Oct. 7 Bruce Bochy postgame interview

Q. Vogelsong, the game he pitched tonight.

BRUCE BOCHY:  You know, Vogy, I think there's a reason why he was out there tonight. I told him that. He's had an up‑and‑down year, but really has pitched better than what the numbers indicate, and he couldn't have given us a better effort.

Really had good stuff tonight and command, and he got us where we wanted. We were hoping to get through six there and then go to the pen.

Just a gutty effort, great stuff. I'm proud of him, I really am, because he's had some tough luck. We've had one pitcher in this rotation that's had some tough luck, whether it's run support or what could go wrong went wrong for him at times with bad hops or bloopers, errors, whatever.

He really came through for us tonight.

Q. You're going to the NLCS for the third time in five years. What does that all mean to you?

BRUCE BOCHY:  It means that I really have a gritty bunch out there. I told them earlier, there's nobody's will that's stronger than theirs or desire that's deeper than that. They were determined not to get back on the plane and go to Washington. Couldn't quite put the game away, but they kept fighting. And when they tied the game, we put pressure right back on them, and it's all about them.

It's fun to see a group of guys that come together that are so unselfish and that play with so much grit.

Q. Was there any thought in mind of not using Strickland in the seventh?

BRUCE BOCHY:  No, he was our seventh inning guy.

Q. Even with Harper coming up?

BRUCE BOCHY:  Yeah, yeah, and you're hoping lightning doesn't hit twice, but it did (laughter).

This kid's got great stuff, great makeup. Machi, he threw the night before and lobbed some pitches, but the game plan was for him to have the seventh inning, which will continue.

This kid will learn from this, and the thing I liked about him after the home run, he found a way to get through the inning, which was big for us. I didn't have to bring in Romo or Jeremy, and I had them for the eighth, ninth or whatever.

Q. The wild pitch and Posey at the plate and the play at the plate, I know you have been around a long time, but have you seen something like that before? And what was the argument there for Posey?

BRUCE BOCHY:  You know what? I have seen it before. It's a free play and Buster's got to go, and they made a great play. Ramos hustled and pitcher did a good job of taking the throw. I was saying, well, you know, let's check and see if he blocked the plate or if he tagged him.

At that point, I have nothing to lose. It was hard to tell when we saw on replay.

And that's a tough break. I mean, here we've got one out, they are putting Sandoval on and got Belt coming up and they get an out of it. I don't know if that it was in their playbook, but it worked (laughter).

Q. With that in mind, you had that, you score on a wild pitch, on a walk. Is this one of the strangest games ‑‑

BRUCE BOCHY:  It was, how we scored, but that's our way sometimes. We scratch and paw for runs. And we got a break. Blanco, good at‑bat, getting the walk, and Panik putting it in play. But the wild pitch certainly helped. You take it.

This club we played, and I congratulate them on their year. They had the best record in the National League. And that staff, from starters to bullpen, could be one of the best staffs in baseball.

And we found a way to get it done. So I'm proud of these guys.