NL DIVISION SERIES: GIANTS v BRAVES

October 6, 2002

Bobby Cox

BOBBY COX: Yeah. We flew Kevin out at 8:00 this morning just to get some rest just in case. We thought that would be the smartest thing to do. There's not that much time between landing if there is a game tomorrow and pitching so we wanted to make sure he got at least a decent night's sleep.

BOBBY COX: I just wish some of those little bloopers they hit were at the second baseman or at the right fielder; they hit them just perfectly. I would be satisfied if he pitched exactly the same way and had different results.

BOBBY COX: Yeah, the only thing different is Lopez catching.

BOBBY COX: It never gets any easier one bit. No, never. Every game is a big one. This one is no different.

BOBBY COX: No, not really. You know, I talk to the coaching staff. We try to put the team on the field we feel we can win that particular game, and that's all it is. It's no more than that.

BOBBY COX: Very much so. He's always had good mound presence, and I think that's important. I think a lot of that has rubbed off on Tommy Glavine, John Smoltz and Greg Maddux through the years. We all have good mound presence. They don't get excited. Try to keep the damage control button on. If you do get a run or two, you keep the damage control going. It's just better to do it that way.

BOBBY COX: Some. There was some thought to that, yeah. We had a decent lead and our bullpen was going good, and if needed, he could pitch on three days rest, which was no problem either, but you didn't want to have him throwing 125 pitches either and he ended up throwing 70 or so. This ended up absolutely perfect. That could have been the best scenario to come out with that happened.

BOBBY COX: It doesn't become second nature, I guess. I get nervous before every game during the regular season. You know, you are always trying to close it out. You knock out the team that's nearest to you. Until you do that, it's always nerve-wracking. It's fun. It's a different -- it's a different ballgame, really, the playoffs, but it's still the same game. It's what you really set your goals for in spring training, and we've gotten this far again. But you never get used to all of the things that come up. You don't manage a whole lot different. Just try to play good baseball.

BOBBY COX: With the unbalanced schedule now, we only see them once at home and once at their place, and it's very hard for me. I do know they have a great balanced lineup, one of the best in all of baseball. Tony's very good at handling his pitching staff. Brought them through all of their problems that they had to confront during the season. Always is able to figure it out. I'm a lot more concerned with Dusty and the Giants today, so I'm not ahead of myself by any chance.