AL DIVISION SERIES: TIGERS VS MARINERS

October 10, 2025

George Kirby

T-Mobile Park

Seattle Mariners

Postgame 5 Press Conference

Mariners - 3, Tigers 2 (15)

Q. George, you started this series. You ended the series. Just what are the emotions now going to a place this franchise hasn't been in over two decades?

GEORGE KIRBY: Yeah. Everybody's super excited. We'll be prepared for that.

But, I mean, everybody tonight -- they just -- everyone dug deep and found a way to win, and it just goes to show how tough we are. Man, it's just so cool to see everybody getting the job done tonight.

Q. George, how well equipped were you guys to go through the emotions of this game, given that you played the 18-inning game in the playoffs just a couple years ago?

GEORGE KIRBY: Yeah. That 18-inning game and then -- man, just countless amount of just one-run games at the end.

Man, we've been in it all. So if anything, we're probably the most prepared team for it. And yeah, it's just awesome.

Polo came through. I'm just so freaking happy right now.

Q. With your experience coming out of the bullpen in the 2022 playoffs, were you talking at all to Logan and Luis, you know, about how to approach maybe coming out of the pen when they're not used to that?

GEORGE KIRBY: Yeah. I give them any advice. I think those guys are good enough to go find something deep inside of them and just go out there and compete, and that's what they did.

Something they're not used to, and they gave us about five or six innings out of the pen there. That was huge. Yeah, it was awesome.

Q. George, given that you did 15 innings and you used a lot of pitchers, including three starters, how does that affect your plans going into the Toronto series a day after tomorrow? Does that change the starting rotation or anything like that?

GEORGE KIRBY: I have no idea. It's a good question for Dan. I know everyone's going to be ready to go, and whoever gets the ball passed to them, they're going to come out and compete.

Q. Can you sort of describe how you took in the rest of the game after you left and where you were moving to and where you were for that last pitch?

GEORGE KIRBY: Yeah. When I came out in the 6th, went in and did some recovery, came back out in the 7th, and then was kind of in and out of the dugout from 7 to 15, just cheering on the guys the best I could to keep the vibes up. And, yeah, I was in the dugout the whole time.

Q. Hey, George. A couple of your teammates really came through. Leo Rivas, who is one of the nicest guys who everyone seems to like, and Jorge, who is very quiet but has been around, but I think a lot of guys respect him because he's just about business. What are those guys like in terms of helping during you guys throughout the course of the season?

GEORGE KIRBY: Yeah. Leo, whenever he gets his name called, he's ready to go. And he's come up in some big situations this year.

And yeah. Polo's been killing the ball this year. He's really seeing it well. And, you know, it was bound to happen at some point. Somebody -- the more you keep letting us into the game, especially at home, you know, we're going to find a way. And that's what Polo did.

Q. Was that as loud as you had ever heard T-Mobile Park? There were times where you looked like you couldn't hear the PitchCom. You struck out a couple guys, and it sounded like the roof was going to come down.

GEORGE KIRBY: Yeah. Super loud. From the eighth on, I had this massive headache, and I'm really glad that game's over and we finished the job.

But yeah. It was really loud, and the fans were electric, and everybody that went on that mound or stepped on the field definitely felt that.

Q. George, it seemed like you were going with the slider a lot, especially early in counts. How much of that was an adjustment, and how effective was that for you?

GEORGE KIRBY: Yeah. All those guys from top to bottom are probably looking for a heater to start, and just starting off with a slider, curveball, whatever it may be, just -- if I kept them off balance a little bit, I was able to attack the zone a little bit more with my fastball.

But yeah. I had to change something up a little bit, so I'm glad we kind of mixed in the curveball and slider a lot. But, you know, kept the same game plan with the heater, mix in the four and the two.

Q. George, Dan and Randy both talked before the game today about how important communication is throughout the game. What was the dialogue in the dugout between everybody, especially the longer the game went?

GEORGE KIRBY: Yeah. Everyone was just having each other's back and cheering each other on. As simple as that.

Everyone wants the opportunity to get the -- to get up to the plate and finish the job, and everyone was prepared for it. So yeah, just keep the vibes up in the dugout, and yeah, that's what we did.

Q. Yeah. George, how do you guys feel after that? Do you feel zapped after such a long game? Do you feel like that adrenaline rush after such a great win? What's that kind of mix of emotions?

GEORGE KIRBY: It's a lot. I feel like I pitched three days ago, if I'm being honest, but it's just so much, like -- it's just so much joy. And every one of us have worked our whole lives to get to this moment and try and be here at some time, and just really being able to feel that is pretty awesome. So everyone's really freaking happy.

Q. And kind of adding on to that, you talked about just the close games. Can you talk about the belief and determination as a collective to get here and what it took to get here and to get to this game?

GEORGE KIRBY: Yeah. Nobody backs down. I think that's why we've been so good at tie ball games late in the game, just finding a way to get the run in. Everyone's willing to do whatever it takes to -- you know, sacrifice bunt, whatever it is. Everyone is willing to get the guy over, whatever it is. There's no ego or selfishness involved with it. I think everyone just wants to just pass the baton and keep going.