Justin Verlander, Christian Koss and more react to Giants’ win vs. Diamondbacks | NBC Sports BA

Yeah, and Christian CS opened this game up in the 11th inning for the Giants. He joins us now from Chase Field. Christian, we’ve noticed you’re a first pitch hitter, which is exactly your approach that you took in the 11th inning for that two-run double. Why do you like to attack the first pitch? Yeah, I guess it’s not necessarily that. I think I’m just ready to go from pitch one. You know, um we we have the plan. We know what we’re trying to look for with certain pitchers. Um you know, when when the when the first pitch looks good enough, I want to get a swing off. So yeah, I guess I I guess that is first pitch going working. It’s working for you. Jump on that first pitch, CK. Hey, wo here. Nice game. Um I’m not going to talk about uh that big hit, which you guys definitely needed. You don’t want to go in extra innings up by only one run. So that got him going. I wanted to talk about the great play that you had in the eighth. And then the thing that I noticed on De’s base hit, a welltimed secondary and a great turn at third base and then coming home that slide with the left hand out. Where’d you learn that slide? In the backyard. Yeah, good old slip and slide days, you know. Um I I I take pride in the base running. Will, you know that. Uh so I appreciate you pointing out the routes. Um but yeah, like you said, in that situation, Rafie hits the ball really hard, gets these outfielders quick. Um if if I’m not on that secondary, uh it’s a closer play. You’re right. And look, it’s a it’s a real pleasure to watch you play and do all the little things right. That’s winning baseball. You’ve been doing it all year. Congratulations on a great win today. Christian, I’ve got one more thing. A lot of people talking about Bryce Eldridge obviously just recently called up. How’s Eldridge been acclimating with the team? Good. You know, I mean, he kind kind of got the rut of it in those tough losses. uh you know, but I mean you saw that that last at bat he had there with runner on third didn’t chase like that that was a real professional at bat out of a young kid. Um so excited to see what the future holds for him. Christian, thanks for stopping by. Congratulations on this muchdeserved and well-earned win. Thank you guys. It’s huge. I mean certainly didn’t feel good there for a while and what was it? Six innings and no hits, seven innings or whatever. So, um, be able to push through at the end. I mean, times this year, that’s when we’ve done our best work is late in the game with relievers. Happened today, but it all started with with JB again. I mean, it’s too bad we couldn’t get him a win. I mean, he’s under four erra now, another seven innings, over 100 pitches. Be pitching this well late in the season with as much under his belt at this point, it’s pretty remarkable. What’s the biggest difference you’ve seen with him over this run he’s had really since the Allar? Well, I mean, just all the, you know, the pitching numbers are up. The vert’s up, his VO, maybe not the best VO today, but his deliver is more sound. He knows where everything’s going. He’s using all his pitches. He’s got three different breaking balls now. He’s using a change up. Um, you know, again, he’s usually has few more strikeouts and it’s shocking that he only walked he walked two batters because he hadn’t been walking anybody, but and pitching with a lot of confidence and and knowing that we need them and guys like that step up when you need them. for the defense that you had today. There was tracking down that cost in the bottom of the 11. That’s how you that’s how you win close games. You know, Gerard is underrated as an outfielder. He gets good jumps and you know in either corner he’s good. Gilbert the ball he got I I mean that that’s a game saver at that point in time. You know that gets down it’s it’s a whole different deal. And you know with Justin you know there going to be some balls in the air. You’re getting popups with you know with with all his pitches today. Um, you know, even though Gilbert didn’t do a whole lot at the plate, he got one hit. He was instrumental in the win. Last night when Walker was pursuing this little roller, I crossed my mind for a second, but that was a little different play. All he had to do is get it to first, but obviously the the strike out of of Del Castillo was huge. You know, now all of a sudden you got, you know, we play the infield back and, you know, there’s two outs. I mean, they’re little subtle things, different outs, different plays and so forth that were huge in this game. That strike out was big. Even though you didn’t get until late, better baseball game in terms of how you guys play. Yeah. I mean, it doesn’t look as bad, you know, when you’re not getting any hits and you’re playing, you’re getting good pitching, you’re getting sound defense. It’s just it’s just it’s a better feeling in the dugout. You know, when you’re kicking it around a little bit and you know, you’re just not playing sound baseball. It’s it’s not a great feeling. You can kind of stay with it and have some confidence knowing that you’re doing a lot of things right to put yourself in a position to win a game. Cost had in a week hadn’t had bat in a month. What do you say about both of them being able to contribute to that? You look at runners and scoring position. cost is as good as anybody we have on the team with runners and scoring position and even when he sits around for a while. So, he finds a way to contribute no matter what, whether it’s defensively, whether it’s offensively, and a guy that can sit around for a while and still be productive. You talked about the amplification of September baseball. Does this feel like more than one win today? Well, we needed to win this game today. There’s no doubt about that. So, um you know, certain games are a little bit more important than others. I don’t know that any was more important than today. Uh this is four starts in a row for JB of zero or one run allowed. Only Roger Clemens the last 125 seasons and him have had a four start stretch like that at age 42 or older. What’s it say? I get to talk about something about the about him and and a milestone and breaking somebody. Gaylord Perry, Walter Johnson almost every start now and that just kind of signifies who he is as a pitcher and how he continues to pitch at such a high level. Again, you know, after his start, he’s under four RA right now. Just goes on and on. You ever wonder with this wind column, you know, what could have been all these decisions? Try not to, but you do. I mean, there could be at least five or six more under his belt for sure. And that’s not even that’s not even, you know, exaggerating. What has he meant to you guys, Bob, just since the day you showed up from spring training? He’s been huge for us. You know, he’s he’s all in on the team. He’s all in on helping whoever he can. What he does out there on the mound shows everybody what what can be accomplished and his determination and and his competitiveness for me more than anything else. all the ups and downs we had this year, how does it feel for you to be where you are right now? Yeah, it feels nice. Um, you know, obviously, uh, I think, you know, being my 20th year, um, I can only recall a few that kind of went the way you want from start to finish. Um, I can also recall a few that were, um, very difficult for most of the year. um just being one of those um you know I think uh kind of a relentlessness to find your way out of it and just never kind of give in and try to always adapt um has has helped me tremendously and um you know obviously would like to finish strong. I got a couple couple more left. Um but um you know it’s uh in a weird way a bit a bit more vindicating you know and um um cuz you put in that much work you know every day you know I was talking to my brother the other day it’s like every every day you come to the field for four months it’s like what’s the what’s the way out of this you know how do I how do I make the adjustment what do I need to do what’s wrong because clearly something’s wrong you know and um and just try to find it and um you know had a had a new thought in the bullpen like I told you guys you know about a month or so ago and um took that into the game and the results have been you know what you see. So um glad I didn’t give up. How much is that new thought in the bullpen or that that tweak you made a few months or plus ago carried over to what you’re seeing now? All of it. Yeah, it’s every day. You were in the zone a lot with your slider. Did that help you maybe get them to expand on the fast ball a little bit? Um, I don’t know. Um, maybe a little bit, but uh, you know, clearly kind of filling up the zone with my slider and we had a long game yesterday with a a lot of guys thrown in the bullpen, so I didn’t really want to mess around too much and and be too out of zone. Wanted to try to get deep in the game. And of course, Cardomo in the on the first at bat has like a, you know, very typical at bat for him and just grinds you down and has a I what was it? Nine titch nine 10 pitch at bat. I don’t know. Um but I’m like, you know, um just get on and get out and um you know, so that was kind of my game plan was just to kind of be really aggressive in in zone and um try to get deep in the game. How much did the defense give you? Yeah. Yeah. Drew uh Drew made uh I think three really nice catches out there today. You know, the first one going back was pretty good. And then the one in the gap was excellent. Saved a run with two outs. Um he closed the gap really hard. you know, as a pitcher, you have a pretty interesting perspective when you see a ball go up and you’re kind of, you know, tracking it in the air and you can see both both people converging the the outfielder and the ball. Um, and I, you know, I got to be honest, when I first saw, when I first looked up and saw the trajectory of the ball and saw where he was playing, I I didn’t think he was going to catch it. So, um, you know, and then I kind of saw him make up some ground and and and made a great made a great play. You know, it’s a great route, great read. Um, and then the uh the shallow ball in left center field was also a nice play. So, um, he made some great plays, too. You remember what you told him when you met him in front of the dugout? Came up. That’s it. Okay. That’s deep. Very deep. Very insightful. Do you enjoy games like this that little catches fishing? No. I mean, no. I’d rather score 10. Um, make it easy. But, um, you know, when when when it’s done and you find a way to help your team win, um, yeah, it feels nice. Have you decided whether you’re coming back this year? Next year? Yeah. I mean, I’d like to. Yeah. I mean, that’s Well, I I mean, I I do, right? Point of being a free a Well, yes. Um I would hope that somebody would offer me a contract now. Um you know, kind of showing that I can turn it around and and still pitch at a high level. the mechanical things or something that have ever seen you work off the river the way you That was that was part of it. Um slid over a little bit. Um but that wasn’t it. I think that was maybe the beginning of of just finding a little more um leverage on the ball and a little different angle. Um but it was some other stuff. There’s also kind of an interesting three step starting with your left foot and coming across and going back to your right foot. I’ve done that my whole career. Yeah. That’s how perceptive I am. Only 20 years. For 20 years. Yeah. You ever did you ever look back and say, you know, a lot of these no decisions could have been wins for the team, for yourself? Of course. I mean, I’m I’m human, you know. I I I think we we all know like everybody in this locker room, all of you guys, and most of baseball kind of understands where I’m at. So, um, you know, it’ have been nice to compile some more, but again, like it’s that point in the season where I told these guys after after the last win against LA, uh, you know, it’s that point in the year where we’re not playing for individual, and not that you do, but like, you know, throughout the course of 162 games, it’s nice to compile some individual numbers, but we’re at that course of the season where I don’t care if I win or lose. You know, I want to give us the best chance to win and give us the best chance to sneak into the playoffs. So, um, you know, this is the time of year and in the playoffs where, you know, personal numbers don’t don’t matter. Um, you just you just want to try to win. You told the group then. Yeah. What what about the final 10 10 games? What about them? Where the team stands, what their chances, with the vibe in here, everything going in four games. I mean, our destiny is not in our hands. So, you know, that’s not really something that we can control. I think uh the only thing you control is trying to win as many baseball games as possible and see what’s what. Um we’ve been a streaky team all year when we find a way to be on a hot streak. Um you know, we can roll through anybody and and you know, win a lot of games very quickly. So, um I sure would like for that to happen right now and see what see what shakes out. Was there was there one start second half where you thought going back to 2012? Um, no. I think the whole year I kind of thought um like the velocity that ironically that kind of the adjustment I’ve made has hampered my my VO a little bit but made me a lot more deceptive. So, but I think when you when I’m still able to throw 97 98 like I was um I think I look at that and say, “Okay, my stuff is still plenty good. I’m doing something that I can fix to to be good again because um that velocity is plenty enough to allow me to be successful.” So, um, let’s not panic about that. Let’s panic about what’s going on to allow the hitters to see the ball so well. Um, and and give me tougher outs than I’m than I’m traditionally used to. Um, and so that was kind of the path I was down every single day. So, this is the first time strike starts one. Yeah, I saw that. Were you aware of that? No. Well, I saw it during the game. I saw it. I saw it posted. Did you post that? No, no. My boss at football was I saw it. Um, pretty cool, man. I uh you know uh like I said, you put in you put in in any walk of life, like you put in that much work into something and that much care and um effort. Uh it’s nice to be able to to reap some reward of that. And so like for me it was one of the more frustrating, if not the most frustrating first four months of a season in my career. Um but uh you know just never give up. You know just keep trying to find it scratch and claw. You know you don’t get to you don’t get to this point in your career um and have been around this long without adapting and always trying to to find it whatever you know when things aren’t right. Um just trying to scratch and claw and fight your way out of it. Is it uh something for you to watch this point in your career? Every time you do something historic, you’re going one of the great pitchers of all time. Um I don’t I don’t really um per se pay too much attention to that. Um it is one of those things though that when it happens it’s uh like a wow, that’s a pretty cool name and can’t believe I’m you know passing people like that. Uh um so in the moment um actually you know like uh during the game I try not to to to pay attention to it too much. Um they a couple times they put it up on the board but then afterwards um you know like when I go home and and just kind of decompress it’s like wow that’s pretty damn cool. Some pretty iconic names.

Hear from Giants manager Bob Melvin, Christian Koss and Justin Verlander after San Francisco’s 5-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday at Chase Field.

(00:00) Christian Koss
(02:02) Bob Melvin
(06:26) Justin Verlander

#Giants #ChristianKoss #SanFranciscoGiants #Diamondbacks #ArizonaDiamondbacks #MLB #NLWest #NLWildCard #WildCard #MLBPlayoffs #NBCSportsBayArea #Subscribe #Like #Comment #GiantsPressConference #GiantsPostgameLive #LauraBritt #RonWotus #BobMelvin #JustinVerlander

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