MLB WORLD SERIES: METS v YANKEES

October 24, 2000

Rick Reed

RICK REED: Gosh, I can't remember. (Laughing.) Oh, gosh, second and third, right, runners?

RICK REED: What did he do?

RICK REED: Everything's a blur. (Laughter.) Man, I can't remember that. That's terrible.

RICK REED: Obviously, it was big. (Laughter.)

RICK REED: Well, I'm sure he's been in that situation before. I'm not a strikeout pitcher, but I just found out that I had eight. I'm usually hoping to get a lot of ground balls instead of strikeouts. But early in the game, I was noticing that a lot of balls weren't being hit on both sides. So we knew we were in a battle. We knew that we were going up against a tough pitcher. We knew his track record in post-season. So we just clawed, scratched, and finally got some runs and came away with a win.

RICK REED: Well, I was trying to hide. I was trying to hide around that little section that they've added on, those seats. But I guess I didn't do a very good job of hiding. (Laughing.) I understand the game. I mean, I know right there that maybe if we would have got a base hit and got a couple runs, I might still be in the game. But it didn't happen. And we've got to try to get some runs out of that situation; and unfortunately, we didn't. But I understand the game. I understand the move. It was the right move. If I'm the manager, I would have done the same thing.

RICK REED: Well, actually, this is why you play in the Minor Leagues, you ride the buses at 4:00 in the morning, get up at 3:00 in the morning to catch a bus at 4:00. I mean this is why you play. This is why you go to Spring Training, you work hard on plays, and you work out in the off season and all that, to get to this point. Just to stand out on that mound would have been thrilling enough. But to pitch your first game and your team getting the win, that's the biggest thrill of all.

RICK REED: Fastball.

RICK REED: Yeah, direct one. I remember that one. (Laughter.)

RICK REED: I felt pretty good. When I went out to warm up, I felt really good. My last start against St. Louis, I was -- I guess I thought about the game too much, and I analyzed it too much. I came to the ballpark a nervous wreck. But today I came in relaxed, calm, and I mean, I don't know the reasoning behind all that, but I felt pretty good out there.

RICK REED: Yeah, yeah. Same feeling. I think maybe against St. Louis, I got into all the hype of maybe winning this game, that puts us up 3-0, I don't know. I just overanalyzed everything, and it took its toll on me I guess. But today, like I said, I came in relaxed and just went out and pitched.