NL DIVISION SERIES: CUBS v BRAVES

September 29, 2003

Bobby Cox

BOBBY COX: Yeah, we met all morning long. We're still going to announce it tomorrow morning at 10:00. That's when the time comes up. If anything goes wrong today or this evening, the players are instructed to call one of our trainers or somebody and let us know. Right now we think we're really, really healthy with the players that are on there, and it should be fine, but we're going to give ourselves the chance to be flexible and not come out with it until 10:00.

BOBBY COX: It's worked out that way really. We have good pitching. We have very good pitching or we wouldn't be here. We probably have the best hitting we ever had in this club. We've hit a lot of home runs and scored a lot of home runs. There is no easy outs in it. All of them can hit the ball out. It's an explosive lineup.

BOBBY COX: I would bet a lot of money he didn't say that, number one.

BOBBY COX: Dusty, number one. I think he's a terrific manager. You could see that club coming the last couple of years with what they've got with the draft. They've added a lot of players in the course of the season to help them along too. It's just a terrific young pitching club, that team. If you're ever going to have sort of a dynasty, I think that's a pretty good way to go with that type of pitching.

BOBBY COX: I think all the teams, once you reach the play-offs, are hard to beat actually. I always felt there were teams that didn't make the play-offs that if they put them in the World Series, they could probably win the darn thing. I still believe that. Everybody is dangerous. There is no doubt about that. We obviously feel very good about our team and we're going to go for it.

BOBBY COX: I have been with a few MVPs like Chipper Jones and Terry Pendleton. These guys are really special. He's a great kid that loves to play the game. He's very serious about winning ball games. I think he's had a phenomenal year. Gary is on my team, so he would get my vote.

BOBBY COX: I don't know. Our pitchers got along for a lot of years with only one or two runs in a lot of ball games that we won. I think it makes them feel better that our ball club can come back in the bottom half of that and get five. I think it does a little bit.

BOBBY COX: Yeah, either one would be good, 8:00 or 7:00. Certainly 4:00 is not the best time for a baseball team to match up with another one when you can't see the ball very well and the sun comes into play, too, with the outfielders and infielders. With the Cubbies, for sure I think we're going to draw very well in this series. I think the nights gives the fans a chance to come out, that want to come out.

BOBBY COX: Really, it's still a ball game. There are no issues. We just finished up in Philadelphia. We were hoping that those games would really mean something. Of course, they got knocked out prior to coming in there, but they had over 50,000 each game and they were sold out and I thought it was kind of great, kind of playoff atmosphere with that many people and we still had the carrot in front of us trying to get home-field advantage and playing hard, and there were no issues going down the stretch really keeping the players up and there are none trying to get them up for a post-season game.

BOBBY COX: You play for the stretch. There is nothing better than being in a stretch run in a pennant race. You play into the playoffs for the World Series. The adrenaline is flowing fast enough as it is. The only thing I've told them is do what you do best, win ball games, and stay focused. We had to make a lot of tough decisions today. It will come out tomorrow morning. There is a lot of hearts in that club house. We're basically beating with one pulse. It's a team effort.

BOBBY COX: Well, we could go with 4 Ramirez would be that guy if we don't do something else.

BOBBY COX: I don't think there was any surprises with what Russ did if you check his past. The innings he cumulated each year and the wins he put on the board. It doesn't surprise me he had this type of season. The ball's got to bounce your way. I saw Tommy Maddox win 14 one year and in my mind he won 25. It just didn't go his way, but --

BOBBY COX: I think he's as close to 100 percent as he's been in the last month. I thought he threw the ball well in Philadelphia. We lost the ball game, but he threw well. John's feeling good, and it wouldn't surprise me if he pitched in five of the five games.

BOBBY COX: He's done really well. He reported to Spring Training well before the pitchers got there and worked out at first base. He's come along way in that position. He had a little experience in the minor leagues but not at the big league level or anything like that. We got him as a hitter. He's proven that. He's driven in 80-some runs. He's the one left-handed hitter that I think has made our lineup pretty good.

BOBBY COX: He's been terrific from day one. He works awful hard. If you work hard along side of him, he likes you. If not, he has no use for you. He's that kind of dirt player and fits in well in the clubhouse and on the field.

BOBBY COX: Same as it always is, hit the ball. We've got some pretty patient hitters. We led the league in home runs and maybe the fewest strike-outs. We try to swing at good pitches. It's hard to have a game plan -- you know, he's got great stuff and what you hope for is to get some pitches to hit.

BOBBY COX: Well, I can't give you all of my opinions. I'll give you some. The commercials, number one, and maybe the managers going to the mound a lot. I don't know. I was watching the Yankee game last year during the World Series and I was gone for almost two hours and got back and it was only the bottom of the fifth. They are taking too long if that's the case.

BOBBY COX: I guess. It just feels like you're supposed to be here. This is the time of year you continue working and become something that everybody expects. I suppose I always expected at Spring Training when we break camp to be around during the playoffs and have a crack at the World Series. I don't think it will hit home to all the guys that have been on this team like the Maddoxes and Smoltzes. It's hard. There are great players that never even get a chance to play in the World Series and some of them not even in the playoffs.

BOBBY COX: I recognized that to the players this morning; what they achieved as a team and individually. I thought it was just staggering to be honest with you. There were times we were breaking records on the same day and didn't know which one to give the ball too. There are real milestones that have been achieved by individuals on our team, but it's still a team. That's the good thing about it. Everybody pulls for everybody very hard to break those records.

BOBBY COX: Thanks guys.