MLB WORLD SERIES: YANKEES v DIAMONDBACKS

November 4, 2001

Joe Torre

JOE TORRE: Right now, I told the players that we're disappointed in the outcome, but they should be very proud of what went on here. You know, I congratulate, obviously, the Diamondbacks organization, Joe Garagiola and Bob Brenly, and they played hard. They certainly earned it, doing it off our best guy. As I say, on one hand, you know, you realize how closure, but again on the other hand, we realize how many times we snatched it away from people when they were close, so you really have to take both sides of this thing but I certainly am proud of the way my ballclub responded to the pressure. We were not hitting but they seemed to get in a situation that put us with a lead and we put Mo in the game and that's all we really wanted.

JOE TORRE: Roger was gutsy. He had good stuff. I didn't think that he threw enough strike ones, but he still managed to dance around it and be effective. I thought Curt, his pitch count was a lot better than ours, but Roger did a heck of a job of matching him. But he was terrific. I mean, he went out there and wanted to go out there for the seventh inning, and he just -- he's been our leader on the pitching staff, there's no question. He had two tremendous starts in a row, the Game 3 we needed to get back into it and today to hopefully win it, and really, got us in a position to get a lead late in the game, which is really all we want.

JOE TORRE: Well, I think Paul O'Neill was the first guy I hugged in there. I just had a short meeting with my players, telling them exactly what I just said to you; that they had to hold their heads high because they should be very proud of their effort and their dedication to doing what they do. You know, we were inspired. There's no question that what went on in New York inspired us a great deal, with all of the rescue workers and everything. Just, we fell a little short, but we didn't fall short in the effort that we gave. Paul O'Neill was tough. I'm going to miss Paul O'Neill. And if Tino is not here and Brosius is not here, Knobby and Sojo and all of those people, you know, we meant a lot to each other this year. Different people come together for the same things, and they certainly melded very well together because they knew what was important, and that was to win for each other. But it's emotional. Paul O'Neill, had a great game. We certainly wish we could have sent him out on a winning note, but we understand that there are two good teams on that field and they both can't win.

JOE TORRE: Well, people of New York, I think the people of New York got what they wanted. They saw a ballclub out there that struggled at times and yet found a way to get through it. And I think that pretty much epitomizes what they have been doing here for the last couple of months. You know, I think my ballclub represented New York very well, and I'm proud of them for that. I'm proud for their dedication, for their selflessness, and that they helped the NY on the caps, and that, you know, we felt this year, we represented more than just baseball fans; the people that needed a lift, I think we entertained them.