AL DIVISION SERIES: RED SOX v INDIANS

October 5, 1999

Sandy Alomar

A. If you are happy working a month and a half, right now I am very surprised that I'm playing and that I am as healthy as I am right now. To me it was a gamble, 50/50 gamble and it seems to be paying off. The goal for our family is to play post-season. We already accomplished that and hopefully go all the way to the World Series. That remains to be seen. And the other question, what was the other question you asked me?

A. Not really. I think we're going to have a great team for years to come. But the window is getting narrower. As the Indians we have to make some decisions on some players and the team is getting older, as you know. The window is getting narrower. But the division is still not as strong as the old division. So we still have opportunities in post-season. But I play baseball like this is going to be my last year every year and if I get an opportunity to play this year, that's great. If I get an opportunity to play a year after that, it's even better. But I take it year from year.

Q. How big a lift would it be for you guys to come out to beat Pedro tomorrow night knowing how much the Red Sox rely on them?

A. It would be huge. But you still have to beat the other guys. The other guys pitch good against us too. Saberhagen did a good job against us. So I think it will be a heck of a game. I would be lying if I told you it would not be.

A. Well, the only thing that I can really point out is experience. I think they are more experienced in post-season than last year. They had a younger guy with less experience than the Cleveland Indians and we have a lot more experience in post-season. But now they're more prepared. They are more focused. They over came the loss of Mo Vaughn and that is big for them. For them to make the post-season without Mo Vaughn is a big accomplishment. I believe they are more focused this year than they were last year.