AL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: MARINERS VS BLUE JAYS

October 14, 2025

Dan Wilson

T-Mobile Park

Seattle Mariners

Workout Day Press Conference

Q. Through these first two games of the ALCS, the bullpen has really just stepped up. Just how impressed have you been by the performance of the relievers, and how ecstatic are you going into these three home games with pretty much all of them on decent rest?

DAN WILSON: This has been -- down the stretch especially, has been a big strength of our, has been the bullpen. I think the bullpen and, actually, the starters work very well together. The way it has worked out has gone fairly smoothly. Like, we've said before, you trust all of our guys. Whenever you give them the ball, they're going to do the job. Yesterday was no exception. A couple of guys giving us a couple of innings was huge, allowing the offense to kind of break it open a little bit.

So it was a good bullpen series so far and looking for that to continue as we go forward.

Q. In a series and a half now, you've seen basically all your pitchers build up that postseason experience. How have you seen that get them get more relaxed on the mound or be able to understand the moment a little bit more?

DAN WILSON: Yeah, obviously, the experience of it is huge. We've talked about that all along, just getting your feet wet, getting a chance to get out there and get that first one under your belt. It does take a minute. I think the way we have seen our guys adjust to it has been great. This is a group that's tight. The whole pitching staff together is tight. They share information, they talk about it, they let each other know what it's like, and so they're a little bit more prepared too.

It's good knowing that these guys have had a little bit of experience now under their belt and they're ready to go.

Q. From your standpoint here to be back in Seattle ahead 2-0, what is the word or the feeling, I think, that embodies the team right now when you think about being in this position to come back home and have potentially three in front of you here?

DAN WILSON: Yeah, obviously, it's a very advantageous position. We're excited about that. But there's work to do here. I think the focus is tomorrow night. That's where our focus goes. That's kind of how we've done this all along, is just we're taking one day at a time. It sounds very cliché, but you take it one step at a time.

Tomorrow night, we're looking forward to getting back out there, taking in the atmosphere here at T-Mobile Park. We know it's going to be an awesome atmosphere here for baseball. So that's where our focus lies. We get back to work. I think, as we've talked about, the pitching, it's been so solid, and offensively able to do some great things. So both sides of the ball, we just need to continue to keep doing that, and I think that's the focus going forward.

Q. The importance of the details, you've talked about that from day one, just the importance of the details each pitch, each at-bat.

DAN WILSON: No doubt. I think we have seen -- we talk about the postseason where little things make big differences. We have seen that in a lot of these postseason games -- not just our games, but in all the games. So you do, you focus on the details. You know that each pitch has a magnified significance. You know that each out makes a big difference. Each at-bat can be huge.

So we've talked about it with our offense, that you start stacking those tough at-bats back-to-back and over time, you start to wear down pitchers, and that's when we're at our best.

So yes, each pitch, each at-bat, those are all very big things here in the postseason, and our guys know that, and that's why our focus continues to be tomorrow night, and we'll get back out on the field and get started again.

Q. Continuing on that train of thought of the subtle differences, ALDS, you guys came back home, it was win or go home, you knew the situation. This situation a little bit different, having an opportunity to close it out. What is the kind of difference or variation in pressure compared to having that lead with an opportunity to close it out at home compared to win or go home?

DAN WILSON: Again, I think we take the same mindset. We go out and we play good baseball tomorrow night. That's our focus. I think that's where we're at as a team, and that's what our goal is, is to come out tomorrow and continue to do the things we've been doing. That's the hope and that's what our preparation will be geared towards. We'll do the things that we've been doing on the mound preparation-wise, we'll be doing the things offensively that we've been doing preparation-wise, and we'll be ready to play at game time.

Q. Bryan's going to be up here in a little bit. Wondering if there's any updates with him and how vital he is to you guys going forward, even on a limited pitch count.

DAN WILSON: Yeah, I think all reports have been good, as we had expected, and continues to make his progression. Obviously, the live A-Bs the other day was a big step for him. He felt pretty good yesterday. I think he's going to get out and throw a little bit today.

Yeah, getting him back, one of the guys that has really led this staff this year, obviously, will be huge for us, whatever that looks like as we get into the later part of this series. But getting him back and getting him healthy is the key. He's getting close.

Q. The Blue Jays are a team that don't strike out, but then your pitching staff dominates the zone. So this is a setup that's really interesting, kind of a chess match. The Blue Jays hitters have said they don't mind going down 0-1 and not swing at a pitcher's pitch early in the count, because they would rather be 0-1 than 0 for 1. How important is executing that first pitch for your pitching staff, how pleased have you been with how that's gone?

DAN WILSON: I think that is what we talk about a lot as an organization, is winning that 0-0 pitch. The quality of that pitch is certainly important. But getting strike 1 is big. We talked about controlling the count and how different it is when you're ahead in the count. I think with the hope being that even if it's a team that doesn't strikeout as much, you're hoping to get weaker contact. When you're ahead in the count, you're going to get weaker contact.

I think our guys have done an outstanding job of getting ahead and doing that. Again, that's what we will continue to prepare for and keep doing as we go along in this series.

Q. Having that advantageous position, it feels like maybe your group of guys more than most understand that situation. There's a good group over there. They're not going to take it lightly. They're going to keep grinding. What is it about your guys that they're still going to be locked in and they're not going to let this 2-0 lead get ahead of itself?

DAN WILSON: I think that's who these guys are. We talk a lot about Cal and the season he's had, not getting wrapped up in it and keeping his humility about him as he's gone through it and has allowed him to continue and be consistent. I think that's a big part of it with a lot of our guys. We understand how fickle this game can be, and so each night is important, each detail is important, and that's why I think we go about it very consistently, we prepare the same, and I think, like I said, they will be ready tomorrow night to go.

Q. We saw how the matchups between the hitters and the relievers kind of evolved in the ALDS with every single outing and every single game. How much can hitters learn about relievers in a series length, and then with that being said, how big was it that you get through the first two games only throwing each reliever once?

DAN WILSON: Yeah, I think it does make a big difference. Obviously, seeing guys more and more does help you get a better picture of what they're going to do. You can look at a guy on paper and understand on paper what he's going to do and what the ball might do, but then seeing it in the box is a different story.

I think as hitters, yes, that's great, and I think all hitters on all teams will share information. That's how you learn and you get prepared for your at-bat. So that's all been going on as normal. But it is good to get in the box and actually see that, get an at-bat and get a feel for what the ball's actually doing. So, yes, I think it's great that we've been able to only have a couple guys go out there on a couple outings. Hopefully that helps us as we go forward.

Q. What makes Josh Naylor so good at that high-and-away pitch? It's a pitch that's a foot outside, you don't expect him to do damage on it. And then we saw it against Skubal with the double, we saw it in the series with the Blue Jays. What is it about his swing, how does he get to that?

DAN WILSON: He's just, number one, as I've said, he's smart, and headsy. He can maybe think along sometimes with pitchers. I also think he's got the ability, his swing has adjustability to it. When he sees a pitch up in the zone, he's able to stay really short and get on top of it, and that's the key. You're right, the double off of Skubal was huge, to be able to go up there off of the velo that he was throwing and to be able to hit that to left field like that. That really requires you to get on top of the ball. We have seen him do it over and over again. That's just because his swing is so adjustable.