MLB WORLD SERIES: ASTROS v WHITE SOX

October 23, 2005

Paul Konerko

Scott Podsednik

SCOTT PODSEDNIK: Trying to get Jermaine Dye off my back. This one came at a good time. I recall standing out in left field after Paul did what he did, thinking about, man, what does that man feel like right now, to get us into that position to get us ahead at that point. And so to go out and hit one out of the ballpark for a game-winner is pretty indescribable.

SCOTT PODSEDNIK: I was just trying to get to base. Then we can work from there. Then we'll try to get in scoring position. Luckily I got to 2-1. And I said, hey, let's put a good swing on this fastball. I said, hey, let's look at putting a good swing on it. It was a good pitch to hit. And I was able to drive it out.

PAUL KONERKO: He threw it right where I was looking. I wasn't good all night. I don't think I got in position to hit one pitch all night. I didn't feel good all night and I looked -- he's got nasty stuff, that guy. He threw it exactly where I was looking, and I think that's what it might have taken to do it. Again, I didn't feel good, and he's got great stuff. It's just one of those things that it's the last thing on your mind. I'm thinking to get a base hit to drive in two and hopefully tie, and bang, you get it. That's usually when you get them is when you're not trying to. I didn't want to get in a long at-bat with him, because I didn't feel that great tonight.

SCOTT PODSEDNIK: I think that's been the characteristic of this ballclub from day one. We have 25 guys pulling on the same rope. You can't get to where we are with just a couple of guys performing. So that has been what's big for us all season long, is everybody on the same page, everybody moving towards the right direction. I got to credit Ozzie for that. He keeps the morale where it needs to be. That's what I've got.

PAUL KONERKO: When they tied the game up in the 9th, which, by the way, wasn't due to anything Bobby did bad. They hit some good pitches. And it's like playing ourselves out there. These guys have a lot of heart, they don't go away, they fight. But when we came in after it was tied, no one was down. I think the overall kind of theme in the dugout was everybody loves Bobby, we're not going to let him go home feeling bad about this. We're going to pick him up and we're not going to let this happen. We're going to get this win, I didn't think we thought it would be that quick or by a home run by him (laughter), but --

SCOTT PODSEDNIK: I agree with him.

PAUL KONERKO: I sensed the dugout was more upset than down. Like almost pissed off in a way. And that's a good sign. And that says a lot about our team.

PAUL KONERKO: You couldn't have said it any better. It's a tough place to play, everybody has been raving about how tough Houston has been, that stadium has been to play in against a guy who is just nasty, who is on his game right now. This was a big game. I think it doesn't mean -- there's still a lot of work to be done. Just in that game I don't see him showing any quit. Anytime you can put the win in the book, we've got to win two before they win four, I mean we feel better about it. But we're not -- we're enjoying it, but we're not going to fully enjoy it until we get that fourth win.

SCOTT PODSEDNIK: We understand we haven't accomplished anything yet. The ultimate goal comes after two more wins. You have to win four games to close this thing out. So we know we have our work cut out for us. His last couple of starts he's been dynamite. It's up to us to maintain our focus and go in ready to play on Tuesday.

SCOTT PODSEDNIK: Well, just coming over here and having the opportunity to play every day, I was excited about before this season started. Once we got into Spring Training we recognized we had a good group of guys, guys that got along and a good guy leading us. So you're right, it's been an enjoyable ride from day one. To be in the position where we are is -- well, it's just incredible.

SCOTT PODSEDNIK: I don't think anybody in the ballpark was thinking about me hitting the ball out of the ballpark. 2 and 1 I was thinking that he was probably going to challenge me with a fastball. I didn't think that he was going to want to walk me. Luckily I got into a hitter's count. I was looking fastball the entire at-bat and got one, 2-1.

PAUL KONERKO: It's the second best feeling I've had all week. The baby born Tuesday night, and that's first for the week; that one is second. I think it's a sense of this team is just so selfless and you enjoy it, but it's more -- we're trying to win the game. Anybody could have hit it and it feels like everybody is up there pulling for you and you're pulling for everybody that goes up there. It's hard to explain other than it's fun. It's kind of an out-of-body thing, but you're looking at it's 4-2, now it's 6-4, we can win. It didn't work out that way, but we can win. Everybody is pulling in the right direction, like Scott said. And that's the name of the game. You don't get 25 guys together for seven and a half months, eight and a half now, that are on the same page for that long. It takes that to win this whole thing, and we're two games away.

PAUL KONERKO: Didn't say anything to me afterwards. And on our side we have the worst angle, and I probably have the worst angle because I'm on deck. It looked like he showed a little bit of pain, it might have been a half and half thing, where it got some knob and it got his hand, I don't know what the replay showed. It's tough on the umpire, and he can't help for that one. The guys won't have a better idea than he does. It's close and he has to go on instincts, and luckily it worked out. It was a heck of an at-bat by him. He was making a tough at-bat out of it.

SCOTT PODSEDNIK: I don't know if it has anything to do with the knob. I'm pretty crazy, so to speak, a little superstitious. I'm using something different up there just about every week. I don't think it has anything to do with this week or last week. If I would have had a bat up there without a knob and put that kind of swing on the ball, who knows what the results would have been. I don't know, knob or no knob, it worked out for us.