World Series Game 4: Cody Bellinger postgame interview
Q. You had said last night that you were had not lost much confidence. How did you feel early in the game with the at-bats, and the last two?
CODY BELLINGER: Yeah, I felt good today. Made some adjustments pregame, and like I said, I hit every ball in BP today to the left side of the infield. I've never done that before in my life. Usually I try to lift. I needed to make an adjustment, and saw some results today.
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Q. You're on second on that fly ball to Puig and you went back to second and Forsythe singled. Did you feel like that you could or should have been on third at that point? And how happy were you when Logan drove you in?
CODY BELLINGER: Yeah, one out, you're told to go halfway on a fly ball, no matter what. Once I saw that he was camped -- I thought Puig hit it better than he did at first, so like I said, once I saw that he was camped, I tried to get back, but it was too late.
Q. Obviously one of the big story lines of the season was you and Aaron Judge, big rookies, and he was having a postseason at some point a lot like yours, with a lot of struggles and came out of it. Did you notice it at all and did it mean anything for you as you were struggling to say, hey, someone in a similar situation to me did get out of this?
CODY BELLINGER: Yeah, I watched and we were identical, striking out a lot, swinging at a lot of off-speed that we don't normally swing at. And I think that's the pressure of the postseason sometimes. But like I said it's a beautiful game, I can come out the next day and help the team to win after a bad day like that.
Q. What's it mean to take one from the Astros at home when they're undefeated before?
CODY BELLINGER: Important. Especially since we have Kershaw going tomorrow. The fans are loud here and they took the lead, and we just tried to come back. We've been doing it all year. We're a super resilient team. Taking one here to make sure we go back to LA is huge.
Q. You were 0-13 before you got that first double. How much of an exhale or relief did you feel to finally break through?
CODY BELLINGER: Yeah, sigh of relief. I hit it and I was just hoping that it faded into the wall, just so he didn't catch it. Luckily it did. I don't know what I did, I just had a super sigh of relief, that's for sure.
Q. You talked about going to the opposite field in batting practice. How can that do, how did that help you get into your rhythm tonight?
CODY BELLINGER: Yeah, I think everyone noticed. The only thing I'm pulling off everything. Usually in BP I just try to lift, have fun in BP. But today I tried to make an adjustment. I needed to make an adjustment, and so I decided I'm hitting every ball to left field today. I had two balls to left field today in the game and I saw some results, so let's see.
Q. Talk about the boost Alex Wood gave you guys. Had a no-hit bid as long as he did. After that you have Kershaw. How much confidence did it give this team?
CODY BELLINGER: Woody was phenomenal. He was hitting his spots, keeping them off balance. He's been great for us all year. We need that out of him to go deep in this game to save our arms in the bullpen. And got Kershaw on the mound tomorrow.
Q. Did you make more technical or mental adjustments?
CODY BELLINGER: Mental, and that can make a world of difference. Sometimes you see in the postseason you want to try to do too much and that's what I was doing. Today I try to make an effort of not doing too much, and when you do that you get two hits sometimes. It's a crazy game.
Q. Cody, did you decide to change in BP and change your style or did someone else? And if it was you, did you go home last night and think about it on the way to work today? When exactly did you come with it?
CODY BELLINGER: I just thought of it right when I went out to hit. Didn't think about in the cage before. I see Andre take BP every day and every ball is getting shot to left field, and I see John Forsythe take BP and every ball is getting hit in the gap, and I was always told these really good hitters hit the ball the other way in BP and I had never done it, and I wanted to try it.
Q. As well as Wood was pitching today, did you expect him to be taken out after the home run?
CODY BELLINGER: More the timing of the game. He's ridiculously good for us, he's been really, really good for us. And we have full confidence in him Morrow. I'm sure we did in Woody, but I'm sure it's just how it panned out.