THE MODERATOR: Start with questions for Carlos.
Q. Hi, Carlos. How do you make sure your success you had during the regular season translates now to the postseason?
CARLOS RODÓN: Well, you know, I think of it almost like a new season, clean slate, kind of what happened in the regular season doesn't really matter performance-wise, whether it is good or bad.
But as far as just maintaining the consistency is just going out there and executing what I do on the mound and control what I can control and let Austin or Ben or J.C., whoever is behind the plate run the game plan and let everything take care of itself.
Q. When you look at the Red Sox, what do you see as the biggest challenge when you look at the lineup?
CARLOS RODÓN: They are a good club. Obviously they played us hard this year. They won -- I am not sure how many games they won against us. They did better than we did against them.
They play well. They play really good baseball. They are really athletic. They make some plays on the field a lot of teams don't make. They are quick on the bases. They do their homework with pitchers as far as when to run and what counts to run on and what are the tendencies.
Offensively there's some good bats in the lineup. Seems like they run two different lineups versus left-handed starters versus right-handed starters. And they have tough at-bats. It is a good ball club. It is going to be a good series.
Q. Carlos, what does it mean to you to get this opportunity, this responsibility in Game 2?
CARLOS RODÓN: Three-game series, it's high stakes for sure. So, you know, obviously, I am just honored to have the opportunity to pitch for the Yankees in an important series, and the goal is to go out there and win and give my best efforts. I can only control so much.
Q. Carlos, Aaron just mentioned how going through the postseason run last year and doing it with the New York team thinks he benefited you. How do you think it did if so?
CARLOS RODÓN: There's definitely some experience from last year. Getting to the World Series, pitching in some -- in those big games, a lot of energy. It was against a good Dodgers team. I learned a lot about staying within myself and just trying to keep, you know, everything in check. So hopefully I can keep that going for this year.
Q. Throughout the year Matt Blake has complimented you and your ability to better control your emotions this year. Is that something you were conscious of coming into the year, and who has helped you with that?
CARLOS RODÓN: I have had a lot of help with that. I think pitching in big games last year and pitching in the World Series, it is hard to replicate that especially during the regular season. Obviously those games are very important during the regular season.
But the hype, the energy is not quite like Game 2 of the World Series or Game 1 of the LCS or any of the games in the postseason. I learned things need to be in check and save that energy for trainings down the road.
I have had a lot of help. Andy Pettitte has been around a lot. I have great teammates who have had my back and have helped me get to where I am at now. There's a lot of people that have had a hand in that.
Q. Was there anyone specifically you spoke to after the start against the Royals? Because you spoke about the change in your attitude and just the focus and not getting too amped up.
CARLOS RODÓN: Andy was a big take in that. Obviously a guy that was notoriously great in the postseason. Obviously Garrett, Garrett has been a big guy in my corner. Those two, after that start, you know, got my mind where it needed to be.
Q. Carlos, you added a sinker to your repertoire for the first time in a few years. It was a very effective pitch for you in terms of not just ground balls but also whiffs. How is that pitch different for you than it has been before, and what has that meant to your success this year?
CARLOS RODÓN: I came in the league, I had what you call a two-seamer. Back then we didn't have quite the movement plots that we do now and understanding pitch movement and pitch profiles the way we do now.
So it was slightly a different pitch, and the group was slightly different. I had an idea of how to throw what you call a sinker, two-seamer from throwing it eight, nine years ago. It has been a little bit. But, you know, we just stumbled upon it, and, you know, the Yankees pitching department refined it. Matt Blake had a hand in that, Preston had a hand in that. We went with it.
Q. Carlos, you have had the opportunity this season to watch Max pitch and go out a couple nights later and face the same team. How has that benefited you? What are you kind of looking for tonight as he goes out there that you can take with you tomorrow?
CARLOS RODÓN: Max has been incredible for us this year, as you know. I just kind of get a little bit of a game plan. We are slightly different. We are not exactly the same. I just get an idea of, you know, how hitters are reacting to him and an approach.
But it is not everything. Their approach is going to be different for him than it is for me. I just get an idea of swing tendencies and aggressiveness kind of.
Q. Carlos, you pitched a more weak contact this season than ever before. At what point did it click for you that that was something you were going to embrace or needed to embrace?
CARLOS RODÓN: I am not sure. The strikeouts down a little bit. I just wanted to be aggressive in the zone. We are pretty athletic in the field, and guys get some balls. Like I said, I talked about the Red Sox being able to get to balls, we get to some balls that teams don't get to as well.
Be aggressive in the zone. And with the help of the sinker with some weak contact on the ground, we talked about it, feel like we can afford some contact and rely on the defense and save the pitch count.
Q. Earlier you talked about the Red Sox facing left-handers and right-handers. You feel they are unique in that sense across the bigs where they can do damage regardless of the starting pitcher, and they use that platoon more so than others?
CARLOS RODÓN: There's a few teams that do it. I guess their uniqueness is the guys that they can deploy on both sides of that, like you said, can do damage. They have bats that can hit lefties and slug, and they have bats that can hit righties and slug.
That would be the uniqueness for them. Anybody that makes it in this league is pretty good at baseball. There's some teams that they don't reach the caliber that the Boston Red Sox do on the platoon side.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports