MLB WORLD SERIES: METS v YANKEES

October 26, 2000

Bobby Valentine

BOBBY VALENTINE: I'm extremely proud of everybody who played for the Mets this year. I couldn't ask anything more of a group of guys. I couldn't ask for better effort, for better preparation, for better camaraderie. They're the National League Champs. I think that they were champs this whole series, and I'm extremely proud of them. We lost to the World Champs. They just did a little better than us this year, and they deserved to win.

BOBBY VALENTINE: I wasn't going to bring in a right-handed pitcher to face Polonia or for Sojo. It was either Al or Johnny; and rather than Johnny going three days in a row, I decided to go with Al. I thought that striking out those first two guys, and the pitches he threw to Posada, made me think he had plenty. I was wrong. It was the wrong decision, obviously. If I brought somebody else in, they definitely would have gotten the guy out, and we'd still be playing.

BOBBY VALENTINE: I said, "Congratulations on a great season, a great job." I asked him if he still thought he had enough. He said he had plenty. He thought he had Posada on strikes. I guess he just missed. He was confident he was going to get Sojo.

BOBBY VALENTINE: Well, it's two bases from where the runner is when the ball leaves his hand. I didn't think the runner had already touched second base, the runner from first. The umpire thought he did, so... If, in fact, he hadn't touched the base yet, he would have only gotten to third. He would have gotten to second, not third.

BOBBY VALENTINE: Yeah, I guess. Or maybe playing seven games. I don't know about that. I don't know how to answer that. I'm very proud of the team. They set out to get here. They also wanted to win. There are a lot of heavy hearts in my clubhouse right now, and I have a heavy heart with them. I hope they can feel the sense of accomplishment and pride that most Met fans, I think, will have in the way they went about their business this year.

BOBBY VALENTINE: Well, Derek Jeter's a great player. He didn't have to prove it this Series. He could have taken a night off, we would have still thought he was a great player. I'd like him a lot better. (Laughter.) But, I mean, Derek Jeter can play. He can move to his left and his right in the field. He has a real strong arm. He is a powerful clutch-hitter.

BOBBY VALENTINE: Well, the throw hit him. It hit the runner. Mike talked about it on the mound. He felt that he would let the ball get to him. If he would have went out in front of the plate, he would have given the plate to the runner to slide by him. If that ball is a fraction of a second sooner, or an inch away from the runner's leg, Mike would have caught it and tagged him out. We'd also still be playing.

BOBBY VALENTINE: I'm a little foggy going back right now. I just think that the fans who came to these games and the ones who watched at home saw whatever it was, 47 wonderful innings of baseball. I mean, every game was exciting. The fans were on their feet most all of the games. There were just a lot of clutch plays, a lot of clutch hits. A lot went on.

BOBBY VALENTINE: Well, I talked with Al yesterday, and he was determined to win this game. He said, "You don't have to worry about intentional walks. You don't have to worry about pitch counts. I could throw 150 pitches. I'm going to give everything I have, and I'm going to be the guy to get the victory tomorrow." He exhibited and walked his talk every step of the way, I thought, today. He battled them. He gave everything he had.

BOBBY VALENTINE: I don't know how to address it. My ownership has been great to me since I've been here. I have a wonderful team. I'm hoping like heck there's a situation where my respect for the organization and desire to manage this team is a mutual feeling. And there's no reason for me to think otherwise.