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October 18, 2012
DETROIT, MICHIGAN: Game Four
THE MODERATOR: Joe Girardi is in the room.
Q. Joe, when you have a night like that to sleep on, what's going on in the series and what your lineup is and stuff, how do you feel about your ballclub going forward?
JOE GIRARDI: I feel good. I felt good about them. As I look at the series, I know we're down 0‑3 and there's a lot of what‑if's, but it could be substantially different.
We had some opportunities, so I feel good. And you have got to go out and win a game today.
Q. Joe, was there any consideration to change the lineup from last night to today? And, you know, a lot of people watch Alex take batting practice yesterday and thought he had one of his best rounds. I was curious to see what you thought.
JOE GIRARDI: As you look at the decisions we make, there's really not a whole lot to change because of a rain. And our decisions aren't made on a whim, they are based on a lot of stuff that we see and information that we have. So no.
Would I love to be in a position where I didn't have to make changes? Absolutely. But there's been some real struggles in our lineup, and we had to do something.
Q. Joe, how is Hughes feeling today? Does it look like he will be available to pitch maybe a Game 7?
JOE GIRARDI: We believe he's going to be okay and he could be available to us, yes.
Q. Joe, you obviously have some substantial starting pitching lined up should the series progress. Beyond that, what's your core hope with this team?
JOE GIRARDI: Well, I mean, obviously our goal is to win the World Series. I mean, that will never change. But they are short‑term goals at this point. Your goal is to win today. I mean, that's it.
Play a good ballgame and win today and do whatever it takes to win today, and then you worry about tomorrow when tomorrow comes.
Q. You obviously believe that can be accomplished. But based primarily on what you see in the players as individuals, what their history is‑‑
JOE GIRARDI: Yeah. And what we accomplished up to this point so far this year. We've been through a lot of ups and downs. We have been through a lot of difficult times, and this group has always been able to rise above it.  And I don't see any reason why we can't do it now.
Q. Joe, you talked yesterday you were unsure about Logan. Safe to say he is available?
JOE GIRARDI: Yeah, I would think that off day helped him.
Q. Joe, what did you see from Eric Chavez at the plate?
JOE GIRARDI: His at‑bats have been okay. You know, as I talked about yesterday, I thought he got the barrel of the bat to Verlander three times the other day, and that's not an easy guy to get the barrel of the bat up to. And Chavy has swung the bat pretty good for us this year, that's why he's in there.
Q. Joe, Alex has been struggling and you know rumors will be coming up about his future. How much do you feel he can help this team for the remainder of his contract?
JOE GIRARDI: I feel that he can help us and I don't worry about rumors. Anytime you have a player of Alex's stature, there's‑‑it's going to be a hot button. He is going to be talked about a lot. And that's something he's had to deal with for a long, long time.
I don't get caught up. Our focus is here, not what will happen next year, what will happen two years down the road. That would be silly for me. I think it is silly for all of us. No one knows what tomorrow holds for any of us.
Q. Joe, did you get the sense that the rain, the delay, the postponement affected CC at all, his preparation for the game?
JOE GIRARDI: No, I don't think so. He's been a guy that's experienced a lot of rain this year, so we kind of call him our guy that‑‑ the "Rain Man."
Q. Joe, Nuñez had a good game on defense. What can this mean for him to be in these games?
JOE GIRARDI: I think it can really build a lot of confidence for his career moving forward. I mean, you can argue that for Nuney that's the best game that he's ever played in the Big Leagues because of the importance of it.
Now, has there been a game where maybe he had three hits? Sure. Has there been a game where he made seven or eight plays? Sure. He dives and stops the ball up the middle. He puts tremendous at‑bats on Verlander.
I mean, for him moving forward, it just shows you the type of ability that this kid has, and I really want to see him build off it.
THE MODERATOR: Okay, thank you.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
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