2011

Zack Greinke

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN: Game One

Q. How comfortable are you with starting on three days rest?
ZACK GREINKE: Plenty comfortable. I didn't throw that many pitches last time because we planned on it possibly happening.

Q. Could you tell us looking back now your preseason expectations of how you envisioned going here, and then on and off the field if it was any different than you thought it might be?
ZACK GREINKE: Well, I didn't think I'd get hurt. And I thought -- I mean, I'm kind of surprised how good we played, everyone played really well. And the pitching staff did probably better than imagined. The bullpen did better than imagined. So like a lot of things worked out good.
And a couple of things that did happen, like injuries and slumps and stuff, we found a way out of it pretty good and pretty quick a lot of times. And then also we talked about it even before my last start, but I felt better going on a short day than eight days in between starts. Like I'd rather pitch the start of the last day of the season, like a short one, than not pitch then and just have that much rest. I felt like I'd be too strong and maybe feel too good and too rested. So I thought this way would be better.

Q. How about your assimilation into the team itself, how long did it take for you to feel comfortable with the guys, how did that go?
ZACK GREINKE: I felt comfortable a couple weeks in, maybe, maybe less. I don't know about everyone else.

Q. Why do you feel so comfortable on the mound and in this place pitching?
ZACK GREINKE: I do in most places, just the results have been good here. Our team plays better here. Sometimes when you get on a roll it just kind of continues easier. I don't think I even noticed I pitched any better here than on the road until maybe a month ago when people were making a big deal out of it. It just kind of happened.

Q. When you were traded over here, did you at that time envision that you might be going into a playoff scenario at the end of the season?
ZACK GREINKE: Yeah, I thought we would. I think I said at the time if I was a free agent at the time, I thought Milwaukee would be one of the top maybe top three choices or whatever I'd want to go to. I thought their team was pretty good. I thought it was kind of tough trading away a couple of their other guys. But I heard the depth of the team.
But I felt the team was really good and just kind of needed just a piece here or there to put them in the playoff picture.

Q. Ron talked about how going on short rest in Game 2 was your decision, you really wanted it. Can you tell us from a competitive standpoint why you wanted to go on a short rest?
ZACK GREINKE: Well, I told him I'd be ready to pitch. It doesn't matter when they pitch me, but I said I'd be ready, for sure. And it was also kind of part of the plan if it wasn't talked about before, I'm sure I would have thrown more than 70 pitches my last outing and I would have just went on normal day or whatever. But we kind of shortened that out in thinking that if I was able to pitch I would pitch on Sunday, I guess.
So I felt real good the last start of the season. And since it was even a shorter innings pitch or pitch total, I figured I'd be fine by tomorrow. And I felt good yesterday, so I would be able to pitch today. So I should be able to pitch tomorrow.

Q. You've had a lot of individual success at Kansas City. What does it feel like to have team success like this?
ZACK GREINKE: It's a lot more fun to come to the park when this is going on. When you're doing good individually, it's still not fun to go to the park if the team is losing. But right now it's fun to watch the games. You learn more watching better players play. And good pitchers you kind of learn from, too. So it's nice.

Q. Ron made the point earlier that because you were not available the first month that you might be stronger now. Do you sense that yourself?
ZACK GREINKE: It's possible. I got tired like a month ago or like I was getting a little -- like my shoulder would be sore, my knee would be sore or my back would be sore or something. But the last two weeks everything has been really good.
Usually you get -- I don't know, I'm strong a lot of times. Usually there's -- you get healthy and then it gets better and then it kind of comes back and forth. And a month ago I was in that time where I was getting tired and stuff. But now the last two weeks I've been feeling strong again. I don't know how you could really predict how you feel sometimes.

Q. Now that all five starters have had the full season, who is the best hitting pitcher on the rotation? You guys seem to get after it pretty good in that regard.
ZACK GREINKE: It's tough because I don't -- I was doing good the first month or two hitting. But I was pitching bad. So I haven't thought about hitting since then. And I'm like one or two for my last like 25 or something. So my average has dropped a lot.
I think I've got -- Yo [Gallardo] might be the most natural where he doesn't have to think about it, he just goes out and hits. I think I think about going out and hitting, but that takes away from the pitching. So I don't worry about that.

Q. Does that eliminate your trash talking? He said you like to talk about your hitting.
ZACK GREINKE: Well, maybe. I don't talk any trash now about hitting. No one has talked too much about that with me, either. We've been worried about other things, I think.

Q. You said before you take kind of -- every game is sort of the same approach, but being this is your first playoff, do you see your next start as being the biggest one of your career?
ZACK GREINKE: Yeah, but it's still just getting ready for a game and just try to make your pitches and things should work good if you just do that.

Q. In doing the short start, what have you had to change in your routine, have you skipped your bullpen or what have you done different?
ZACK GREINKE: No, I threw bullpen both times on the normal day. I think the last one I threw almost like a full -- maybe it was a little bit lighter, but almost a full one. And then the last start everything was pretty crisp. So this time I didn't have much to work on, so I just did it pretty light and just trying to get the arm ready.

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