AL DIVISION SERIES: RED SOX v INDIANS

October 8, 1999

David Burba

DAVE BURBA: Basically, if I have an extra day, I try to take it. The day that -- depending on how it falls, like today it falls on a day where it's an easy day for me anyway, so I would just approach it like a normal day as if we did have a game and I'll go out and just play catch and make sure I get loose and do a little running and give my legs a little bit of work. And that's how I approach it. The prior days, I try to throw my bullpens as I normally would, if there was a regular five days in between starts. So that's basically how I approach the extra day.

DAVE BURBA: Well, a little nervous. I guess that's only normal. I'm very excited, very honored to be a part of the Indians post-season starting staff. That's basically it. I'm very honored to be, you know, slated to be a number three guy for a top Major League Baseball team. I feel honored.

DAVE BURBA: Well, I guess to answer the first part of the question is I try not to let, you know, outside factors like that affect, I guess, my mental make-up. You know, I could be the guy that does this or does that, that puts them out, if I start thinking things like that, then I tend to put too much pressure on myself and I'm the type of guy that likes to take things as they come, meaning, you know, it's just another start. I have to go out and prepare, like it's any other start. As soon as I start thinking, "Well, this is a big game, I have to do this, I have to do that," then I start doing things Dave Burba is not capable of doing. So I'm going to approach it like it's any other start. Yeah, I know it's an important game, things like that. But that's how I have to approach it. How I finished the regular season, I guess basically I spent a lot of time working on my mechanics and making minor adjustments with Phil in the bullpen in between starts. I guess they really took effect for me in the second half, and made me a better pitcher than I was in the first half. Even though I thought I pitched well in the first half but not as well as I did in the second half.

DAVE BURBA: Well, I learned one thing; I don't have a 100 mile an hour fast ball. I don't have a good curveball like Chuck does. I do pitch sort of like Chuck, I try to move the ball around a lot. I try to change speeds. And I'm not going to basically lay out what I saw from the two games, but, yeah, I learned a lot from watching those two pitch and how they approach the hitters, and especially watching Chuck because him and I are a lot a like as far as our make-up, our pitches. We both throw change-ups, a curveball and a split finger. I throw a sinker; Chuck throws a sinker. I watched Chuck yesterday and I learned a lot from how he pitched to them. Basically, I'm going to do, you know, what I feel I have to do as far as my strong suits, and some of the things that I learned from Chuck and Bartolo. I don't know if that answers your question, but I don't want to go into, you know, in case somebody else is watching.

DAVE BURBA: Any time you have a chance to put them away with one game left, that definitely gives us the advantage. But you can never let your guard down. I had to go out and pitch aggressive like I always do, and hopefully our offense can score some runs early and put the pressure on them even more. But as far as, you know, do we have -- we definitely have the advantage right now, but that doesn't mean that, you know, it's over. Anything can happen. So for me, I have to go out tomorrow and pitch a quality game and give my team an ample chance to win the ball game. That's the approach I'm going to take.

DAVE BURBA: That's a difficult question for me to answer. Yeah, I think that they're going to be, you know, trying a little more than maybe they normally will, I mean sure, it's post-season. Everybody's going to be trying harder than normal, I guess you could say that. But I don't think that they're going to press too hard, because they're quality Big-League hitters and they know how to play the game, they know how to approach day in and day out, I guess, how to ready themselves for any game. As far as them pressing tomorrow, I don't think that's going to happen. But hopefully it does, and we can get out of there with a victory.

DAVE BURBA: Yeah, I definitely have memories of this park because my first Big League appearance ever was here in Boston. The only thing I can remember was my legs shaking so much I didn't think I was going to be able to throw a baseball. I didn't pitch very well that day, but it was my first appearance and I was very nervous. As far as the Green Monster and everything goes, how am I going to approach that, is I'm going to pitch like I pitch any other ballpark and pitch how I would normally pitch, because as soon as I try to change something or do something different, then I'm going against my strengths, and I have to pitch to my strengths to be effective. And I can't try to do things different because of a baseball field or something like that. I have to pitch the way I'm capable of pitching, and pitch to my strengths.

DAVE BURBA: It's a nice compliment, but I don't think that way. I am more of a -- I wouldn't say a leader, but a team player. I'll do whatever my team needs me to do. Last year was a perfect example, they asked me to pitch out of the bullpen and, you know, I accepted that and went down there and won a couple ball games out of the bullpen, which was a big honor for me in post-season. But as far as being a leader, you know, I try to just be Dave Burba and have the same approach every day, and if guys look up to and look up to me as far as being a team leader, then, you know, that's great. But I don't try to do anything out of the ordinary, but I just try to help my team win and if that's being a leader, then I guess I'll accept that role.

DAVE BURBA: I don't think we're underestimated. I think everybody was looking at the fact, like you said, about Pedro. If he can come in and pitch the first game and get a win, then naturally he's going to come back in the fourth or fifth game if it went that far, and that's probably what gave them the upperhand. But we've got Bartolo Colon on our side. You're talking about a quality pitcher also who may not be the caliber of Pedro, but Bartolo can match up to Pedro, which he did all year, and luckily we got that first game and now we have the advantage. As far as a short series goes, anybody could come out the winner. The most important thing is getting that first win. I think that's what everybody was looking at. Pedro, they were banking on him nailing down that first victory.

DAVE BURBA: Well, like I said, I wasn't going to let the, you know, outside factors build up as far as: "Hey, I could be the guy that closes out the series, be the big hero." I don't want to approach it that way because then I will tend to put too much pressure on myself and start doing things that I'm not capable of doing and I'll start trying to overthrow the baseball and things like that. I'm going to take the approach that this is an important game and I have to go out and pitch a quality game and give my team a chance to win. So how am I going to approach it? I would approach it like I would any other baseball game. Prepare myself to pitch nine innings, nine scoreless innings, and adjust as the game goes.

DAVE BURBA: It was definitely a confidence booster, going out and having pitched well that day, throwing strikes. I don't believe I walked anybody. That's probably a first. But, yeah, it definitely gives me some confidence knowing that I'm throwing the ball well and able to throw all my pitches over in any count. That definitely gives you a little bit of confidence going into an important game like tomorrow. And I think that, you know, it was basically a test for me on Sunday to get myself ready for this start.

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