|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
AL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: TIGERS v RED SOXOctober 13, 2013John FarrellBOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS: Game Two Boston – 6 Q. Can you talk about an eighth inning capped by Ortiz's home run? JOHN FARRELL: We're going to play it to the final out. David so many times has come up big, whether it's regular season, postseason, none bigger than tonight. When you consider down four runs, not a very likely scenario that you come back from that many runs that late in the game. But we kept grounding out at‑bats. A couple of walks. We finally broke through in that sixth inning where we chipped away and got one run. David comes up ‑‑ to see the amount of work he's been putting in, just studying Benoit, he gets a first pitch fastball and drives it out of the ballpark. Q. A situation where Gomes hadn't had any hits tonight and going into the decision to leave him in the ballgame, talk a little bit about that? JOHN FARRELL: We had one more move on the bench with Nava. And we were holding him back for Will, if that spot came up. In those pressure moments we've seen ‑‑ there's complete trust in Jonny. And against Porcello we knew it was going to be sink or slider, and felt Jonny was equipped to handle that. He did some broken ground ball in 5 and 6 hole that Iggy probably makes an extended play and we catch a break for the error. But late in the game, Jonny's going to keep things under control at the plate. Q. Your team does so much taking of pitches and especially first pitches. When David goes up there is that instinct or he's watched so much video or done so much studying? JOHN FARRELL: Different story when you've got bases loaded. Obviously Benoit is trying to get a strike early. And David is such a smart hitter, that he's looking for one pitch on the plate early to turn it loose, we're fortunate he got it here tonight. Q. You guys talk all the time about being resilient. When you've gone 15, 16 innings with just one hit, how do guys keep their heads up? JOHN FARRELL: Tonight is almost a tale of two different games inside one. Their pitching basically dominated us. But Vic gets the two out base hit, Pedey gets the ball off the wall, and there was a little bit of life injected into us. We keep coming. That's been a characteristic the entire season, it was on display here tonight. And once again our guys don't quit until that last final out is made. Q. Were you surprised that it was a Benoit‑Ortiz matchup, that a lefty wasn't coming in, like Coke, at that point? JOHN FARRELL: Knowing that they had Coke loose or getting hot down there, and Benoit has recorded four out saves a few times this year already. He's going to go probably his best reliever in that situation. But you can look at it in many ways, he's probably had more success against left‑handers than right‑handers. Fortunately we got a pitch on the plate that David took out of here. Q. I know you guys are athletes and professionals never like the term "must win." But heading to Detroit, what's the difference being tied? JOHN FARRELL: If we're going into Detroit down two the way that they've pitched against us, that challenge becomes even greater. But I think everybody looked upon this series was going to be a well played, hard‑fought and it's not disappointing at this point. Q. You've seen a lot of these things that David does in the postseason. What is it about him and moments like that one right there? JOHN FARRELL: He stays calm. We talk a lot about whether it's David or other guys, guys that can perform in meaningful moments, they've got the ability to keep the emotions under control. It's clear‑cut what he's looking for. And whether it was Manny Ramirez for a number of years and he and David pairing up for success, there's a lot of similarities to those two players, that in those key moments, they keep their heart rate under control. Q. Similar to David, the same thing with Pedroia, what can you say about what he's done in this series and was it more of a lift tonight to the dugout when he got that first run in? JOHN FARRELL: Yeah, it was. Given the first game and a half had gone, Pedey does things a little bit differently than everybody else. And it's such a strong, competitive spirit, a will to succeed, whether it's a headlong dive in the 3 or 4 hole or field a ground ball or whether it's to come up and never give in. There's a competitive drive in that guy that is second to none. And we thrive off it, we feed off it. That was the case here tonight. Q. You mentioned David studying Benoit. Is that a matchup he anticipated? JOHN FARRELL: You're going to face that closer. We don't see him very many times during the regular season. But there's probably going to be key moments where the middle of the order is going to face that closer, that best reliever, and that was the case tonight. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|