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NL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: CARDINALS v METSOctober 18, 2006Paul Lo DucaJohn MaineJose ReyesNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Game Six Q. John, can you just talk about bases loaded, two out in the first inning? Paul did a great job blocking that one pitch, and to get him out. JOHN MAINE: You know, I threw a couple of pitches down there where he did a great job blocking it. I don't really think about that, when guys get on base like that, I just go out there and try to make good pitches and put it in play because the defense behind me is going to pick me up every time. Q. How composed are you in that situation? JOHN MAINE: I wasn't that nervous. I knew what I had to do. If I could get a couple innings, it was all right. Q. John, can you say, were you nervous at all going into this start, and comprehending the importance of it? JOHN MAINE: I'm nervous every start, and try not to put any extra pressure on myself, but I'm nervous before every start. Q. Speaking of nervous before a start, your catcher came out before the first pitch in the first inning to talk. Was it just, one for a fastball, two for a curve, or was it more philosophical? JOHN MAINE: No, he gave me a little speech. It was what I needed. It's secret, so no one is going to know except us two right now. (Laughing.) It was great and exactly what I needed. Q. R rated? JOHN MAINE: No, not R rated. PAUL LO DUCA: The old college, "Go get 'em." Q. Most stories tomorrow are going to be about your performance. Have you taken a step back and thought about what you have done here in Game 6 to force a Game 7? JOHN MAINE: No. I don't worry about that. We have another game tomorrow, and after tomorrow, I'll worry about that. Q. Speaking of Paul coming out to talk to you, Carlos came up a couple of times. Can you share what he might have said to you, coming over from first base a couple of times? JOHN MAINE: He comes up to me every time I pitch. He sees some things that from his perspective I don't really catch when I'm throwing. He comes up and says, "are you doing this?" Every advice I get out there is great. Q. Jose, how eager were you, how excited were you to have a game like this, personally, where you could show off all of the talent that you have out there? JOSE REYES: My teammates told me today, I have to get on base. I said, if I get on base -- every time I get on base, something good is going to happen. I just was able to get on base a lot, and the most important thing about us, we win the game, so that's the most important thing about it. PAUL LO DUCA: Wow. Q. Paul, why did you feel the need to do that to John right before the game, to go up and talk to him? And number two, you waited a long time to get to the World Series, what are your thoughts about going into tomorrow's game? PAUL LO DUCA: You know, Johnny, to me, is not scared. He wants to be out there, and I just wanted to let him know that us as a team want him out there. We feel, and I told him, "Just do your job, and we're going to win this ballgame for you." I think we saw the maturation of a kid that's going to be a good pitcher and you'll see him for a long time. He grew a lot tonight, and this is a step forward for his career. You know, this is a huge ballgame, huge circumstances. I don't think it's really hit him. I think it hit me. You beat, to me, at least in my perspective, the best pitcher in the National League. We knew we weren't going to score too many runs off him. And what he did tonight was huge. As for myself, this is awesome. I mean, I can only imagine what tomorrow is going to be like, and this has been an unbelievable series, and we need to go out and do the same thing we did today and get out early. Jose, he's a key, when we get on base early, we're a tough team to beat. Q. Do you feel like it was your responsibility to set the tone, and did you ever imagine hitting a home run to set it? JOSE REYES: No, I don't put that kind of stuff in my mind. I just try to get to the batter's box, get comfortable and try to go from there. Like I said, I just try to put the ball in play and try to use my speed, so that's all that matters. Q. Were you overthrowing just a little bit in the first inning to start the game? And do you still take the 7 train to the stadium? JOHN MAINE: No, I don't think I was overthrowing, just some poor pitches. Spiezio, he hit a good pitch. I kind of look at that, I'm still making my pitches. I wouldn't say I was overthrowing. I was just, you know, kind of a little nervous, get the jitters out of me. No, I won't take the 7 train. Q. Will you talk to Perez before the start tomorrow night and can you give some insight to what the key for him will be? PAUL LO DUCA: He's another kid like Johnny, he's not scared. This ballclub has trust in Oliver. He's going to do a good job. He threw the ball well in St. Louis and the energy is going to be high and the place is going to be electric. We have our work cut out for us. We haven't won anything yet. We have a guy that basically shut us down -- not basically, he did shut us down. Jeff Suppan is a good pitcher. We haven't done anything yet. Enjoy it for now. But we have trust in Oliver and we feel he's going to do a good job tomorrow. Q. What pitch did you hit for the home run and how did that feel rounding the bases, especially after the disappointment the night before? JOSE REYES: It was a cutter in and it was kind of sliding a little bit. I'm happy I put my team up in the first inning. After that, I wanted to stay focused all nine innings. Q. For John and Paul, it seems like a simple question, but what's the feeling you get when three pitches into Chris Carpenter's night, you have him down 1-0? PAUL LO DUCA: Well, it's huge. Any time you get a lead and get your guy out there a little bit more comfortable knowing that you have the lead, knowing it's only a one-run lead, we knew Chris was going to be tough. But that's a huge lift, to get the crowd in the game. Especially just after he left the bases loaded in the first inning. That's a huge momentum shift. JOHN MAINE: Same. (Laughter.) Q. You've had some post-season starts, but what's the one you were the most nervous for? JOHN MAINE: I think the first start going back. I was glad to be able to help the team and get off to a good start. That's when I was the most nervous. Again I still get nervous every time I pitch. Tonight I knew everything was riding on it. I'm just glad, happy with the results. Q. For all three of you, how conscious were you of the intensity of the fans' reactions throughout the game? Did it help in any way, did it hurt the communication in the field in any way? How do you react to the fans during the game? PAUL LO DUCA: I mean, it's huge. The fans here are huge. Whenever you have that electricity on your side and every little break -- I looked in the stands a couple of times and it looked like a college students section, people didn't sit down the whole game. That's an unbelievable feeling. And when something goes your way, it's electric. To me it's huge. You're very aware of the fans here, and that's why you work hard all year to get home-field advantage. That's why it's so big. JOSE REYES: I just try to stay focused all game and that's it. JOHN MAINE: It's great. The fans here, if you need that little extra momentum, they will help you out. They will give it to you. It's fun to play in front of these fans. Q. Just a follow-up on that: The place nearly exploded when you got your single to score the two insurance runs. What's the feeling getting down to first base there with the place going crazy like that? PAUL LO DUCA: It's an awesome feeling, because I haven't really hit too many balls on the barrel lately. I felt in St. Louis I swung the bat real good and hit a couple balls right at people. You come up in a big situation, and it's a good feeling for me, gave me some confidence. It doesn't matter how long you've been playing this game, you always need more confidence. And to get those couple of runs, to give us some more breathing room was big. Q. You're a real electric guy, what do you do tonight to be relaxed for tomorrow that the team needs you, what are you going to do tonight so that you can be ready for tomorrow? JOSE REYES: Nothing. Just go to my house, get something to eat and sleep and get ready for tomorrow. Tomorrow is a big game for us, and we need to stay focused. So we try to win tomorrow like we did tonight.
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