NL DIVISION SERIES: ASTROS v BRAVES

October 6, 2004

Bobby Cox

BOBBY COX: I don't think so. He made the one bad pitch to Berkman, the 2-0 pitch, he tried to go in and he came back out over the plate. I think the one Beltran hit was just a 3-2, got too much of the plate, 3-2 count, hit it out. But he was throwing great the first couple innings. I don't think it was an issue.

BOBBY COX: Well, I think if you were ever going to get him, it would have been today. He wasn't on his A game, I don't think, what I've seen. But when we had runners on, he clutched the end, like the pro that he is, he knew how to get out of jams. Bases loaded in the first and third; second and third in the second; he got out of all of them - unscathed actually, one fly ball, sac fly. So if you're asking me, did he pitch good, yes, because of the clutch pitching.

BOBBY COX: His (Wright) ankle may have bothered him. He's not 110 percent. I don't think it caused him to make those bad pitches today. We had our chances. Two out hits, they got theirs, we didn't get ours. Sometimes they're hard to come by, and tonight we didn't get them.

BOBBY COX: I don't think so. He's got a little bruise there. He'll be ready for Game 5.

BOBBY COX: We were patient at times, to get runners on. We weren't very patient after they got on. He made us chase some splits in the dirt and things like that, that he normally does. That's what makes him so darn good; he can make you do that. I thought we did a good job of being patient, drawing walks, and one hit in any of those innings turns that game right around, we just didn't get the one hit.

BOBBY COX: No, we have to take care of our own stuff with our own team, do what we do best. Today we struck out an awful lot of hitters. I think we struck out 12 or so today, but we gave up the long ball today. We normally don't do that much.

BOBBY COX: Yeah, still Hampton tomorrow and Thomson will pitch on Saturday.