MLB WORLD SERIES: ASTROS v WHITE SOX

October 25, 2005

Phil Garner

PHIL GARNER: I think this is large. 44 years of the organization and we've done a lot of things good. Our organization has done a lot of things good in the last 12 years. I want to say we've been the 4th best winning percentage in baseball. And I think that people talk very kindly about us, but I think this really validates what the organization has accomplished over the years. But let's face it, you have to get to the World Series to say things have gone well. The excitement in the city and around the state and for the people that work in our organization that don't get noticed a lot, this is a lot of fun, and I think it validates a job well done for a number of years for a lot of people.

PHIL GARNER: I think our general manager Tim worked real hard. We've been consistent all year long with what we've done. We'll play with the roof open if that's what the decision is, we'll go with it, we have a game to play tonight.

PHIL GARNER: Let me make that perfectly clear. I thought what I said yesterday was that I had him penciled in for 5, and that somebody had asked what the options were, we said Wandy and Ezequiel were the options. If I misspoke yesterday, let me clarify that. He's still sore. I still have him penciled in for 5. I have not said definitely one way or another that he is starting or not starting. We're still day-to-day with him. I have not spoken with him today so I don't know what to tell you today, if we're a whole lot better, if we're further on that or not.

PHIL GARNER: We have a game to play today, let's get on with it. I haven't said anything to any of the players. Let's get on with it, don't worry about it.

PHIL GARNER: I'm not aware of that. I don't feel like he's taken us out of our game, and I'm not aware of any discussions going on about that.

PHIL GARNER: We have a game to play tonight, closed, whatever, open, whatever, we're going to play the game tonight. We need to focus on what we do which is play the game, leave all that other stuff alone. We're going to play tonight.

PHIL GARNER: He does have a throw day. I wouldn't think that he had to. I have not addressed that with him.

PHIL GARNER: They did a good job at that. I would have to say they stayed into the counts a lot of times. But I felt we haven't pitched our best, either, we haven't made the quality of pitches that we're capable of doing yet. So it's been a combination of both. They've had some good at-bats, we haven't pitched as well as we can.

PHIL GARNER: We'll listen to Roger.

PHIL GARNER: He's been doing -- he's iced it. He's had some rubdowns, I think done some things in the swimming pool, those are the kind of things to do to try to get himself ready. I have not talked to him today so I don't know what all he's been doing today. I don't know where he is today -- where he is in virtue of the injury. He's in Houston (laughter.)

PHIL GARNER: Well, I honestly do like it (laughter). But the Sports Authority Board was -- is the public entity that has the authority to create the bond issues and receive the money to fund the stadiums, did this stadium, reliant, and Toyota Center. And she was on the original Sports Authority Board that did Minute Maid and there are a lot of people that spent a lot of time, pro bono, worked very hard, to build this stadium for the city, for the players, for everybody. I like it and I appreciate having seen it firsthand and the amount of work that a lot of people did to do this. A lot of people had full-time jobs. I don't know how they did it. Because my wife had to work very hard daily for several years to do this.

PHIL GARNER: Well, he's playing very well. I thought Chris Burke was swinging a hot bat. And I played Chris in that role, not because Willy wasn't doing anything, it just looked like Chris was on a hot streak. It wasn't because I think he could run on Molina, and I put him back in the lineup and he's swinging the bat pretty good, so we're going to stay with that.

PHIL GARNER: Yes, I've thought about it. We won that series.

PHIL GARNER: Yeah. We were down in that series, too. So you can draw on that. It's a good analogy. It was actually colder and wetter and rainier in that series than it was in Chicago the other night. I don't think my players believe me when I told them it was colder and rainier and I played without any shoes (laughter) because the mud kept getting on my spikes. In any rate, we managed to come back and win that series and so it gives you something to draw on.

PHIL GARNER: I'm convinced that Brad on several occasions has tried to get me fired so he could take over the team this year. Fortunately he hasn't succeeded just yet. I just absolutely think Brad would make a terrific manager. I rely on him a great deal. I trust his judgment. His judgment is good now. I can only imagine it would get better if he decides to stay in the game and go on and coach and manage.

PHIL GARNER: Well, I think he's probably learned a few things. I'm not sure how much he might have learned from them, but I think what he already knew is probably confirmed. I think Roy -- a lot of times young kids, and a lot of things have come fairly natural to Roy, he's a good worker. But I think when you see what Pettitte and Clemens do on a daily basis, the work habits they have, the discipline they have, the set regimen, that coincides with longevity, I think those are probably things that will sit home with Roy. And they're probably a good influence for him. But you won't notice it immediately; it's probably something that will happen down the road a little bit. But Roy was a pretty good pitcher in his own right before those guys got here. It's nothing but positive influence, but it will show up later.

PHIL GARNER: It does. That was a strange coincidence last year, because the team won all the home games. We don't want that to happen again, but we wouldn't mind the middle portion of that happening, certainly. But we were talking about the '79 World Series, it's just one of those things that says it's possible. And I think all of our players -- I don't think any of them have gotten here thinking about what's impossible or what might not happen. They all think in terms of what can happen and what we can do. So certainly we're not in good shape, being down two games, but that's why it's a seven-game series, still a lot of baseball to play.

PHIL GARNER: No, it was a slider that (Albert) Pujols hit out of the park the other night. I think it's all about the release point. When he has the fastball, when he wants to, then his slider is where it wants to be. If he's off on the fastball then his slider tends to be erratic. It's a question of his release point. He's healthy, but as is the case in a lot of times, what we didn't see last year was an unusual year in my opinion for a guy that throws the ball 95 to 97 miles an hour consistently, he was paying with his fastball all year. When you're throwing a ball where you want to with that speed and that's the release point for your slider, so his slider is outstanding. He was consistent all last year. He's had points this year where he's been as brilliant as last year, and times where he's not been as consistent. And that's more what you see with a guy that throws this kind of velocity. He'll be fine. He'll do just fine.