NL DIVISION SERIES: BRAVES v ASTROS

October 11, 2001

Marcus Giles

MARCUS GILES: It's a lot of fun. You know, this game has been a lot of -- there's been a lot of pressure in this game already. I think if you put more pressure on yourself, you're going to do worse. So you just go out there and have a lot of fun. Getting two in a row helps it to be a lot more fun. But you just go out there and play hard and just try to keep our hot streak right now. Momentum is a lot in a five-game series, and we're just going to try to keep that going.

MARCUS GILES: Well, I think going in, you definitely want to split at least at the worst. But I think you go in and try to win both games - always. Especially after you get that first one, you got to go to the next one. Going up 2-0 in a five-game series, like I said, is huge. I don't think we're surprised, but we would definitely accept a split. But 2-0 is definitely better than a split. So we're happy where we're at right now.

MARCUS GILES: You know, he's talked to me about the post-season and what it's like. But he says the same thing I've been saying all along. Pressure is only what you make of it and what you put on yourself. Like I said before, if you put pressure on yourself, I think your performance is not going to show as well. You just go out there and do what you've done your whole life. It's the same game. Just because you're in the playoffs, everything is magnified, you don't have much room for error and plays need to be made. But you just go out there and have fun, do what got you here. That's all the advice he's given me, is just do what I know.

MARCUS GILES: Well, when I was here for the first time I expected to be here for two weeks. As it was, I ended up being here for just about a month. When they made their decision to send me down, they were making room for John Smoltz. So, I mean I think you know as well as I do, I'm going to pick John Smoltz over Marcus Giles especially at that point in my career, and even now. At any time. But, you know, I had a couple choices. I could take that, I could go down to Richmond, feel sorry for myself, lick my wounds down there and not try to get any better and probably stay down there the rest of the year. Or I could learn from it, take what I learned up here and use that in Richmond and try to get better down there and get up here as quick as I can. That's what I did, and I think it's working out all right.

MARCUS GILES: Yeah, I've always been kind of a clown. Yeah, it's probably funner than what I make it look out there. It's the best thing I've ever done in my life. It's everything I've always wanted to do. So why not enjoy it? You don't know how long this is going to last. This could be my last year, I could have 10, 15 more years after this. You never know. So you got to take care of your game like it's your last. That's what I do out there. I think that's what makes it so enjoyable. It's hard not to have a smile on your face out there. It's a game; have fun.

MARCUS GILES: A ton. You know, since I was about 12 or 13, when I'd get off school in the summertime, when he was in the Minor Leagues, I'd go out and hang out with him, go on road trips, take the bus trips, 14-hour bus trips, hit batting practice with them, shower with them, have my own hitting group. I got to do the whole nine yards. I think that alone right there gave me an idea what to expect when I signed and went into pro ball. I think it's helped me. In the wintertime, I go to the gym. We work out together. We hit together every day. We go to play golf after that. But he's been there for me all my life. We've been pretty much like best friends all my life and he's been a ton of help.

MARCUS GILES: Geez, I know we were visiting Kingston, Watertown, Charlotte. I remember those places were dumps. They didn't change when I got there. I used to sleep up in the luggage rack in the bus. It worked out all right.

MARCUS GILES: He'll be back. I think he's trying to work on a ticket right now as we speak.

MARCUS GILES: His name is Matt. I think he might try to get out here, try to be here hopefully when we clinch this. Yeah, he'll be back. And he'll be back if we get to the next series. He'll be there, too. Everybody will be at the next series.

MARCUS GILES: Yeah, you know what, I was. Seeing the lifestyle, the struggle, you know, you make about 25 cents an hour in the Minor Leagues. To see him go through that and to see him get where he is now and the hard work he had to go through and the struggles he had to go through to get there, it makes what you got now so much better. It makes you grow up a lot, going to live on your own and eating, drinking water and eating bread every day to try to survive. Makes you learn a lot and makes you grow up. I don't regret anything I ever experienced in the Minor Leagues.

MARCUS GILES: A lot of fun, that's for sure. You know, it's a rough time, though. That part was, we were trying to clinch a division title. I've been in that slump before plenty of times in my career. Believe me, I've been there and you just got to battle through it. It's not fun, but you got to keep working hard. You're not going to do any good if you just sit on your hands. I tried to get out of it by working on it. But I've been there before. The only bad thing about it was it was kind of unfortunate about the timing of this slump. That's what really got to me most. You can't really let it get to you that much. Like I said, you're not going to do any good. But just the timing of it, and it hurt me not to be able to help the team in the week before the end of the season or whatever to help us clinch. But I had the guys to pick me up, though, so that was good.

MARCUS GILES: The guy's clutch. Brian Jordan is a tremendous competitor. He plays the game the right way, and that's hard. That's 100 percent. That's the way he plays it, like it's his last game. I think you can tell that from watching from the stands. I think anybody can tell that. I think he's an unbelievable guy to have on your team, especially in a clutch situation. He's been so clutch for us down the stretch, I don't -- I think anybody in the clubhouse would tell you if we didn't have him, we'd be in trouble.

MARCUS GILES: I think I made a comment about that the other night on the phone, saying it could be worse. It could be where I could be where he's at. But that was kind of mean. I didn't really mean that (laughter). But, you know, sure. He's an athlete, and I think any athlete wants to win. That's the bottom line. That's what we're here for - is to win and try to go get a ring. When you can't do it, you had a tough season like they did, I don't think anybody likes that. I don't think anybody on their team likes that. I don't think any of their staff likes that. But you got to roll with the punches and try to go get them next year. Sure, he'd like to be where I am right now just like I'm sure a bunch of other teams would like to be where we're at right now. But those people, they just got to work hard and try for next year. That's what Brian's going to do.

MARCUS GILES: Okay (laughter).

MARCUS GILES: I'm not gonna say. No, I don't know. I don't know. 5'8" soaking wet (laughter). In lather. I don't know (laughter).