NL DIVISION SERIES: METS v DIAMONDBACKS

October 6, 1999

Bobby Valentine

BOBBY VALENTINE: I don't think it necessarily caught up with us. Todd Stottlemyre pitched a good game. Pitched a couple little bangs that didn't go our way. You know, you're not going to win 16 in a row. We still need some more wins. We got one here and we'll go home.

BOBBY VALENTINE: No. He just wasn't getting his curveball over very well. We thought Pat could go through the middle of the lineup for us.

BOBBY VALENTINE: I'd have to go through all the at-bats to give you any specifics, but they made good pitches to keep the guys from getting hits.

BOBBY VALENTINE: Things that went wrong, no, I don't think -- Roger made a terrific throw to the plate. A close play there, a high hopper hit up the third baseline. I don't know if it would have gone foul. We had Roger bunting through a bunt that, you know, Robin got caught in No Man's Land, but I don't think that had anything to do with being tired.

BOBBY VALENTINE: We get a day off tomorrow and we'll take it, that's for sure. I can't think of anybody that could use it. Our guys could use it a little. They are battle worn. These guys are veterans that have played their butts off and they played well again tonight. We just didn't make things happen and they got a couple big two-out hits, two-strike hits. It was on for them. There's two alternatives, and it's preferable -- one of the alternatives . Is we won one and lost one here, and we'll take that, and as we mentioned, the off-day tomorrow. But there is a media session some of the guys will participate in, and we'll try to come back strong on whatever day of the week that is that we play.

BOBBY VALENTINE: He's swinging great, stealing bases. Can't ask anything more. He's been on base. I guess he has four stolen bases in two games. Swinging the bat well. I can't ask anything more. He's been great. Two terrific games.

BOBBY VALENTINE: I didn't think it was a real struggle tonight. It wasn't a give-up situation. The three runs they scored, we had two strikes on Gonzales and a curveball backed up and hit him, and Williams got an infield hit and two-strike ground ball to right. He could have left with two runs in five ins. That's not so bad.

BOBBY VALENTINE: The franchise is young, but a lot of veterans on their team. They know what they need to do. Stottlemyre seemed to take the bull by the horns. Finley and Matt, who have been there before, knew what they had to do.

BOBBY VALENTINE: I think I'll have to do that tomorrow. I'm not prepared for that right now.

BOBBY VALENTINE: Their team, you mean? I don't remember it.

End of FastScripts….