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Oct. 19 Marcus Stroman postgame interview

Q. You've gone through the milestone of returning, the first game, the first win. What's it like for a Postseason win when your team is pretty much desperate?

MARCUS STROMAN: It's pretty special, you know what I mean? We were down 2-0. We realized that. You couldn't tell we were down 2-0 in the clubhouse, unbelievably confident group that we have. To go out there and to see the bats be swung like they were and see the defense play behind me, just carry this momentum into the next couple of games.

Q. That was your third playoff start. Did you learn anything about pitching in the Postseason?

MARCUS STROMAN: It's a battle. It's a battle, you know what I mean? Every pitch matters, and especially facing a lineup like Kansas City, who is strong one through nine, every single one battle, battle, battle, puts the ball in play. It's tough.

It's the Postseason, you have to do everything in your power to come out there with a W no matter what it takes. Today the guys swung the bats unbelievably. Goins, Pillar, out there making plays, Tulo. And just seeing what Go-Go did, that was huge, seeing how he bounced back from all that scrutiny that was going on the last game. To see him go out and get us started, get a homer and make the unbelievable plays that he does day-in and day-out, that he makes look easy. It's special just to have him back there behind me, and to know that he rebounded like that.

Q. You had a high percentage of strikes today. That fifth inning was a little shaky, but then you came back and a strong 6th. Can you describe the 5th for us?

MARCUS STROMAN: It was a battle all day. It was tough. I definitely didn't have my best command. I felt like I was getting into advantage counts and my off speed, I wasn't able to put them away, I was leaving some off speed up in the zone.

But it's the playoffs, you have to do everything in your power to limit the teams, put your team in a position to win. And I felt like I was able to do that, luckily.

Q. Your thoughts on Gibbons sticking with you as the game progressed and staying in for the later innings?

MARCUS STROMAN: Gibby has been -- he has more confidence in me sometimes than I think I have confidence in myself. That's hard to do, because I have a lot of confidence in myself. Every single guy in this clubhouse trusts me and has that confidence to go out and get the job done. And like you said, that just kind of shows you that he has that confidence in me, even though I might have been struggling earlier in the game, he knows I have the capability to go up and put up a zero.

I feel thankful and lucky to be in the position I am and to have this team camaraderie and just to go out and compete with my brothers every day, when I wasn't supposed to be here. It's been special.

Q. You said that the mood in the Jays' clubhouse is always the same, very confident. Are there any highs and lows or is it the same as yesterday?

MARCUS STROMAN: It's the same every single day in the clubhouse. And I truly mean that, I don't just say that just to say it. You could not tell in the clubhouse if we're down 0-2 or up 2-0. And I've never been part of a team like that. What we have is extremely special, the confidence that everybody has with everybody is amazing. And the camaraderie we have with every single individual. It's like a family. I feel like every person in this team is my brother. I love what we have, and just looking forward to keeping it going.