NL DIVISION SERIES: BRAVES v ASTROS

October 11, 2001

John Burkett

Brian Jordan

JOHN BURKETT: Definitely is. Last time I started here in a playoff game was in 1996. After Spring Training of 2000 with the Devil Rays, I thought my career was over. Now here I am pitching Game 3 for the Atlanta Braves. Just playing with the Atlanta Braves is unbelievable after what happened. So I'm really looking forward to what I'm going to do tomorrow.

JOHN BURKETT: That's kind of a hard question for me to answer. You know, Spring Training, I was only in spring training with Tampa Bay. Spring training is a real loose relaxed atmosphere. I think no matter where you're at. Now I've been with the Braves two years. The one thing I can say, you know, the Braves, compared to the teams I've been on, this team expects to win. I've been on some good teams in the past, but here it just seems like the guys here are used to winning and they're not used to anything else happening. You know, they never lost. They always go out there to win. I think it rubs off on everybody.

BRIAN JORDAN: Honestly? (Laughter). I knew we had a good chance. I mean, you know, like I said, we came together at the right time at the end of the year. We started playing some good baseball. You know, going into the playoffs I felt really confident. Meeting the Astros in the first round I think boosted our confidence up a little bit because they were struggling towards the end of the season. And I'll tell you, you got some great pitching performances. I mean, Glavine yesterday was unbelievable. He made the pitches when he needed to. I give those guys a lot of credit. They pitched a great game, too. To win 1-0, I wouldn't have expected it. But to hold that offense down like we have, I wasn't expecting that. So I figured we would score more runs yesterday, but, you know, they did what they had to do. It was a great game all around. We're fortunate to be up 2-0. Right now, we just need to put the pedal down and try to clinch.

BRIAN JORDAN: I understand what happened, but as far as giving them a flicker of hope, I don't think so. I mean, this is a totally different season. I mean, this is the playoffs. You throw away season statistics, what happened during the year. It means nothing right now. So when we needed to win at home, we did. This is the time we need to win at home, and I think we don't worry about what happened all year. I mean, every day is a different day. Coming home, I think we're going to have an advantage. Our fans are going to be pumped up. When we needed our fans, they came through for us the last week of the season. They brought us a lot of energy to come through like we did. It was a big last week for us at home. I felt like the fans gave us some great support. It was a lot of fun. I think they will these next -- well, hopefully tomorrow and that's it.

JOHN BURKETT: Well, I mean, I think that first of all, I think it's tough but when the excitement, the adrenaline gets going I think sometimes the advantage may go to the pitcher because you can take advantage of some of the hitters' aggressiveness. And I think Glavine here and Doggy (Maddux) have done a good job at doing that. You have to pick your spots and do it though. It's not easy to do. You got to pick your spots where you could back up and spots where you can try to get it past somebody. But, yeah, Smoltz, watching Smoltz is amazing. It's just incredible what he's done. He's gone out there in the ninth inning and shut it down, eighth and ninth inning in the first game. So they've all done a great job. I plan on doing the same thing. The Astros know me really well. And I know them real well. It's just a matter of executing better.

BRIAN JORDAN: Believe me, you never can forget what happened. You can try and say it's not but it's in the back of your mind. Every year is different. You have an opportunity, you have hope every year. You know, their backs are up against the wall. They can't afford to make mistakes. If they do, we have to take advantage of them. That's the way we have to approach the game tomorrow, and believe me, they're going to approach it the same way because they can't afford to make any mistakes; so they got to play, you know, good baseball.

JOHN BURKETT: He's actually 4 foot 12 but he's been playing like a 7-footer. He's incredible. He's gone out there and been aggressive and put the pressure on the team early. He's able to score a run for us early and get us on the board. That's a big key in the playoffs. I think if you can make the other team chase you, it makes it a lot easier for you.

BRIAN JORDAN: We have been a team this whole series. You know, for a young kid to come in and perform the way he has, I mean, it's just tremendous. He's one of those happy-go-lucky guys. He enjoys playing the game and he has fun and when he struggled, he still worked hard. He worked hard, got himself pumped up, got them talking to him. He worked his way through it. I mean, that just shows what kind of character he has and how much heart he has. I mean, yesterday he bailed us out with a great defensive play. I mean, from where he started defensively to where he is now shows what type of person he is. I mean, he's a hard worker. I think Glenn Hubbard helped him tremendously with his defense. He's really been a great baseball player for us.

JOHN BURKETT: For me, I wouldn't treat it any different, you know, if our team was up 2-0 or the Astros were up 2-0. I would perform the same way. I would approach it the same way. I mean, I only know one way to pitch. I just try to go out and execute that game plan the best way I can. As a matter of fact, they're going to probably do the same thing. I don't think you can go out there, swing wildly, and try to do too much. I think they're going to play a sound game, and I expect that. I just need to prepare myself and be ready.

BRIAN JORDAN: As a hitter, putting myself in the other situation, I think I would put a lot of pressure on myself to perform, to come through. That would probably make me a little more aggressive, try to make something happen. And sometimes that can get you in trouble, and sometimes, you know, you can make it happen and help your team win. Believe me, it puts a lot of pressure on you as a hitter.

BRIAN JORDAN: Well, if I know Bobby, he's going to probably be here tomorrow, there's no doubt. It's a tough situation where, you know, you have off-the-field family concerns. I think his No. 1 priority is to be with his family. There's no doubt about that. As players, we understand that and if anything, it's going to motivate us more to go out and win and give him a couple more days' time to spend with his sister. We're all just praying that everything goes well and works out. But I know Bobby. He's going to be here tomorrow and ready to play baseball. So we'll be more motivated and play for him.

JOHN BURKETT: You did a fine job (laughter).

JOHN BURKETT: It's really -- I mean, I don't really expect anything. When I came into this season, I thought I would do better. I thought I'd improve on last year. But I didn't expect anything. I just didn't kind of plan it out. It just keeps getting better and better. So I hope that it just keeps getting better. I hope I can pitch a lot more this year. But I'm really looking forward to pitching Friday. It's been a long time for me. I'm really excited about it. I'm glad we're up 2-0, and I'm glad we have a chance to win Friday. And I plan on going out and giving it my best shot and I'm hoping we can win and have a few days off.

BRIAN JORDAN: He could be a 20-game winner if we scored some runs for him.

JOHN BURKETT: Again, I've faced these guys a lot of times. I think they probably had 50 or 60 at-bats against me. So they know me really well. I know them really well. I don't think I'm going to approach it any differently. I think you have to read hitters as you pitch to them. Every game you have a game plan. Every time I go out there, I know what I'm going to do and I go out with that plan but sometimes that plan changes. So it may change as the game goes. If I feel like they're being more aggressive, I can make some changes and adapt to that. If I feel like they're being patient, some teams like to be patient with me, then I have to make adjustments to that. So a lot of it just becomes a read from my side. I just got to watch and watch how they react to certain pitches and read it from there. But I don't go in there and anticipate I'll have to pitch differently. I'm going to pitch to them the same way I have every time we've played.

BRIAN JORDAN: Sometimes when you make a lot of changes, it takes time for the team to gel. I think we gelled at the right time. I mean, Giles came, Sanchez, new acquisition, Julio comes from the Mexican League. Those guys came over with the idea that they had to prove something, they had to show the fans that they could do it. And sometimes that tends to put more pressure on yourself, and it doesn't allow you to relax and enjoy your teammates and baseball. As the year went on, the last couple, two, three weeks, all of a sudden these guys get comfortable, the team starts gelling, and things started to come together for us at the right time. I mean, we were playing some really good baseball the last couple weeks. That's my belief. I think we came together at the right time. Guys are relaxed now. Guys are having fun in the dugout, in the clubhouse, because now we get to know each other a little better. So it takes time when you mix and match during the season. It happens like that, you know. Right now we feel great.

JOHN BURKETT: I think it also says a lot about Bobby Cox and the management here at the Braves, to have this many changes and to be able to spot the guys in the right spots and get it done. We didn't play all that great the regular season. But like Brian said, I think we really feel like we're gelling right now as a team at the right time. Only time will tell, but I think the right buttons have been pushed this year and have put us all in a position to have a successful post-season.

JOHN BURKETT: Well, I have all those numbers, too (laughter). Many of their line-up are hitting .400 off me, so... I don't really concern myself with that. For me, I know I've pitched really well this year. I have a lot of confidence in myself. I don't really care what people have done in the past. I think I'm a different pitcher now, I have different pitches and I have a different look. So a lot of people that have found success off me, I've been able to neutralize them with some of the things that I have been able to do this year.

BRIAN JORDAN: It's not delicate, believe me. I mean, we've been through it. And, believe me, this is a very inconsistent year, but now that we've come together, I mean, forget about the past. You know, that's obsolete. Now it's playoff time. We feel comfortable. We're relaxed. We're having fun. Now we're looking ahead, not behind.

JOHN BURKETT: Yeah, I think there's always going to be, you know, a situation where you're looking over your shoulder because I think there's always a sense of urgency in the playoffs. Now we're up 2-0 in the series, I feel like, you know, we need to win on Friday. I mean, one game, you lose one game to the other team and you're looking over your shoulder and the momentum has changed. So I think it's very important for us to win on Friday, just as important as it is for the Astros. I really feel like the team is playing well now, and that gives us a lot of confidence.