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NL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: DODGERS VS BREWERS

October 13, 2018

Craig Counsell

Milwaukee, Wisconsin - postgame 2

Los Angeles - 4, Milwaukee - 3

Q. Craig, did the way you wanted to use your bullpen today sort of get altered when Burnes had trouble and had to come out early?
CRAIG COUNSELL: Yeah. I mean, look, we were in really good shape with the effort that Wade gave us. He pitched beautifully, and Corbin finished the sixth, and the seventh was a tough inning with -- they used a pinch hitter, and then Machado and Bellinger. So knew that was going to be a tough inning.

But yeah, I think an out there was -- we just didn't get an out there. So I think that led to them having a pretty good rally, and J.J. was able to sneak out of it, preserving the lead. I still thought we were set up pretty good. Just Turner got a split and hit a home run.

Q. Was there any thought of taking Jeffress out and starting Soria for the 8th?
CRAIG COUNSELL: No. My thought was Jeffress has two hitters there and then we're looking at Knebel. It was just two hitters, and I liked the matchups for J.J. there, yeah.

Q. With Miley and taking him out, how do you balance the philosophy and the strategy with the fact that he was going pretty good and not getting hit hard?
CRAIG COUNSELL: Yeah, I mean, look, you're either too early or too late. At some point, you gotta make a decision, and I thought he was going through the heart of the lineup for the third time. And I thought we had a fresh Corbin Burnes, who's been wonderful for us this year, and you know, so -- as put some right-handers up there against him for the first -- that one time around.

And so Wade pitched great, man. He did his job, certainly, and he did a good five and two-thirds. He did more than we expected for sure.

Q. Craig, going back to Jeffress, what is your level of concern with him, if any, right now, and is there any thought of using him differently as the series goes forward?
CRAIG COUNSELL: No. Look, I think one of the things we've told you is that our guys are all important, and the way we're going to use our pitching is that we gotta count on all these guys. For me, J.J. made one bad pitch today, and it cost him, and it was to a very good hitter.

I think a lot of the other stuff he did today, he made some really good pitches, but certainly -- look, in a one-run game, you make a mistake to that kind of hitter and it's going to hurt you.

Q. Craig, Dave Roberts and the Dodgers said they kind of took solace in the fact that they saw a lot of your pen in Game 1. You guys have seen a lot of their pen through the first two games as well. Do you kind of take the same solace knowing you've seen a lot of their guys and knowing they've had to burn through a lot of those guys through two games?
CRAIG COUNSELL: Yeah. I think making their bullpen work is something you want to do. But none of us have the right answer. Is it good that you face the guy? Is it good that you're making them work? In the end, that stuff comes down to the players have to go out there and battle each other. That's going to be the game. They obviously used a bunch of guys today. I think in a series like this, both teams are getting looks at the other team's bullpen. That's how it works.

Q. Craig, Travis had said yesterday that he was kind of expecting another close game like this, and it wasn't going to be an easy series. All things considered, 1-1 as you head to the second phase of this, is this kind of the series that you expected so far?
CRAIG COUNSELL: I don't know. It can't get any closer after two games; right? It's been two hard-fought games, two 1-run games, tying run on base in scoring position to finish each game. So they've been about as close as they can be. So we're looking forward to the next chapter.

Q. Craig, I know there's the off day tomorrow, but you've used Knebel and Jeffress two days in a row. What does your bullpen look like for Game 3, and is there a chance you play that game without either of them or Hader?
CRAIG COUNSELL: We'll regroup after the day off and see how they're doing.

Q. One other thing with Jeffress, he walked Austin Barnes a No. 8 hitter with the bases loaded on a curveball instead of challenging him, and he was batting .200. Looked like he was taking all the way on ball three and four. What was your take on that?
CRAIG COUNSELL: Well, I don't think he was taking all the way on ball four. I don't think Major League hitters do that, no. The walk to Barnes is the other spot that hurt him, for sure. You'd like to see something put in play, but he's being careful. I don't have any problem with throwing a curveball right there. A strikeout has a lot of value there, too. So no problem with the pitch. Give Barnes credit, he laid off.

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