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MLB WORLD SERIES: INDIANS v MARLINS

October 19, 1997

Chad Ogea

MIAMI, FLORIDA: Game Two

Q. Mike Hargrove said you've been up and down, you've been long relief, short relief; he hopes to never have to use you as a closer, would you want to be a closer?

CHAD OGEA: My whole career I've been a starter, and that's what I like to do the best.

Q. When you were in Buffalo in August, do you think a night like this is even possible?

CHAD OGEA: No, the biggest thing is the Lord God allowed me to come out of that injury and really come out ahead. He made me rededicate myself to the game, after being hurt.

Q. What kind of challenge was it facing Kevin Brown in his own ballpark?

CHAD OGEA: Tough. The guy is a good pitcher, he's got filthy stuff. I got to hit against him tonight and didn't have much of a chance to get a hit, but I got the bunt down, but that's another story.

Q. Is there some Little League or junior high coach in the country that's normal awfully proud of you laying down that bunt?

CHAD OGEA: I guess so. My dad's probably the most proud of me because he really taught me how to hit when I was a kid. He used to throw BP to me. And I used to hit him off the mound. He told me to watch the pitch out of the pitcher's hand.

Q. What's his name?

CHAD OGEA: Arthur.

Q. How much pressure was there on you to lay the bunt down in that situation, and when you do that, do you think back to when you used to hit, would you like to hit?

CHAD OGEA: I love to hit, but I think the thing is if I got to hit every day I'd be all right. You don't get to hit very often it looks like they're going 105. The bunt, I don't think there was that much pressure to get the bunt down, I said just see the ball good and get it down on the ground.

Q. Can you talk about what Kevin Seitzer or some of your teammates were talking about when you were at bat?

CHAD OGEA: I'm sure they were laughing, because I called time out a couple of times. And the reason I did that is because when you don't hit, it seems like things are in fast forward. If you don't hit it seems like the guy is stepping up there and throwing and throwing it. So I just wanted to make sure I could see a couple of pitches.

Q. Chad, did it -- in the third inning you had one out, a double and a walk, two men on, was that a pretty big stage for you to get out of that?

CHAD OGEA: Yeah, I can't remember exactly how I got out of it, but I got out of a lot of jams tonight. There were guys all over the bases. But definitely anytime that there's a man on first and second like that you definitely want to make sure that you take your time and just relax and throw the ball where you want to throw it and just be patient.

Q. Was it nice to get some run support tonight?

CHAD OGEA: Yeah, like I said the other day, it goes in stages, you go out there and throw good one time and get no runs and another time you get a lot of runs; you go out and throw bad and get a lot of runs. Our team turned it up tonight, they faced a tough pitcher in Kevin Brown and turned it up.

Q. The fourth inning play, the swinging bunt, could you tell us what that meant?

CHAD OGEA: I think that was one of the biggest plays of the game. I was going to field the ball and turn and check the guy at third, but Sandy made a great call and got it himself and I got out of the way once he got it.

Q. Chad, even though you've pitched well, you gave up the grand slam to Paul O'Neill, and were the losing pitcher in that ALCS game, do you think that's how you would be remembered, were you worried about that?

CHAD OGEA: No, I wish that homerun would go away. I wasn't thinking about that tonight, that's for sure. That's in the past, it's water under the bridge, and good thing I won tonight, because that kind of erases it.

Q. When did you know you had good stuff and how big was that play in the fourth inning?

CHAD OGEA: I knew coming out of the bullpen that I was throwing the ball well. I think after the National Anthem I was overthrowing the ball in the bullpen a lot and I just told myself to relax, settle down and don't try to throw the ball through the catcher but to the catcher. The play in the bunt in the 4th inning, it was huge. When you've got a guy on second with I believe it was no outs, I mean that's huge, when you get a guy onto third like that. It boosts your go

confidence and you start approaching guys a little different.

End of FastScripts….

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