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AL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES: ANGELS v WHITE SOX


October 12, 2005


Chone Figgins

Adam Kennedy


CHICAGO, ILLINOIS: Game Two

Q. Chone, there's a lot of managers who would kill to have a player of your versatility. Do you see that as a long-term asset for your career, or at some point would you like to settle down and do one position?

CHONE FIGGINS: I just love to play, and if this is something that will give me 10, 15 years in the big leagues, I'm all for it, and if I get to play with these guys, I'm definitely all for it.

Q. Chone, could you compare your experience in 2002 with this team to your experience this year and how your role may have changed a little bit?

CHONE FIGGINS: Well, you have your Erstad, your Kennedys, Molinas and Washburns who's played together for some years now, and the type of attitudes that they have is winning. They don't really say anything to us to strive for us to get better, but you watch the way they play the game, and they understand how to play the game and they have winning attitudes, whereas guys coming up or coming from different teams, you watch those guys play and you follow by example. So I think it's come to a lot of us, even Guerreros and Cabreras, it's helped a lot.

Q. Chone, I realize this is a hypothetical because he's your teammate, but what would be your strategy if you had to try to steal a base and Bengie Molina was the starting catcher?

CHONE FIGGINS: Probably just try to hit a double or triple. Those Molina brothers, they can throw. A lot of times when someone runs, they're right on the money and they never miss. It would be tough to run off them.

Q. Adam, dating back to September when you guys swept the White Sox here, do you think you guys have the White Sox' number right now?

ADAM KENNEDY: It's tough to say that with the pitching they have and the quality of hitting. We just play pretty similar baseball. Whoever has the lead coming down in the 6th, 7th I think, it's going to be tough to overcome the other team, and we just happened to have that as of late, but I wouldn't consider us having their number by any means.

Q. Chone, we talked to you at spring training and you have a pretty demanding workout regimen even before the game. How have these last few days impacted the pre-game regimen?

CHONE FIGGINS: It doesn't change. I still get here early enough to make sure I get my workout in. It's something I've always done. I know we're not going to get much rest, but that's probably helped me even more, to get yourself ready to go for the game.

Q. Chone, Cabrera and Guerrero just showed on Monday night two great base-running plays and sort of the way you guys played all year. Is it something that's coached or is it just flat instinctive?

CHONE FIGGINS: From those guys, like I said, the Kennedys, the Erstads, the Andersons, even Molina, Washburns, they lead by example. It's nothing that they say to us, like I said before. They play the game the right way. We come from the minor leagues or from other teams, we do that. You follow it. Why? Because it's been winning baseball games and it continues to work.

Q. Adam, when you guys first heard that you weren't going to have Colon for definitely this series, probably the rest of the playoffs, is that something you have to get over psychologically? And talk a little bit about how Lackey has emerged to pitch like an ace.

ADAM KENNEDY: Lackey is probably the guy that makes you be able to deal with Colon not being with us a little bit better, also Santana. He's been healthy. Washburn we don't miss a whole lot, the way Santana has thrown and has pitched for us, it makes the loss a little bit easier to swallow. There's really nothing we can do about it. But like you said, I pretty much considered having Lackey the second half of the season as two aces, and now we just have one. I think there's a lot of teams that would fight for the four guys we have working for us right now.

Q. Adam, in terms of the travel schedule, do you expect that yesterday was the worst and that it's behind you, or do you expect to still be some residual effects of what you guys went through?

ADAM KENNEDY: I think tomorrow will be a big day for us to really get some rest, catch our breath. But at this point, it's just every guy is happy to be here, and if by any chance for one minute they get tired, I promise you that they're going to look inside themselves and say "This is not the time for that." I can't imagine there's going to be a carryover from the travel to us being tired on the field at any point.

Q. When you guys look at the White Sox pitching staff as a whole, what kind of stands out?

CHONE FIGGINS: They're good pitchers. They're tough on you. You do not expect to score a lot of runs on them, so to set your sac bunts down and get your runners in, runners in scoring position with less than two outs are going to be big because they're not used to giving up a lot of runs, and I don't think they're going to start now.

Q. This is for both of you. We've talked a lot over the past couple of weeks about the White Sox and their gaining experience in post-season. What does it mean to you specifically about being on a team that has won a championship?

ADAM KENNEDY: It's tough to say because each team, each year has its own identity, new experience. It would be great to say that it helps, but back then when we won it, none of us had any experience and we played really well. So to go into a game or a series against a team that may not have the experience you do and to think you have an advantage I think is taking that for granted, and we don't really do that. It's nice to have done it and played, but you don't take your success from the past into this next series.

CHONE FIGGINS: Well, to me it looks like they have some guys with experience. Pierzynski has been with Minnesota, Jermaine Dye has been with Oakland, Carl Everett has been in some playoffs, so they've got some guys that do have experience, and they've got some guys that know how to play the game, and that in general, it's going to be tough. I don't think that they're unexperienced that the guys that they don't have in the playoffs it's going to be a problem because they've played this game long enough to do what it takes to win. That's why they're here.

Q. Adam, in what ways is your team's home field advantage unique, and how has that evolved since you've been a member of the Angels?

ADAM KENNEDY: Since being a member of the Angels, a huge amount of difference. The last three, four years playing at Angel Stadium has been a pleasure, and it's sort of taken on a big presence in the game. The fans have gone to other places, maybe New York or other places where they see how the fans act, and I think they've brought a little bit of that to Angel Stadium. There's a lot of pride in the city now, and people enjoy going to the game and rooting for us, and it's a good feeling, especially this last series against New York, the last game, you could really -- that was probably, including the World Series and everything, the most that they had got into it and it helped us through. I can't imagine it's going to change the rest of the way.

End of FastScripts...

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