On the Mets beat

TOKYO -- With the MLB All-Star tour of Japan starting up this week, it's interesting to note that Kaz Matsui filed for free agency today. Kaz, then with the Seibu Lions, was the star of this tour in 2002 -- even overshadowing Hideki Matsui to some extent. A year later, he signed a three-year, $21-million contract with the Mets, the beginning of a strange 2 1/2-season journey for both clubs

TOKYO -- Sorry for the lack of updates lately. With the Mets' elimination from the NLCS, followed by a ho-hum World Series, I figured it was a good time to jet to Japan for some news, and there may be some very shortly.

David Wright and Jose Reyes are among the headliners for the MLB All-Star tour of Japan, but much of the attention here is focused on Seibu Lions' righthander Daisuke Matsuzaka, who will be available through the posting system. That means major-league teams can submit sealed bids to the Lions, who can then choose the club that gets negotiating rights to Matsuzaka.

Many here in Tokyo figure the Yankees to be the overwhelming favorites, and the buzz at Tuesday night's MLB news conference (we're 14 hours ahead of NYC here) indicated that Matsuzaka is supposed to hold some sort of media gathering of his own later Wednesday afternoon at a Tokyo hotel. Nothing official yet, but we'll keep you in the loop as best we can. Hopefully this jet lag thing won't be too bad.

Given the limitless boundaries of cyberspace, I thought I'd treat everyone to a more expansive version of Willie's explanation for not bunting in the ninth inning of Game 7. It was trimmed considerablyfor Tuesday's newspaper, but here it is, with most of the commentary intact from Monday's sitdown with the beat reporters. Think of it as "Willie, Unplugged." (I'm guessing everyone remembers the circumstances, so I'm not going to repeat them here).

“Do I wish I would have bunted? We had bases loaded for Carlos Beltran so I did bunt. You missed that? Same scenario, right. Just make believe I bunted. It would have been the same thing, right?

I don’t second guess all that stuff, man. If you subscribe to that, then we would have had the same situation. If you believe we would have bunted and Jose Reyes would have hit that ball to center field. If you look at it that way and that’s the way most people look at it. It would have been two outs, Lo Duca would have walked. Same scenario is set up. That’s the way I look at it because no one knows. I don’t believe in that situation in giving up an out. One run down? A tie game? Yeah, I probably do it then. But not with two runs down and you’ve got momentum going

I didn’t send Cliff to hit a three-run homer. I was hoping he’d drive the ball into the gap. He’s an excellent doubles hitter, one of the few guys on my team who doesn’t hit into double plays. He’s a fly ball guy. I’m not thinking he’s going to hit a grandiose home run. He’s going to drive the ball. We’re going to keep the momentum going. We’re going to score a couple of runs. You can look back – and I don’t – and think about what you could have done, should have done. But the bottom line is that thing played out the way we wanted it to. And maybe even better because we had our best hitter, a Cardinal killer, at the plate and with one hit we’re going to the World Series. I wouldn’t change a thing.

Second guess whether I would have bunted or not. Who knows? I might have put Anderson Hernandez up there and in front of 50,000 people, the 20-year-old kid could have [failed]. He might have popped that ball off…or tried to bunt against a guy with a hellacious curveball and a 95 mph fastball and gotten to a point where he had to swing with two strikes on him and he hit into a double play or whatever. …Say Glavine gets a bunt down. There’s no guarantee. It’s not always easy to lay a bunt down, especially when all the money’s on the table like that. …I thought about it. I thought about it way before it came up. But I still felt like with two runs to come across I needed to keep our momentum going.

Hopefully, Cliff would drive a ball in the gap. I just felt like with a tie game or one (run) down, it would have been an easy call for bunt. Outside of that, I didn’t want to give up an out in that situation. In hindsight, it turned out even better, perfectly, for us. Best hitter. This guy killed the Cardinals all series. He threw a nasty curveball and Beltran got locked up. I’d like him to have taken a swing there. But the guy has a great curveball. He made a great pitch. I know that’s part of it, people want to second guess that. But I feel real good about the decisions I made."

On the same day that manager Willie Randolph held an impromptu media gathering in his Shea office, a number of Mets were spending some time on the operating tables of the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan. Here's the medical updates on those players, to give you an idea of how many of them were hurting during the playoffs.

-- First baseman Carlos Delgado (carpal tunnel, right wrist), righthanded pitcher Aaron Heilman (tennis elbow, right elbow), catcher Paul Lo Duca, (ligament tear, left thumb) and Chris Woodward (labrum tear, left shoulder) all underwent successful surgery today at the Hospital for Special Surgery. Dr. David Altchek, the Mets Medical Director, operated on Heilman and Woodward, while Dr. Andrew Weiland, the team’s hand specialist, performed the procedures on Delgado and Lo Duca.

-- On Wednesday (October 25th), leftfielder Cliff Floyd will have surgery on his left Achilles tendon. Dr. Struan Coleman, the Mets Team Physician, will do that operation at the Hospital for Special Surgery. Also on Wednesday, righthanded pitcher Roberto Hernandez will have surgery on his right knee in Florida.

-- Next Monday, Delgado will also have surgery on his right elbow (tennis elbow). Dr. Altchek will do the procedure at the Hospital for Special Surgery.

All six players are expected to be ready for spring training next February.

It's about an hour before the first pitch of Game 7 and the Cardinals are taking batting practice. The Mets seemed pretty loose earlier, with Carlos Delgado singing "Jo-se, Jo-se, Jo-se" to the shortstop as the two stretched on the grass. Delgado even flipped a half-dozen baseballs into the stands on his way off the field.

The Mets, as a whole, seem to be reflecting the relaxed confidence of their manager, who made it sound like going to Detroit is a done deal.

"I've been here many times, man," WIllie Randolph said during his pregame news conference. "Feels good to me. This is nothing to new to me. I feel like this is where I should be. I've been floating around all day long, looking forward to getting to the ballpark and ready to be out there with my boys."

In a few more hours, the NL will crown a champion.

As you would expect, manager Willie Randolph was bubbling with confidence before tonight's Game 6. Check out these comments from his pregame news conference.

Q. With losing two important pitchers, do you suddenly start hoping that the team will do more consistent hitting as a way of making up for it?

WILLIE RANDOLPH: I said from the beginning when we first came into the series that we need to swing the bats collectively. Like in the fourth game, I believe, we scored a bunch of runs and that's going to be the key for us. Any time you're thin with your pitching, you have to put runs on the board. All year long we've been a team that's fed off our energy and our offense for the most part and that's a big key for us. We're the type of team that when we get up early, get out quick, you've seen us, we continue to roll.

With any situation like this pitching is always the key but if you have that extra offense, that added dimension, it makes your life a lot easier, believe me.

Q. So without getting the offense, how disappointed are you?

WILLIE RANDOLPH: I'm not disappointed at all. When you lose games, you're disappointed, but I'm not going to hang it on the offense. I'm never disappointed in my guys. We win tonight, we'll be okay for tomorrow. It's not over now. You're not giving in, you're not giving up are you?

Q. No.

WILLIE RANDOLPH: Well, the offense can turn around real quick, man. We've had two days to bang it around a little bit, and we'll see.

The offense is back, it's back. I'm not disappointed, man, that's the way the game goes sometimes, and even if you don't get offense, you have to pitch. It's a collective thing. I have a good feeling we're going to score some runs tonight, I really do, I really do.

Q. Considering that your team was generally considered the best team in the National League all season and favored to go to the World Series, I'll use the D word again, are you disappointed, dismayed, shocked, all of the above, at the turn of events and the position that you find yourself in now?

WILLIE RANDOLPH: No, it's not over yet. Why would I be disappointed or shocked? It's not over yet. We're still playing. We're playing tonight. It's not that it's over. We have to win tonight and we win tomorrow, we're going away to Detroit.

No, wow, this is -- what we've been doing every day since Spring Training. The reason why this team is good and the reason why my staff and I have, we stay positive and focused and we understand we were the best team in the National League. But at this point since it's not over with, there's no reason to be disappointed. As a matter of fact, we should feel pretty good about ourselves because we're still playing.

Q. Certainly the team knows what they are up against, but do you feel you need to give them any kind of special message, either collectively or individually to help them relax for the game tonight?

WILLIE RANDOLPH: No, our travel plans for Friday are what we are going to talk about.

When asked about the availability of Cliff Floyd before tonight's Game 5, manager Willie Randolph said his status was basically unchanged -- pinch-hitter until he hears from his leftfielder that he's ready for the starting lineup.

It was then that Randolph was told that Floyd has his own blog, and he's been giving health updates there to the wired public. The manager thought that was funny.

"I don't read his blog," Randolph said. When another reporter mentioned that he needs to keep up on this stuff as a manager in the 21st century, Randolph laughed. "Everybody's got a blog. I'd be on the computer all day."

Join the club, Willie. And FYI, Endy Chavez is in leftfield again tonight.

Actually it's pouring here at Busch Stadium. But a security guard said it's supposed to clear up around 6 p.m. so take that as you may. No word yet on whether FOX -- I mean, MLB -- plans to postpone the game until tomorrow night.

Just went for coffee at the local Starbucks in Union Station here in downtown St. Louis and was drenched by a steady rain and heavy wind. Check the extended forecast here.

It's not quite The Perfect Storm yet, but the ark could be filling up as we speak ...

I know the Mets are more worried about Oliver Perez in tonight's Game 4. But here's what Tom Glavine had to say this afternoon about pitching on three days' rest and possibly trying to save the Mets' season tomorrow.

Q. Any difference in your preparations with one less day of rest, and can you recall doing this in the post-season before?

TOM GLAVINE: Preparation-wise, you know, you're a day short. So I have one less bullpen session. I have one less workout day in between.

Aside from that, everything else is pretty normal. And in terms of, you know, recalling doing it, yeah, I've done it a bunch of times, certainly in the post-season. I did it earlier this year during the regular season. It's something that I've done. I mean, I guess I understand how to make the subtle changes I need to make in order to prepare for a short rest.

But 99% of it depends on how you feel, and I feel good, so hopefully that will be a big plus on my side.

Q. There's so much made of the difference between three days' rest and four days' rest. Do you feel different when you have that one day less rest, do you feel less strong, is it something that's noticeable?

TOM GLAVINE: There are times where it's noticeable. You know, probably more during the regular season than it is now.

I think this time of year, your adrenaline is so high, you're so fired up about getting out there that I think that takes away from a lot of the feelings on the negative side. And most of it revolves around just, yeah, being a little bit tired. You don't have that extra day that you're accustomed to so maybe you don't have as much zip on your pitches as you're accustomed to or maybe you're physically just not feeling the way you're accustomed to. But like I said, this time of year, I don't really think that's as much of a factor. I think the physical side of it is taken care of by the adrenaline.

It's just the kind of thing that, I mean, we haven't been accustomed to doing it most of the time in our career, so there is a little bit of adjustment.

Q. The Mets had such a big lead all season and then you never trailed in the Division Series against the Dodgers and now you're down 2-1. Would you say this is a moment of truth for your team, and how do you see the team reacting to a situation you haven't been in before this year?

TOM GLAVINE: I mean, I don't know, it's hard to define, you know, what it is, whether it's a moment of truth or I'm sure there's some talk out there that this is a must-win for us, all that stuff.

But, I don't know, it's not like we went through the year without any adversity whatsoever. You don't play 162 games without facing some adversity during the course of the year. I think most of the time, we faced the adversity pretty well. Judging from the way the guys are right now in the clubhouse, everybody's pretty loose and ready to go. I mean, we don't like the fact that we're down two games to one, but we are, and there's not a lot obviously we can do about that now other than trying to play better going forward. And we still feel very much like we're alive in this thing and we certainly have a good chance to win this thing. But, you know, there's no question our backs are against the walls a little bit and this is a big game for us tonight.

Q. A few days after the fact, how did you feel about what Albert Pujols said after Game 1?

TOM GLAVINE: You know what, I don't have a whole lot of reaction to it to be honest with you. I've been asked about it a lot. A lot of people have joked with me about it. But, I mean, I don't know Albert well enough to know where that came from. And I know that a lot of things that we say as athletes in the heat of the moment, either isn't what we meant to say or doesn't come out the way we meant it.

You know, I have a ton of respect for Albert. He's a great player. It's a great challenge when I face him individually. If he truly didn't think I pitched well the other night, then I hope I do something tomorrow night to really impress him. That would be a good thing. (Laughter.)

Q. Do you think the team is looking at tonight's game as let's just find a way to win this game tonight and let Tom take it tomorrow?

TOM GLAVINE: To a degree, sure. But I think first and foremost we have to concentrate and figure out a way to win tonight's game. You know, because we win tonight's game, obviously there's no guarantee we're going to win tomorrow night's game just because I'm pitching. So many times in these series, you talk about, you know, well, a certain guy is pitching in this series, all the talk is about me and Chris Carpenter. There's no guarantee that we're going to win the games. You expect based on track record that you're going to get a certain performance but you never know what's going to happen. And I think from our standpoint, we can't assume anything beyond tonight. We have to go out and take care of business tonight hopefully we'll be in position tomorrow night when we take the field and the series is even and I can go out there tomorrow night and give us a chance to win the game.

Like I say, I don't think our team has the mentality right now that, hey, if we win tonight, we're going to go home for sure up three games to two, because you just don't know what's going to happen.

Q. There's been a lot of discussion about pitching in New York, especially with the struggles that Jeff Weaver had there, I'm just curious if you noticed anything different when you first got to New York and anything that sticks out that would make it harder for somebody than any place else.

TOM GLAVINE: It's a hard place to play. It's harder than most other places. You know, you just have a higher concentration of media outlets that cover your team, and because of that, you know, there's more attention paid to both the good side of it and the bad side of it.

If you do well in that town, then there's nothing better than doing well in that town. But if you don't do well, there's not a whole lot worse. It's a tough place to play when you're not doing well, because there's no -- I mean, there's nowhere to hide. There's ten newspapers covering you and 15 TV channels. There's no other place like it in terms of the amount of coverage that sports teams and athletes get in that town.

But you know, I think it's the kind of thing that you have to -- I think if you as an athlete go in there and understand your responsibilities as an athlete and you are accountable for your actions both good and bad, then I think it's a tolerable place to play and you're treated fairly. But if you have a hard time being accountable when you don't do well, then it's going to be a miserable town for you to play in.

You know, I've seen both sides of it. I've been booed off the field, and I've been carried off the field by people cheering me. So I've seen both ends of it, and I can tell you the bad side of it gets a lot more attention than the good side does, but the good side is pretty darned good when it's on your side.

Q. Coming back tomorrow night in a short series against the same team, it seems like it's going to be a unique challenge for you coming back in such a short amount of time against the same team, something you haven't had to do all year, is that going to involve a lot more thinking and more of a cat-and-mouse game for you?

TOM GLAVINE: I don't know. I think that there's no question that when you have to face a team right away again, especially in these kind of situations, I think the advantage swings towards the hitters. When they are seeing you again so quickly, I think that's to their advantage, and it's something that as a pitcher, I don't really like to do during the course of the regular season, and you know, I don't like it any more during the post-season. Maybe a little bit simply because you know you're in the post-season and it's part of the equation.

But you know, I think often times as pitchers we make the mistake of thinking that because we just pitched against a team a short time ago that we somehow have to go into this next start with a different approach or a different game plan. You know, my game plan for the most part is not going to change a lot. I mean, the foundation of what I have to do to be successful isn't going to change. There may be some things that in the back of my mind from the last game I want to do better or I want to do a little bit differently, but you know, there are not wholesale changes. I guess at least for me anyway, I'm going to say, geez, I'm going to pitch against these guys this time and throw 100 miles an hour. I can only do so much within my game plan.

I think the important thing is my game plan has to remain the foundation of what I do. And sure I'm going to have to make some little adjustments along the way, but I think I have to wait for the hitters to tell me what those adjustments are before I have to start doing a lot of things.

Q. After being his teammate for a short time, do you have a read on Perez's emotional makeup and what does he have to do tonight early?

TOM GLAVINE: I don't get the sense that he's intimidated by anything. You know, I think he has a lot of confidence in himself and a lot of confidence in his ability. You know, it's just a matter for him of going out there and getting it done.

He's got great stuff. In the short period of time he's been in New York and certainly in the short period of time he's been in the Major Leagues, he's at times displayed lights-out stuff. The battle for him, like so many young players, especially pitchers, is finding that consistency time in and time out. That's been a struggle for him.

I think the most important thing for him tonight is to go out, get off to a good start, get through that first inning, get through those first couple of innings unscathed and kind of establish himself and kind of establish a little bit of a rhythm and try to give us an opportunity where we can play from ahead instead of having to come back like we did last night.

Q. The absence of the pitchers who are not on this roster, Pedro and El Duque, seems to hang over this series right now. Do you personally feel the weight of their absence?

TOM GLAVINE: Not really. It's like I've said before, them not being here doesn't make me do anything differently or make me pitch any differently. I mean, I understand that you know, there's a different feeling when I take the mound now because, you know, I guess with those guys not being here, I've assumed a little bit more of the No. 1 guy, so to speak.

There's a different feeling when those guys take the mound. There's a different feeling for the Cardinals when Chris Carpenter takes the mound. I understand that. But that doesn't change what I do or what I try to do out there on the field. I mean, all I can do is try my very best to give our guys an honest chance to win the game.

You know, so far I've been able to do that in the post-season. But I honestly believe it's because I've resisted that temptation to go out there and try to be something more than I am because of the absence of those guys. I mean, I am what I am, and it's not going to get a whole lot different than what I've done for the last 20 years, and that's what I have to continue to do to be successful, and I just know, like I said, that everybody looks at my games a little bit differently, but that doesn't change and can't change the way I pitch.