Greinke praises Baker: Nice that someone here has confidence in me

Dusty Baker trusted his gut, and Zack Greinke rewarded him by keeping the Houston Astros' season alive.

With Houston's season hanging in the balance, the manager allowed Greinke to keep pitching through a difficult situation in Game 4 of the ALCS against the Tampa Bay Rays.

The former AL Cy Young winner struck out the red-hot Randy Arozarena, and then, after loading the bases and getting a mound visit from Baker, got Mike Brosseau swinging to end the sixth inning. Houston held on for a 4-3 win.

(Source: MLB.com)

Greinke, one of the Astros' last remaining veteran starters, was quite appreciative of Baker's trust in that situation.

"It's nice having someone have confidence in me," Greinke said, according to Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. "Since I've been here, they haven't seemed to have confidence in my ability. It was nice having that happen at an important time like that."

Greinke's comments were seemingly a veiled shot at former Astros manager AJ Hinch. In Game 7 of last year's World Series, Hinch removed Greinke with a 2-1 lead in the seventh inning; the Astros' bullpen went on to relinquish the lead, and the Washington Nationals won the game and series.

When asked directly if he was referencing what happened last October, Greinke admitted that game "was one example, but there's probably a dozen examples if you look back at it," according to Rome.

Baker admitted postgame that the choice to stay with Greinke in the sixth was purely instinct. "There were some prayers involved there on the way back to the dugout," he told the Chronicle's Brian T. Smith.

The 36-year-old Greinke praised Baker's instincts and abilities as a players' manager.

"He reads people really good, and I don't think I've ever seen him make a wrong decision when he trusts what he sees," Greinke said, per Tyler Kepner of the New York Times. "He sees the right thing almost 100 percent of the time, and not everyone has that skill. Not many people do."