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AL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: TIGERS v RED SOXOctober 13, 2013John FarrellBOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS: Game Two Q. How do you expect your offense to get any runs and hits off Max tonight? JOHN FARRELL: Well, on the heels of eight‑and‑a‑third no hits last night, we're going up against the favorite for the CyYoung award winner this year. Going back to the start that he made here in early September here in Fenway, you know, we're going to have to adjust based on how he commands the baseball, particularly early in the count. We had a tendency to swing early in the counts last time we faced him. So I know that our guys, they put yesterday behind them based on the conversation that's been going on in the clubhouse and just the overall mood. And I expect us to come out and put together a solid outing here tonight. Q. Can you talk about Mike Carp a little bit, it seems his production was one of the surprises for you guys this year. JOHN FARRELL: You know, the one thing we always liked about him prior to acquiring him was he had an exact swing. We knew it was going to be in a role that was, I don't want to say a part‑time role, but a guy not being an everyday player felt like it would be conducive to that role. And to his credit he accepted it early on here. The fact is he got off to a ‑‑ once he started to get some at‑bats in April, he got some confidence and began to feel more comfortable in our clubhouse coming over from Seattle. And the versatility and the pinch‑hit ability goes back to that compact swing, that he doesn't need regular at‑bats to put a good swing on a pitch. Q. Can you talk a little bit about the defense you've got and the position on first base, Napoli, Carp, Nava, I think that would be a defensive liability. The work they've done, Butterfield has done to get them where they are now. JOHN FARRELL: I think Brian Butterfield has been the key to all of this. The work he did with Mike in his transition to full time at first base. The countless house they spent in Spring Training, and that's continued on through the course of the year. I think last night is probably a little snapshot of how well the defense has been there. With the ‑‑ Mike fields a pretty sharp hit ball from Infante, they were able to back pick on Peralta there to knock down a potential ‑‑ a baserunner in that key spot. But it's been smart play. It's been technically sound. And I think by other measures, you know, Mike Napoli is probably the first baseman shows the most range and run prevention of anybody in baseball, and it goes back to his work ethic and what Butter has done with him. Q. If you're down 0‑2 going on the road you typically don't win the series. Can you say there's such thing as a must win in Game 2 in a seven‑game series or is there a real sense of urgency tonight? JOHN FARRELL: I think at this time of year there's urgency to everything we do. That hasn't changed, that's why I made the point of what the mood is in this clubhouse. And it's not about putting additional pressure on ourselves. It's about being the team that we've been throughout the course of the year. And that has shown a strong ability to put yesterday and leave it there. And not worry about what Tuesday is going to bring when we face Verlander over in Detroit. But just to concentrate and focus on tonight. It goes back to first night in Spring Training: Tonight's game is the most important thing to us. Q. Just wondering your thoughts on how Carp and Gomes changes the look of your lineup tonight? JOHN FARRELL: You know, to me it's a matter of what the history of guys have been against an individual pitcher. And we've tried to find ways to put guys in a position of success. Nap has had some scuffles with Scherzer in the past over time. And the fact is, we make a couple of changes in our lineup, it's pretty consistent with the way we've approached certain pitchers or a series throughout the course of the year. So in our clubhouse these changes are almost anticipated even before they happen. Q. Every team faces its share of adversity over the course of 162 games. Can you point to one or two moments this year where you think your team faced major adversity and was able to overcome it? JOHN FARRELL: At the time we lose our No. 1 starter for three months. When he came out of the game we felt like hopefully this is a two‑week stint, turned into three months. We were able to have other guys step up in certain spots. We lost Stephen Drew for probably the combination of five weeks throughout the course of a year. So probably individuals ‑‑ and Victorino missed about 40 games, as well. So I don't think it's any different than maybe some other teams have lost guys. But it's probably centered around individual injuries or guys have stepped in and have tested the depth of this roster. To me that's probably one of the strong points of this team is the overall depth. Q. Can you talk about Buchholz, the amount of wins he's had after a loss? JOHN FARRELL: Well, he's only absorbed one loss on the year. So it seems like every time he's walked to the mound he's not only kept the game under control but certainly given us an opportunity to win. And the fact that he's been so consistent, even coming out after the three‑month layoff, he still maintains the overall feel to all his secondary pitches and an uncanny ability to make key pitches in some tight spots after the long layoff. We'll certainly need him to keep the game under control tonight. This should be a very good pitching matchup once again. Q. I know nobody got ejected last night, but there was a lot of animated discussions and animated looks from a lot of hitters in your lineup. Are you concerned at all that something like that could affect the team going into the rest of the series? JOHN FARRELL: No, I don't think so. I think guys even having a chance to look at some of the pitches that might have been in question last night. Joe West, his strike zone wasn't the reason we came up on the short end of a 1‑0 game. There's a lot of guys that care when they walk into that box. And they care about the at‑bat. They put everything into it. Their viewpoint is certainly going to be different than an umpire's, and I respect that. Respect both sides of it. I can't say that Joe West's strike zone played any part in the way that game unfolded. Q. Can you just tell us what Jonny Gomes is like in the dugout during games? JOHN FARRELL: He thinks the game. He's a thinking man's player. And don't let that appearance take away from how smart a baseball player he is. He's a very instinctual guy, he anticipates situations as good as anybody we have in uniform. Whether that's on the base paths or whether that's preparing for a potential pinch‑hit situations. He manages the game as it's unfolding when he's not in a starting role. To me that's why he's been able to step in in those key late inning moments and be successful, because he's thinking that situation through long before it gets there. And he's made a huge impact in that way on how the game is watched and the conversation that stems from that with others in the dugout. Q. You've seen John Lackey get the cheers this year, and obviously in the past he's gotten some boos too. Having gone through those experiences, do you think that can help somebody in a hostile environment on a road game like he'll face in Game 3? JOHN FARRELL: I don't think John ‑‑ he's not short on pitching in unfavorable conditions, whether it's in a postseason in New York, and certainly one that's going to be in Detroit. We're talking about a guy that's pitched at the highest level on the biggest stage that the game has to offer. Given what he's come through, I'm sure that he'll relish the moments he's out there, knowing that he's come back from Tommy John. The way he's reshaped his own perception and certainly his body, and we're looking forward to John being on the mound on Tuesday. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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