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NL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: CARDINALS v BREWERS

October 14, 2011

Rafael Furcal

ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI: Game Five

Q. How do you guys look at tonight's game? Obviously it's down to a best-of-three series here, and the team that wins this fifth game has a pretty good percentage of winning the series. Do you guys think this is a must-win game? How big is it to win this tonight going back there?
RAFAEL FURCAL: We know we have to face one of the best pitchers in the game, Greinke, he's pitching a very good game. We scored six runs over there. It's not enough. We have to keep it going tonight and try to do the best we can, try to win tonight no matter how, because we know they play tough and in their stadium over there.
We have a pretty good chance to win tonight. We feel confident going with Jaime Garcia.

Q. You've played pretty much every day, really, almost since coming over here. After dealing with a lot of stuff during the year, how are you holding up physically? How is your body feeling with the amount you're playing?
RAFAEL FURCAL: For me, like I say, it's like half the season for me. I only take 300 at-bats and during the regular season being hurt all year. Now my body feels like 100%, see the ball pretty good and everything is coming together. I'm so excited to be here and to be a part of this team and during the playoffs.

Q. When you first came into St. Louis, you said, World Series, that was the goal; you had been in the playoffs nine times but never in the World Series. Being this close, how difficult is it not to press and do more and try to play the game without trying to press or do too much?
RAFAEL FURCAL: You know, it's like I said, as soon as I get here, everybody plays baseball, I know everybody baseball player wants to be in the World Series.
We face one of the best teams in the National League. The Brewers played pretty good all year, and we keep fighting in the end. I think they are pretty good players and they have got a pretty good team, and we don't have to worry about them; we have to worry about us, what we can do on the field.

Q. Obviously in the first round, you won it on the road. If you are to win this series, you are going to have to do it on the road. Does being a veteran team and having gone through that before, is that something you guys feel you can handle?
RAFAEL FURCAL: You know, for me, it's wherever you win, it's a win. I know the fans, wherever we win, if we go to the World Series, we win.
You know, everybody expects that we can win over here, so we can be a little more excited. But if we have the chance to win in Milwaukee, we'll take it.

Q. We know you'll be a free agent after this year. Has this experience, this playoff run and being around this environment, will that affect your decision at all? Is your inclination, do you want to be back here? Is that your first choice?
RAFAEL FURCAL: Yeah, who don't want to play for the St. Louis Cardinals, because we are in the playoffs and always when I come here with Atlanta, or I come in with the Dodgers, I play those guys. I'm always in big competition, and I love here, I love the fans and the players and everybody is on the same page and everybody wants to win. Who wouldn't want to play for one of the best managers in all of baseball?

Q. Sometimes when a guy comes to a new team, he's a little hesitant to kind of impose his personality. It seemed like you stepped in right here and just sort of were comfortable being yourself right away. Is that a function of the guys who are around you or is that just how you are? Did you want to kind of bring some life to the clubhouse here?
RAFAEL FURCAL: You know, always I play, I play baseball having fun. Always my father say, when you go to the ballpark, you have to play fun, like a regular game or like if you're going home and playing with your kids.
As soon as I come here, you know, a couple of guys, they are a little down, and I'm the kind of guy, I can't be quiet during the game, even in the clubhouse. I like to make people laughing and everybody get relaxed, because there's no pressure, how are you going to get pressure if you only play baseball.
That's what I like to talk with the guys, doing a lot of jokes and having fun with everybody. That's the way we win. It's like when I say like a happy flight, everybody is laughing and now everybody is thinking like that.

Q. Had you ever done that happy flight stuff with L.A. or Atlanta or how did that actually start? How did that start, because now it's become a big deal.
RAFAEL FURCAL: Yes, for me, it's no big deal. Always I say that. It's like the last game of the series where everybody wants to win, because that means them, because that means if you win, you're going to be happy on the plane. If you lose, everybody is a little quiet and I bring all that stuff. I like to be having fun during the game and all my teammates relaxed.

Q. Of all of the playoff teams you've been on, is this team any closer than any team you've been on or does it have more confidence than other playoff teams?
RAFAEL FURCAL: I think one time in 2003 I got very confident with Atlanta, we had a good team. But for me, I never played with guys like Albert Pujols, future Hall-of-Famer, like Berkman, Holliday, Carpenter. They are veteran guys that know how to go outside -- they know how to win the game.
It's one of the things like everybody is on the same page, a lot of bunch of guys, everybody gets along with each other. Everybody pushes for your teammates and everybody, we look like during the game, everybody tries to, like I say, having fun and everybody not quite like something, they get so confident about they are going to win. This is the thing, we compete to the 27th out.

Q. How do you account for the Cardinals being 0-for-15 with their last 15 opportunities with runners in scoring position?
RAFAEL FURCAL: That's going to happen. It's the NLCS. You're going to face the best pitchers right now in the League. I think everything is going to change today.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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