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AL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: TIGERS v RANGERS

October 15, 2011

Ron Washington

ARLINGTON, TEXAS: Game Six

THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon. We're going to get started in the interview room with Ron Washington.

Q. Wash, did you give any consideration to moving Cruz up the lineup based on how hot he's been recently?
RON WASHINGTON: No, I didn't. He's doing well right there. He's picking up big RBI's right there where he is. As I said, if there's a change, you guys will know about it. But I haven't.

Q. Wash, when you made the call to get guys some rest, but still play to win to get home field, did you specifically say to yourself hey, man, we might be 3-2. I want 6 and 7 at home against Detroit? Were you that specific in your thinking?
RON WASHINGTON: No, the only specific that I was about was after we won the division, then we had to try to play for home-field advantage, and I really couldn't get them the rest that I wanted.
So after we got lucky enough to win the series in Anaheim, you know, whatever opportunity we have right now we just trying to get them rest. But I never really thought that far ahead.

Q. Back on the lineup and having Nelson where he is, it seems like it does kind of slot things out where it really extends your lineup. Is that something that you've seen where that's been part of the success for him and for the team?
RON WASHINGTON: Well, because of our lineup, it wasn't a necessary need to try to tinker with it.
I don't know, I just always wanted those guys to understand each day they showed up at the ballpark where they were hitting and what their job was. Sometimes you can try to move a guy somewhere because something is going on, and then all of a sudden it doesn't work because he's right there.
All of a sudden they figure out a way to throw pitches different ways and do things, and the next thing you know, you don't have that cohesiveness. Right now we have cohesiveness. And he's doing a great job in the seventh slot. And I just haven't, since we started the playoffs against Tampa and now against Detroit, felt the need to make a change. So I haven't.

Q. Wash, how are your beat up guys? I know everybody is playing now. It's that time of season. But particularly Beltre and Hamilton and is there anybody else who has anything that we should know about?
RON WASHINGTON: No. Those are the two. But as I said yesterday about Hamilton, he have some discomfort, but he's a player. And Beltre came in today, and he's moving very well. He had some spring in his step. I think his last few at-bats in Detroit he showed that he was beginning to get over his front side much better. His bat speed picked up.
Other than that, you know, it's nothing any different than you have at this time of the year. It's certainly anything that we are concerned with.

Q. You get five to six good innings out of Derek today, how do you anticipate managing your bullpen?
RON WASHINGTON: Well, I think it just depends on where we are. If we get five out of Derek and we're in a tie ballgame or one run down or one run up, probably go to Ogando first. And then we'll see where we go from there.
You know, if Derek have to come out of the game earlier than that, probably see Feldman first and then Ogando after that, and if Derek get fortunate enough to take us deeper in the ballgame, you know, you may see Mike Adams, you may see Ogando.
We have flexibility down there. They're well rested, and we're just going to follow the flow of the game and see where we are.

Q. Wash, as a hitter, what would you say that Nelson Cruz's greatest asset is?
RON WASHINGTON: I think his greatest asset is he's a threat. That's the greatest asset he brings. One swing of the bat he can change a ballgame around. And he can change it with a single, double, triple or a home run.
So he's a threat. He allows the guy in front of him to maybe get some pitches that maybe he wouldn't get normally. But he's a threat.

Q. Mechanically speaking, what do you see as his greatest asset?
RON WASHINGTON: Well, for me when he's at his best, he keeps the ball in the big part of the field. And to do that, you have to stay over the plate, you have to let the ball travel. Like I said, I think when Nelson gets in trouble mechanically is when he's constantly trying to pull the ball. He's pulled some home runs. That's simply because they made him pull, but he had to be in the right position to be able to get his hands through to free himself to do that.
So mechanically, I think he's in the right spot. Looking in the big part of the field and reacting to everything else. When he just start trying to spin on baseballs, that's when he gets out of whack mechanically.

Q. What was the decision -- it looked like maybe you guys switched, or maybe it was that way all along, with David as the DH and Endy in the field.
RON WASHINGTON: When I put the lineup at first, I had Endy as the DH. And I felt like I could get more out of Endy if I put him on the field instead of him just walking up there three or four times to hit.
David has DHed before. I really haven't made Endy DH that much. I feel like I can get Endy involved if I get him on the defensive side too. So it was who can handle the position the best.
I felt David can handle the DH spot today for me better and to get the most out of Endy I feel I need to put him in the outfield. So that's why the change was made.

Q. With the injuries Nelson battled through, at what point do you think he clicked back and got back in the rhythm again?
RON WASHINGTON: In the series against Tampa he started centering some balls pretty good. But he wasn't getting anything for it. He quit chasing when he first got back he did a lot of chasing. He quit chasing as much.
Once he quit chasing it let me know he was starting to see the baseball. And then all of a sudden he started getting some balls to the big part of the field straight away center field where he centered some balls, but they were outs.
You know, as I said earlier, he come back and he had to face Seattle, Oakland, Tampa Bay, Detroit, Anaheim, great pitching right there. They got him locked in. And I hope he stays locked in.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Ron.
RON WASHINGTON: Thank you.

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