PostCards: Mike Matheny’s World Series Workout Day Press Conference

Q. How have you lined up your rotation behind Waino?

MIKE MATHENY: Right now we’ve talked about Waino going Game 1 and Michael Wacha is going Game 2.
Oct 22, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Adam Wainwright throws in the outfield during practice the day before game one of the 2013 World Series against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Image Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports
Q. Can you talk about the Red Sox, what’s their strengths, and what will be the key in defeating them?

MIKE MATHENY: Well, I think it’s a team that’s very similar to ours. They take a lot of pride in grinding at‑bats. It’s funny listening to their interviews, all the way through this‑‑ we’ve paid attention to all these teams. It’s been great baseball to watch for people that just love the game. But you hear some of the things that they say, and it’s a lot of similar things that have been preached in our clubhouse about that it’s about team; it’s not about us individually. And grinding out at‑bats and playing tough, playing hard, playing all the way through nine. Those are the things that I believe set good teams apart, and that’s what they’re all about.

We know this is a scrappy team that’s going to come out, but they have every component they need to win. They’ve shown it all season long. They’ve been the best record in the American League for a reason. So we’ve got to very similar teams in my opinion. It’s a matter of who goes out and jumps on the opportunity.

Q. What’s your take on Lester and how do you work against him with all the postseason experience he’s had?

MIKE MATHENY: Well, we faced a lot of good pitching lately, just like they have. To get to this point in the season, you haven’t had any half‑steppers. So we know that he’s going to come in and he’s going to have his game ready and he’s going to be on top of it. He’s a big game pitcher. But once again we faced some really good ones so far, and been able to put together a good game plan. It’s just a matter of guys making the needed adjustments and have a good plan as we head out there. We know this is the kind of guy that thrives in these situations. But we believe we have an offense that can thrive in it also.

Q. How much does Shelby Miller have in the tank? With Wacha, did his time in the bullpen totally prevent you from any concerns with him or was there some of that at any point?

MIKE MATHENY: Well, as far as Shelby, Shelby is ready to go. We threw a simulated game the other day, he looked very good. We’re able to use him as needed.

As far as Michael Wacha goes, I really do give a lot of credit to our front office. They put a plan together early on. When I saw Michael early in spring, we had a couple of opportunities to put somebody in our pen, and I was ready to run with Michael right away. But a kid just out at that point, not even a year out of college, we had to be careful. So it was a plan that we stuck to and John Mozeliak and the staff did a great job of allowing us at times. We would push him, and then back him off. He went into a six‑man rotation, he was in the bullpen. Not to the point that we were being arrogant thinking that we would be right here right now, but we wanted to be prepared. If we did bring Michael up at the end and he threw the ball well, and he deserved get a start, we wouldn’t be concerned with innings, and right now we’re happy where we are.

Q. With Allen on the roster, I wondered what that did for the makeup of the rest of it, if you stuck with the same number of pitchers and the same number of bats. And also when you look at tomorrow in your lineup, what consideration goes into centerfield, and how Shane Robinson is playing in the last series may impact that?

MIKE MATHENY: Well, our pitching roster will stay the same, which means we need to make one change, and that will be Adron Chambers will come out for Craig to come on.

As far as our lineup goes, we’ll post that tomorrow. But we have a lot of confidence in all of our guys. Shane does a nice job in centerfield. Did a great job in that last game of the NLCS, and Jon Jay has been a staple for us all season long. We’ll post that tomorrow. But we have faith in everybody.