Writers who were in the room back in March still speak of it as something of a surreal experience.

Zack Greinke, the Brewers' prized off-season offered media members at spring training a rare glimpse into his private life and how his battle with social anxiety disorder affects his career.

He admitted that he didn't like talking with people, especially reporters and explained how he finds many things and people to be a "waste of time" or "annoying."

"To talk to people, I have to spend energy," he told reporters at the time. "If I spend my energy focused on talking to people and making friends, then that takes away from the energy I could be focused on getting ready to pitch. So I just try to avoid nonsense talk."

There was no offense intended, though some raised their eyebrows and wondered just what the Brewers had done.

There were plenty of questions. People wondered how Greinke would handle the pressure of being a former Cy Young Award winner, acquired for a stable of top prospects, in the hopes of winning a championship. How would he deal with failure if the team fell short? How would he deal with ... well, anything.

The biggest question, however, was how would he fit in with a loose, easy-going and tight-knit clubhouse. Some wondered if Greinke would feel comfortable, or if his presence would influence the team's chemistry.

Manager Ron Roenicke admits that he wondered about that, too.

"I didn't know what kind of conversations I would have with Zack or how he would fit in with the team coming over," Roenicke says. "You hear some things and until you're with him and see how he interacts with the other players, it's hard to imagine what was going to go on."

It didn't take long for Greinke to acclimate. Roenicke says Greinke likes to engage with his teammates and "stir it up a little" with his fellow pitchers. He also knows that Greinke isn't one for small-talk, so the conversations are kept to the basics.

"It's just the fluff that he doesn't like," Roenicke says. "If I want to ask him how his day is going or where he's going out to dinner tonight, that's not the conversation Zack likes to have. But if you're talking about how to get a batter out or how to field his position or how to hit, because he loves to hit, you're going to be in a conversation with him.

"He's been really nice on this team and he really fits in well with the other starting pitchers."

Greinke will never be a reporter's go-to interview, when looking to find a good quote on deadline. He'll never be one to sit and shoot the bull in the dugout. He does, however, pitch very, very well. Quite frankly, that's all anyone in the Brewers' organization is really worried about.

Things got off to a bit of a rocky start. He suffered a broken rib at the start of spring training while playing pickup basketball and didn't make his first start until May 4.

He took the loss in that outing, but would record six consecutive victories after that and despite finishing June with a 5.63 ERA, Greinke finished the season 16-6 with a 3.83 ERA.

He was perfect at home, going 11-0 with a 3.13 ERA in 15 Miller Park starts – all Brewers victories – which is why the Brewers were so eager for him to start Sunday in Game 2 of the National League Division Series.

Despite those gaudy numbers, Greinke says there's no secret to his success at Miller Park.

"I (feel comfortable) in most places, just the results have been good here," Greinke said Saturday. "Our team plays better here. Sometimes when you get on a roll it just kind of continues easier. I don't think I even noticed I pitched any better here than on the road until maybe a month ago when people were making a big deal out of it. It just kind of happened."

Coming back on short rest on Wednesday served a dual purpose. Greinke had last pitched on Saturday, Sept. 24, working five innings in a 6-4 Brewers victory. His normal day to throw would have come last Thursday, a day after the season ended. Waiting a week in between starts wasn't an ideal situation, so Roenicke opted to start him in the season finale.

The original plan was to get Greinke an inning or two of work, then shut him down and get him ready for a Game 2 assignment. But – and this is where the second half of the equation comes into play – the Brewers needed a victory against the Pirates to secure home-field advantage.

Greinke put in six innings of work, allowing two runs on five hits with a walk and four strikeouts. Even though he'd thrown just 74 pitches, Roenicke suggested that Greinke would not be available to go in Game 2 but didn't officially name a starter, leading to speculation that Greinke could return again on short rest.

When Roenicke made the announcement Friday, during the Brewers' workout at Miller Park, he said the idea to come back was Greinke's and that the coaching staff had handled the Wednesday assignment with Sunday in mind.

"The last game that Zack pitched Wednesday, he pitched really to pitch again Sunday," Roenicke says. "The way he went about it, the conversation I had in game with him after the 5th inning, we were talking about pitches, and if we got a bigger lead he was going to come out and that was what was on his mind. I didn't really talk to him that way during the game, but afterward that's why he was asking me after the fifth inning, is because he was thinking about this game Sunday."

Greinke said he's "plenty comfortable" with the assignment.

"I didn't throw that many pitches last time because we planned on it possibly happening," Greinke says. "I told him I'd be ready to pitch. It doesn't matter when they pitch me, but I said I'd be ready, for sure. And it was also kind of part of the plan if it wasn't talked about before, I'm sure I would have thrown more than 70 pitches my last outing and I would have just went on normal day or whatever. But we kind of shortened that out in thinking that if I was able to pitch I would pitch on Sunday."

Playing on a winning team has been a welcome relief for Greinke, whose Royals teams never won more than 75 games and lost at least 100 three times during his seven seasons in Kansas City.

It also helps to be surrounded by pitchers of equal caliber. Yovani Gallardo is a former All-Star, Shaun Marcum is highly regarded. The Brewers' bullpen is considered one of the best in all of baseball.

"It's a lot more fun to come to the park when this is going on," Greinke says. "When you're doing good individually, it's still not fun to go to the park if the team is losing. But right now it's fun to watch the games. You learn more watching better players play. And good pitchers you kind of learn from, too. So it's nice."