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AL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: ANGELS v YANKEES

October 22, 2009

Andy Pettitte

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Game Five

YANKEES Â– 6
ANGELS Â– 7

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Andy Pettitte.

Q. How do you mentally prepare for a game when you really don't know until the end whether or not you're going to be pitching?
ANDY PETTITTE: Yeah, I mean, you just go through the day, you know. Today I had a little short side and I did all my work just as you've got to prepare like you're getting ready to pitch.
Obviously you hope that we could wrap it up and it could be done with tonight. We knew this was going to be a tough series. You know, I was prepared and expecting it and preparing myself to be ready for Saturday's start, that's for sure.

Q. How does your past experiences in these type of situations help you out on Saturday?
ANDY PETTITTE: Well, I mean, I'm not sure, you know, really that they do anything as far as helping me other than I know I've made so many starts in the postseason and been in this situation so many times. I've been there and done that.
All that experience or whatever is not going to help me when I go out in the first inning and help my pitches be where they need to be. Hopefully it's just there. Hopefully I get everything going and give this team a quality start, a good start, and give us a chance to win that ballgame.

Q. As you are watching this game unfold tonight, are you thinking all through the game I'm pitching Game 6? Or when it's back and forth are you thinking I might not be pitching? How much are you thinking about Game 6 as we're watching Game 5?
ANDY PETTITTE: Yeah, there's no doubt. You're sitting there and you're just like we're down 4, and we come back, and we're up 2. I mean, you know, I had to pitch again, you know, and then they come back.
But like I said, all my work, everything I've done, I've prepared to be ready to pitch on Saturday. I did my weight work. Like I said, my bullpen tonight. Mentally, you know, continuing to think about how I was going to get these guys out and not looking forward to, you know, another team or anything like that.
Just trying to get ready to figure out how to get these guys out because, like I said when the series started, I thought it was going to be a dog fight. Thought it was going to be a war. We knew these guys didn't have any quit in them. They came out and played a good ballgame tonight. Had good starting pitching, and it was a tough game. Unfortunately we came out on the short end of it.

Q. Before start on Saturday, how do you prepare? Are you very, very quiet? Cut yourself off from everyone? Or do you immerse yourself in the excitement of the game and pitching a possible clincher?
ANDY PETTITTE: I'm pretty much the same. I come in, I'm very approachable. I mean, I talk. Usually about 45 minutes or 35 minutes before the game starts I try to start getting into myself a little bit. Obviously they're not really in any mindset to communicate with a whole lot of people, you know.
But as far as the game and when I get to the ballpark, you know, I'm usually pretty relaxed and laid back and talk about anything. But I'd say 30 to 45 minutes before the game starts I take it to a different level as far as trying to get your focus where it needs to be.

Q. How would you describe the atmosphere in the Bronx when you're pitching a Game 6 of an ALCS?
ANDY PETTITTE: It's crazy. I mean, these games in the postseason whether it's Game 6, Game 1, Game 2. It's just a lot of life. You know there's going to be a lot of energy in the ballpark. Like I said, you just hope you can control yourself. Make your pitches. Make quality pitches throughout the game. Hopefully we'll be able to wrap this thing up on Saturday.

Q. If you're able to win Saturday's game, you, Mo, Jeter and Posada, that will be seven World Series you guys have been to since '96. Will you think about that at all that you have had such a critical role in maybe getting you guys there again?
ANDY PETTITTE: I mean, like I've said all year, you know, that was all I really thought about as far as when I signed the contract that I did. When I came back here is this right here. I came back. I signed the deal that I took because they signed A.J., and they signed CC, and I knew we had a good club. And I felt like that if you added me with them, if I stayed healthy and we all stayed healthy, I felt like this is where we could be.
So for me, I mean this is it. This is what I came back for. It's kind of all worked out. And we have a tremendous opportunity here. I have a tremendous opportunity to help this organization get back to another World Series. More than anything, I'm just thankful for that. I'm thankful I've been healthy all year. It's been a great year, and hopefully we can wrap this thing up. It will be special.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you.

End of FastScripts

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