You'll have games where you're out there a long time. Being able to go through that and not get stiff was a good thing for me. As I went along, it felt better, and on that last play [a nifty move to his right and a throw across his body for the final out in the seventh] had a lot of body torque to it, and no problems.

Those two games down there definitely helped. It was good to go out there, because you have to test it in a game situation. When you get into this environment, you can't simulate the game. And if I test it here and have a setback, that kind of hurts the team as well. So I didn't want to do that. It's not 100 percent, but I didn't expect it to be.

I never saw a problem with it being a tie. I saw one of the best games I've ever seen.

I don't know if there's more pressure this time of the season. We put pressure on ourselves to perform.

All I've done is go up there the same as I have been. Every time I step up to the plate I'm doing whatever I can to get on base and help the team. That's really my focus each and every time.

There's a month here, ... Do we realize what our fate kind of is? You do, but at the same time, it's not respectability for ourselves but respect for the game. There's a month left in the season. If you don't get [to the playoffs], fans are still coming out there watching you, and you respect the game because they coming out to watch.