[BOSTON ? Tie game, runner in scoring position and David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez due up in the 10th inning.] It's about as bad as it gets, ... Those are the last two guys in the world you want to face with a guy on third base with less than two outs. |
[OAKLAND: Top starters Rich Harden and Barry Zito will get an extra day of rest next week. Dan Haren will pitch Tuesday at Detroit and Kirk Saarloos on Wednesday. ... DH-1B Scott Hatteberg has a strained right stomach muscle, though he played Saturday. Manager Ken Macha is considering keeping Hatteberg out of the lineup Sunday and Tuesday, giving him a total of three days to rest with Monday's off day. ... Macha would like to get LHP Ricardo Rincon into a game soon. He hasn't pitched since Monday. ... OF Jay Payton is feeling the best he has at the plate in a long time. He has five homers in his last 11 games, and he homered in consecutive games for the third time since joining the A's on July 13 in a trade with Boston.] Right now I feel as good as I ever have, ... A couple of minor things make a world of difference. |
He threw hard and I swung hard. I guess it was a combination. |
I didn't have anybody to throw to, so I had to take off for second. I was just trying to cut him off and slide in front of the bag, |
I didn't say anything vulgar or swear at him. I just kept telling him he missed it. I didn't walk away so he threw me out. |
I didn't think the ball was out, but I forgot about the short porch in right. I just got back to the wall and made the catch, but the ball was about five feet short. |
I didn't want to go headfirst because I'm thinking, if he goes feet-first, then I get spiked. I guess he wasn't really thinking about that too much because he went in headfirst. I thought I might have broken his arm or something at first, but he was OK. |
I expect a lot of at bats and a lot of work. I know that play will dictate how many at bats I will get. |
I just smacked it up the middle. If that second baseman had gotten to that ball, I probably would have just kept running out of the stadium. Or maybe run out there and picked a fight with him. |
I love Oakland because they gave me an opportunity and I want to be here and help them win, but if I'm not an everyday guy, I'd be open to whatever else is out there. If Boston had an everyday job in center field, I certainly wouldn't block that. |
I turned around and there were a couple of Oakland fans there. It worked out well, they kept the other fans away. |
I was just trying to cut him off. I didn't want to go head first because if he goes feet first, I get spiked or cleated in the head. I thought I broke his arm at first. I'm glad he's OK. I felt bad for him. I cleated him pretty good. |
I've had a year to learn the pitching in this league and that will help. |
It was really, really wet. Fortunately, no one got hurt. |
It's about as bad as it gets. Those are the last two guys in the world you want to face with a guy on third base with less than two outs. |