The 6-1-1 Podcast Ep. 5: Fowler, Victorino, and Pujols
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Play it smart from the start. GameSenseMA.com or call 1-800-GAM-1234. Welcome back to the 6-1-1 podcast. It's Jimmy Rollins with my co-host Ryan Howard. And we're tapping into our cap members. We call this the cap rotational episodes. And we got three buddies of mine. One I play with, Shane Victorino. Another I played against, Dexter Fowler. And LaMaki now.

Albert Pujols to take us inside their biggest moments not in their careers because they've had a lot but moments that happen in a postseason as we approach this postseason what they went through their mentality how they execute it and what they remember about those moments so hang with us we hope to bring you some insight either way we're going to have fun here we are back with the 6-1-1 and to my right the one the only

The legend, the Chicago legend. Yes. Dex the Fowler. Hey, man, first things first, bro. Dex probably got one of the best miles in all of the

- Hey, you know what I'm saying? - Man, I'm trying to get like y'all OGs, man. - Smooth talking, smooth dressing, you know. Mr. Jordan Brandt, LV Balmain. I mean, what don't you got Dex? - Man, another championship? - What do you not have, sir? - Another championship like y'all. - Well, we're retired. We're retired. Actually, we only got one. - We got one, that's it. - We went back to back, but we didn't go back to back. You know what I'm saying? - You know what? It feels like more.

Playing against y'all. We should have had more. I feel like y'all had more. We should have had more. Because every year, day after day, it was always the fighting Phillies. The Phillies, the Phillies, the Phillies. He don't like saying that. No. I don't think. That's because y'all beat us. You know why? Because in 09, y'all beat us. And I felt like we should have won.

- We should have won that one. - You probably should have. - Well, we didn't, but you did. - This dude came up, I said it's over. - You know what he said in the dugout? - He said, "Give me the plate." - Just get on. - I already know. - Just get on. - I know. - Oh, you heard the story? - Yeah, well, we had some unfinished business. - Tell it, tell it, tell it. - No, no, no, no, no, no. - We had some unfinished business with them from 2007. - Oh, from '07. - Well, I wasn't there. I was just a casualty. - Exactly. - And nine. - You just got bodied over there. - You had to go down with the shit. - I respect it. - But you know, he in the dugout, he said, "Just get me up there." - I love it.

Just give me a shot. Just give me up there. And we looked at him like, the big man saying, get him up there. He feeling something. That was at the time where it was like, when he says something, do your job. You have one job. And all I was at center like, don't get him up there. What are we doing? He doesn't say anything. He said, get me up there. But speaking of post-season moments, we want to address something with you because you've done something that I could only dream of. And that's come up.

in the World Series. Game, set, match, it's all in play. And we know as leadoff hitters, we're the spark. However we go, the team follows. We have a bad at bat, it seems like it just goes throughout the whole dugout. We have a good at bat, that seems like it goes throughout the whole dugout. And here we are, Dexter Fowler, Cleveland, Ohio, playing with the Cubbies. When's the last time they won a World Series? Before y'all won? 108 years. 108 years.

and you bearing the weight out on your shoulders we are and we were down three one down three one wow and it was looking bleak it was looking real bleak and you know what you like you said the revenge tour we had heard that um napoli had bought all the champagne he bought all the champagne before so we wanted to get yeah we want to get some bottles to get signed like oh wait he bought all the champagne for what this was when we came back to cleveland

for six and seven, he said, "Oh, he not gonna be able to pop that champagne. It's gonna be a waste of money." So that was the revenge. - Ooh! - It was the revenge. - It was the revenge. - It was. - Yeah, I said, "Oh, so there's no champagne in this whole city?" Napoli got it all. - Wow. - Time out. - Word. - That's a true story. - That's crazy. - That takes me to this first of bat decks. And I know you've probably seen this a million times.

but we want to hear your story. Like when you see it now, it always changes. It gets better. It evolves. You, you, you become more clear in your thought. Let's just take a look. Let's just take a look. Ooh. Ooh. Got that foot down. Clack, clack. Got that foot down. Rajay, what you doing? Stop running, Rajay. Sorry, bro. Ooh. Backpedal on him? Backpedal. Hold on. Was that backpedaling to the champagne? No, you know what? I missed my first bass coach. Oh.

'Cause I was watching it, I missed him. And I missed him and I turned, that's what. And you know, it just rolled like that. That's when they caught me. If you watch this, I missed him and I was like, oh! - But did you hit the base? - Yeah, I hit the base. I'm not missing the base. I'm not missing the base. I don't even know if his feet were on the ground. So walk us through that. 'Cause like I said, we know game set matches on the line.

And you got the best pitcher in the history of pitchers at the time. I mean, that dude, his postseason was crazy. And we thought, hey, this dude's going to pitch three games, and those are probably the three games that we'll lose. You know what I'm saying? But they ended up winning the first, and so we had to beat Kluber. And Kluber, I will tell you this, before game seven, Sam Holbrook was behind the plate. And this was the first time I looked at

the umpire's tendencies. And so I get up there and I look at it and it says to lefties, he calls a little bit off the plate away and inside it has to be, he doesn't call it on the black. It's on the white. And I said, I hope this is right. Because if this is right, that pitcher's in trouble. Because he kept punching everybody out on them hip shots because he couldn't pull the trigger because it's starting behind. So

Get up to the plate. First pitch. Probably like that far off. Yeah. So, all right. That's on par. That's on par. Next pitch, that hip shot.

- Maybe it been a strike. It was probably on the black ball. - But you know he don't call it. - I said, "Oh, he in trouble. This dude's in trouble." Next pitch, fastball up and away. I said, "He gonna try to come back with it on the plate." Leaked back over, got him. - Did you know? - When I hit it, I knew, yeah. But then I saw Rajay and Rajay. I'm like, "Dude,

- Don't do that, don't do that right now. - Hey, don't climb up that wall. - And every time I hear Rajay's name, I think of his home run. - Yeah. - It didn't give me more chills. - Yeah. - The night before, that was crazy. - So take us through, you guys come back, you guys win the series.

- 108 years. - 108 years bro. - Behind you. - Take us through, we had our parade in Philly, so we knew what that whole thing felt like. But Chicago after 108 years bro, what was that? - It was the seventh largest, I read it was the seventh largest gathering of people in world history. - Wow. - 5 million people that went there, more than a Pope, more than everybody. And the city looked like it was a sea of people. Just people in trees at the,

You know, at Millennium, you know, it was crazy. Man, they probably wouldn't. By the bean, they wouldn't put up caskets and everything. Man. But, you know, the eeriest stuff is, like, you hear fans, they come up to you, like, thank you so much, like, to this day. Right after that, my grandmother died or my grandfather died or my father died. They were holding on waiting for y'all. Yeah, and they finally got to see that before. And, like I said, I get chills every time. Because that's, I mean, it's eerie. And it's like, thank you. And they're crying. It's such a...

crazy situation like when people come up and do that because you don't think about that as a player you're like dude i'm just out here playing baseball right i do my job it's the magnitude of it but what we like as as players what you do when you're bringing families together and you hear about that kind of stuff man like you said you get the goosebumps right and it just it just hits on a whole different level shoot even michelle when we went to the white house michelle obama she was like right she was like right we i used to watch cubs games with my dad

And so that was like our little bond. So like when y'all won, it was like, you know, heaven. - Peace to him. - Exactly. - Right there with me. - Exactly. - That's dope. - That's crazy. - That's dope. - Yeah. - Man, Dex, you know, you a good dude, man. - I appreciate that. Y'all have always shown me love. - You really are. - Y'all have always shown me love. - And this is what makes you so special, you know, being able to bring that to the city, having a hell of a career, having a nice smile, having a good golf game.

I just got one bone to pick with you. Okay. That's it. Right. You should too. Okay. You know he belongs to Summit, right? This is yes. I do know this. Have you received an official invite? I have not. I have not. I have not. We can rectify that right now. I'm a 59-minute flight away. This is an official invite that I've already given them an open invite, but this is the official because you give, as we know, we give J-Roll a time. Oh, wow. And J-Roll...

Does it show or he's late? Hold on, time out. Time out, player. Time out, player. Hey, you're right. But he did say he was going to come play. And when he comes to play, we'll play there and then

If he comes to my city, I'm going to take him to Shadow as well. So we'll play both. Oh, outstanding. We'll play both. Okay. I owe you. Are we doing 36? I owe both of y'all this because y'all looked after me for so long when I was younger. Yeah. We have the pleasure of having our little brother. Oh, man, that's it. I'm having literally our little brother. I mean, age...

Not necessarily height, but maturity levels. All types of ways. He's little brother. Height is a very sensitive subject. The flying wine he's known as. To us, he's just the kind. You know what? You could also throw Sugar Shane out there. Sugar Shane. This dude eats more sugar than anybody I've ever seen. And ice cream. That's what I mean. Like candy, sugar. Our little brother, Shane Victorino. Thanks for coming on today, man. What's up, bro? Mahalo, boys, for having me. Yes, sir. The big bros. I've been waiting for this time, so...

Let's go have some fun. - Oh, we got something for you. So during this series, we've been reliving playoff moments. You've had a number, a number of big playoff moments with us, with Boston. And we're not sure what we're getting today. We're not sure what the producers have pulled up, but we wanna talk about those moments, go behind the scenes,

what you were thinking, coming into that moment, when you were going through that moment, and then when you came out on the other side victorious. And you were really an unsung hero in many, many places. And it's something we talk about off camera.

you know, you were that guy, you were like the chosen one. If we're gonna choose somebody to beat us, he has to be the one. And that's something you never shied away from and that goes to your mentality. So before we even look into that, talk about what that meant to you and how you saw yourself in that position as being that guy that you knew they were gonna come after. - Well, I use the word lucky and I talked about that all the time is that, you know, having great teammates, having teammates that were those kind of caliber players

allowed me to shine, allowed me to come up in those moments. You know, we talked about it and we talk about all the time, you know, going back to our Philly days, you know, if, if, if I had a room and, and what also taught me through the years is that being on the opposite side, looking at the other team and going, okay, how are we going to pitch that team? So the perspective always, I put myself in on our side and go, okay,

You got Jimmy in front of you. You got Chase behind you. And you got Ryan behind him. Okay, who's the dog that they're going to pick in that fight? If you have to go, I'm not going to go after two MVPs. A guy who should have been an MVP that never got one. I'm going to go after Shane. Same thing, you know, and that happened in Boston. It's like Jacoby was leading off. You had, you know, Pedroia behind me. And then you had Poppy behind him. So, again, when you look at that four, you say to yourself, okay, the dog we're going to pick in that fight is...

me. And I always said the greatest thing about that is little did they know that was the biggest dog in the fight. So that moment, you know, when you say, and you look back on all those variables is, you know, how I got to that moment is I really went back to being that little boy that grew up on little Island and always knew that I was lucky enough to get that opportunity, whether it play soccer, whether it was play baseball, whether it was play football, that

So when those moments came up, it was like, man, just take yourself back. Like the odds and the numbers are against you. You're not supposed to do this. So when it does happen, what does it feel like on the other side? And that's all I try to tell myself was do my job. Don't make it bigger than what it is. Your job is to do X and go out there and do it. So when those moments happens, it was very interesting. But again, I always tell people I was lucky because

I had other guys. You could have selfishly gone up there and said, you know what? They're going to probably pitch around me, but I'm going to try to do it because I want to drive in that one. Or I want to drive... Instead of saying no. Like, you know...

go back to moments in Philly like that that Brett Myers at bat that everybody talks about like that led to what happened down the road where I came up in that opportunity but no one and so collectively I always say I was lucky enough to play on great teams with great players and great guys that selfishly always said hey if I don't do it the next guy will do it not many teams are like that what I'm learning being away from the game talking to you know guys and listening to them talk about their club or listen to them talk about their clubhouse and Matt and sometimes he

I go, I was very lucky to play on great teams where I never had that dissension. You know, so we were lucky, man. I mean, great guys field in the right spots. I mean, it sounds to me, Shane, just listening to you and we were –

also roommates in AAA where, you know, we're not gonna talk about how you used to use my pass. - That Chinese food that we ordered every night. - Yeah, every time. But it sounds like to me that you thrived in that role of being considered that underdog where everybody would always kind of underestimate you. So when you got into those situations, Charlie used to always tell us all, he said, "You gotta wanna hit."

And you got to want to be in that situation. So it sounds to me as though when you had these teams that you played for with us in Philly, the guys in Boston, and you knew that they were going to come at you, it's like, underestimate me if you will. You're going to find out about this kid from Maui. I just think all my life I was underestimated. I was the little guy, and we talk about that a lot, especially in today's game. It's about size. It's about power. It's about –

And, you know, when I look at myself and I tell myself and how lucky I was to do that, you know, play with guys like yourself, big bro, that that was that guy that played so many aspects of the game instead of being that. So, you know, all my life I was the underdog. Like I was the little guy. I was the one that, you know, made an all-star team but didn't play the shortstop. Now I went to center field, you know, so it's a philosophy, I think, and

What I say is at the end of the day, maybe I was lucky that that was my route. That was my upbringing. Maybe these moments never happened if I was on the opposite end or I didn't have to always look at life that way as far as an athlete going, okay, I know I'm the best, but I'm not the six foot one guy. I'm the five, six guy right now, but I know damn right that six one dude got nothing on me. So I think that's upbringing, being culturally diverse

built that way by the people around me is the reason why. Like I, and I go back to that route. It's like, without that, there's no way those moments happen in my opinion, because a lot of times it becomes too big. So if I never understood the underdog mentality, uh,

You know, and I think that's a big equation is that I was always brought there. It happened that way through my life that I was always an underdog. You know, someone always told me you're too small. You know, I remember hearing a scout say to my parents at 18 years old, flat out, 10 feet away from me, go, your son will never play in the big leagues. He's way too small. I sat there and said, okay, Mr. Wacomatsu, I'll show you one day. You know, so those are the kind of things it's, it was my very, you know, it's not fun to think in a negative way, but a lot of these moments I thought negatively, like,

I'm not supposed to. Like, I'm going to fail here. I'm supposed to fail here. Like, these moments aren't supposed to happen. But if it does, which is one in whatever, then, man, the rest and the history will write itself. And so that's what made these moments easier for me. I mean, like you said, I mean, it's when we look at these things and you go back on, it's like, man, how did this happen?

How did you do this? I don't know. We don't know either, Shane. We don't know either. We know you. We have no idea how it happened, but we're glad it did. And speaking of moments, we got a little something for you. I think it's a throwback for all of us. You know what I'm saying? Not to pick on our first ever guest, because he was our first ever guest on the podcast, Mr. CeCe Sabathia. But this Grand Slam when CeCe was Mr. All World.

You know, right man, right spot. I got to speak to that catcher who just joined the, you know, the program and Mr. You know, Kendall and I forgot that he was a catcher. And I said, Oh man, how lucky was I that you threw a slider versus those 97 mile an hour fastballs down on your hands? Right. We had that conversation. He goes, I think that was me that called that slider. And I was like, well, thank you, pal. Because he, but then I said, I said, Jason, what I also thought about is that my first at bat, I smashed him down the line off the base and

And so I had a double down and nobody reverts back to that. So probably for you mentally, you're like, okay, flip one in there and we'll go back to the hand. You made a mistake. But that's the part when you look on those moments, it's like having the opportunity to go and talk to the guy behind you now who was making the call in Kendall. Honest conversation. Yeah, an honest conversation. You can do that now. It literally was right before this coming on air. We were talking about it. I was like, I forgot, Jason, that you were the catcher because we talked about that moment.

And he was like, man, your guy's team's in Philly. And I was like, oh, man, you were the catcher that called that pitch. He goes, yeah, I think I called a slider versus the fastball in. But I go, you were probably thinking about my earlier at bat that you don't want to make, continue to make because you barreled me in and you borrowed me in with two fastballs in, you know, and then you hung a slider. But it's funny when you look back on those moments and go, man,

- And looking back, let's walk through that because it's the way it went down. We knew we had to beat CeCe. - Had to. - He was there, he was their horse. And when he pitched, it was win day. We beat him, we're like, they're done. We knew that. We didn't, they got a breath of fresh air

And that confidence goes right back through the roof. We knew we could not let that happen. So coming to that moment, Brett Myers gets to walk. I think I get walked. And like you said, at that point, they're picking. I knew I had good numbers off of C. And I'll give you credit for this.

when you have a good number two hitter as a leadoff hitter, it makes that job a lot easier because I don't have to extend myself because I stand up there. Well, the guy behind me, he can't get it done. We believe in each other. And I think that helped us all be better. But in that moment,

It's not about me. It's not about Brett. It's not about, I forgot who was on third. It's about CeCe and Shane. And this is going down. I mean, it gives me chills to think about, like you said, that moment. I mean, other than I know that he was unhittable and I walked up to the play going, here we go again, that moment where it's Goliath versus the little guy. And I said to myself, what have you done all your life?

What have you done all your life from a little kid time? It was compete. Get in there and compete. Leave it all out there. The odds are against me. I'm not supposed to do this. This is the moment where it's not supposed to happen, but...

I know if I go in there and I compete, then no one's too big. And I think, again, going back to that root, no one was ever too big in my, or never, there was never an obstacle that I said to myself that I can't do. You couldn't conquer. And I don't know if that was God given by having that mentality. But as you look back and I ask the questions on life and you look at that moment, you talk about that moment. It's like my brother, my big brother always said to me that,

There was never a moment that was too big for you, no matter if you were, you know, hey, big or you were there. There was never a moment. And you love the moment. So I think that's what is it's not something that was taught. It was something that was given to me. And it's hard and you can't. I call it the it. Some people. Right. And it's not that simple. You can't create the it. You know, it's given to you. And I was lucky enough to be one of those in life that got the it by, you know, wherever it is and what you believe in.

Was that a first pitch? Was that ambush? No, it was 0-2. It was 0-2. 0-2. He went 0-2. Heater in, heater in. He went heater in, heater in, fastball in. And then he hung a slider. I was looking heater in. He was probably trying to bury it. And he was trying to bury it. A little fatigued because he pitched every three days. Yeah, he was on three days rest for like the last two days. And I talked about that. He was a little winded. And I believe that. He was the horse at the end. He was going every three days to make that playoff run and getting him on three days rest.

I'm sure it wasn't as tight. But it all worked out for us. It all worked out for us. And that's how I was meant to be. So Shane...

and we appreciate you coming on here man it was good you know we talk about it you know just you know just that moment we talk about the crowd going crazy but we never you know had a chance really just to dissect it and jump into what you were going through i know what i was going through it was oh two i'm like ah like bro like you know you like you know you expect it to happen but you understand like damn shannon's in the chokehold right now and the way cc is going right but

We all knew it only takes one mistake. - That's it. - And that mistake happened, you're able to capitalize on it, we go on, become World Series winners. But you know, you can always point at one moment and it was my little brother. Couldn't be more happy. - That's right, man. - Appreciate it. - That's it, man. - Our next guest needs no introduction, but

we're gonna give him one eagle. Man. So I had the pleasure of being a rookie back in St. Louis, born and raised in St. Louis, and having the opportunity to be able to hit with this man. We were hitting at Maryville University, like in the off season. So I got to see the behind the works of what he was able to do and then take it to the field and see what he was able to do in the post season. So I'd like to welcome the man, the myth, the legend,

Albert Pujols to the show today. Albert, welcome to the 611 podcast, man. Thank you, guys. Good to see you. Thanks for having me. So today we've been talking about big postseason moments that have been taking place, and you've had a lot of those over the course of your career. We got to witness a few of those ourselves. Unfortunately. But take us a little bit through the mindset of what you were going through when you got into some of those situations that you were looking at.

being in the postseason, what the thought process was in terms of what you were looking to do at the plate? That's a great question, Ryan. I think for me, nothing changed. You know, my process, as you guys know, we

we train for so hard in the offseason, you know, for we live for those moments like everybody that's been in the postseason. So I think for me, what helped me out to have the success that I had in the postseason is nothing changed. My routine never changed. The only thing that changed if you need to look at is more camera, more media. And if you can block all the distraction, you're going to have the success that that you need to have in the field. And I think for me, it was just that, you know, be able to block

every noise around and just focus on the things that I need to do, which it was my routine, which I never changed for 23 years, no matter what I was doing, whatever series that I had, I always kept the same routine that started, like you say, in the off season and the carrying into a spring training and the course of 162 gang. And then when the postseason was was on and just showtime, you know, time to go, because as you know,

We never know if that was going to be our last opportunity to be in the postseason. So I think every player was given everything. But for me, it was just that to be able to block everything and focus on the things that I need to do, knowing that I didn't have to be a hero in the postseason, because as you know,

In the postseason, they want to stay away from the big guy for the guys that drive the runs. And then if you look at it in the postseason World Series, always the small guys are the guys that always have the success. You know, I look at the Dave Eckstein, the Davey Freeze, you know, in the postseason. So...

And not saying that they'd be free wasn't a great hitter. It was just, you know, we have so many other players in the lineup that people were trying to protect and then forget about those guys, you know, and those guys are the one that comes with some big hits. - So before we get into any post season, let's go back way back 2001. You know, some guy that nobody even really has heard of, you know, but you make an impression on some veteran players and a manager.

And before, you know, you were known as La Machina, you're on a big league roster. Tell us how that all happened and your perspective, how you think, you know, you went from a ball to the big leagues to a superstar and for sure fire first ballot Hall of Famer.

Well, let's take it back, you know, a year before all that happened. I got drafted 402 in the draft in the 13 rounds. And I was almost like a drafting follow. Like it was a drafting follow for, you know, about it. It's like, oh, we don't know if this guy is going to make it.

I remember going into instructional league because I signed late. So I went to instructional league in Jupiter, Florida. And that's where they sent all the big guys, you know, first and second running. I was 402, which it was great, great experience for me. That was the first time I had a little bit of taste about professional play time.

And I had a great introduction only fast forward now at full time, you know, in 2020, I remember they were making the line on some of the guys around. Oh yeah, he's going to hit seven, eight. We don't know where we're going to send it. And, you know, that's why I think every opportunity you get, you need to go for and give everything that you have. Because for me, what helped me out to go to Able was

I didn't stay in spring training, I stayed in spring training back then. It was a success that I had in that year before, and structurally. So...

I had a great international league. I was able now to get a full season in 2000, which I had a great year. I ended up winning MVP in the Midwest Leagues. I remember playing against Austin Kearns. You guys remember that name? Out on dump, big donkey, hitting bombs. And I got a little opportunity. Somebody got hurt in Able, Hia Potomac. They sent me. And I went from Able to...

to triple it in one year, which you don't see back then. It wasn't happening. Now there's a guy that got drafted, played two months, and he's in the big leagues. Time has changed from where we come up. So you guys understand that. It makes us appreciate more our game and how hard we had to work. So

You know, I think for me, it was the great year that I have in 2000 that allowed the Cardinals. I was the player of the year for the Cardinals that year in 2000. They sent me to a spring training like an invited, you know, they didn't have any plans. Remember, I only had like one one year. Right. Right. Nobody was making it. The rare guy like Griffey and Alex. And those were the guys they used to make it a guy for 402 in the draft. There's no way he's going to be in the big league. So

You know, I got to spring training invited in 2001.

They didn't have any plans with me. But once again, man, opportunities, bro. I took advantage of every opportunity. Bobby Bonilla then got hurt. I ended up leading the team in homers, you know, RBI, slugging, everything. Batting average. I think I led the team in everything. And it comes from a guy that they didn't... They had a future for me, but not that soon. Right, right. And I think the homer that I hit

They really changed everything. It was in spring training in Atlanta. Remember in Orlando? Yeah. They had that big clock. Oh, yeah. So we were down by one run in the ninth. And then we're facing the closer. I forgot who it was at that time. I think he ended up saving 50 again that year as well. I just don't remember that in the...

the name, but then I was the last guy that Tony used and he didn't want to use me. And I was like, man, they're going to send me down. This was the last week. They're going to send me down. So I came as a pinch hit, bro. And I hit this 450 bong over that clock. And then my wire was sitting. This is my wires telling me because I'm running the baseball. He said the way that he was telling me he was sitting next to Tony and

And with his elbow, my wire hit Tony in the ribs. I told you we need to take this kid. He's going to help us out winning. So from there, everything changed. And then, you know, a week later, you know, I broke camp with the team.

And, you know, they told me when I was in Seattle that we went and played Oakland one game and then Seattle for exhibition games. The two exhibition games. The back then, everybody, every team used to do it. And that's when they told me. But my family already somehow they knew it.

because they called me i was like how do you guys know i guess because the roster you had there was a time that you had to submit that so they knew before so they knew it before i was like how did it because we were in the west yeah yeah so that's how you know i was able to make the ball club you know and then tony was straight up he was like hey we're gonna take you we don't know

"How long you gonna be up here?" Bobby Bonilla is about to come back from the DL, back then it was the DL, now it's the IL. - IL, right, right. - I was like, "Hey, I'm just blessed to have this opportunity. I'm gonna give you everything that I can."

You know, I just want to make that impression that even if they send me down, I want to be the first guy that they call up. I'm ready. Yep. Right. And then, you know, I went one for nine against the Colorado Rockies. I was like, I'm in the first boat. They're going to send me down.

And then the second series against the Diamondback, I was like 8'4", 13, I think, facing Chilling, Randy Johnson, all those nasty guys. I hit my first homer against Armando Reynoso. And then that changed everything. I'm like, let's keep this kid for another week. Then I had a great series in St. Louis against Colorado opening day in St. Louis. You guys know. Ryan, you know that experience in St. Louis with opening day.

And it was amazing and the rest is history, you know, 23 year which I was blessed to accomplish a lot. - So this moment we're gonna introduce, I'm gonna let the big dogs, you know, talk about this. This is someone with big dogs to talk about. - Don't be so big. - I get it, but I'm talking about the big dogs. - Yeah, right. - I mean, look. - You can't get a hearing if you sneak a fast so you know it was on the scene. Don't give me that, you know. - That's a fact. - Don't give me that. - Like I said, they're gonna circle Ryan. They're gonna circle Albert. They might put a little check mark, like situational.

But they got you guys circled like you're not going to beat us. And here you are facing one of the best closers at the time. And the moment is there. You're on the road. I remember seeing this game, first of all.

and just really not liking Houston. And maybe, you know, we have the same age, so we've known each other since our rookie year. And it's like one of them, I'm like, this is what he does. It was, and for me, if you didn't do it, it'd be like, what happened? And that's not a lot of people you can say that about. There are a handful of people that when they don't get it done, it's like, what happened? Somebody got lucky. He was a little bit off, whatever it may be. So when it happened,

I was elated. I was like, that's my guy. It was like, that's my brother. That's my dude. And me at the time too, like this is, this was what, 05? So this was just, I just finished up my rookie season with, and we had just missed out to Houston by a game to try to force a playoff. So I'm still a Cardinal fan. So I'm watching this, like I'm at home in the off season. I'm like, man, like we could have been playing there, but I'm watching the game and I'm,

Clearly, this is the shot hurled around the world, or at least in Houston. Because, like, Brad Lidge at that time was one of the most dominant closers in the game. Oh, my gosh. Filthy. And we get to this situation to where ball game's on the line. You come up against Lidge in this situation. His best pitch is his slider. Yes. Devastating slider. And you just destroy it. Let's just watch it. Let's just watch it. Let's go to the clip. Let's go to the clip.

- Oh yeah. - Oof. - Yeah. - And the main mug though. - Man, like when he hit it, when I, on TV. - It was like anger. - When you see it on TV, I was like, that ball's going to Dallas. I was like, that ball is leaving the entire stadium, bro. Like this is, like Lidge knew it out the hand. - Oh look at that dugout. - Like it's just.

And I just remember the entire stadium just being quiet. That was a quiet place. So walk us through that at bat. You know, guys, I mean, you know the situation. You're facing, like you say, J-Ro, one of the best closers at that time in the game. I mean, I didn't have much success against Brad Lech.

I remember during that game, I had an opportunity, I think it was maybe in the six, six or seven, I don't remember, inning and I didn't come through for the team to tie the game. And I remember looking in the bottom of the eighth to the dugouts and they were celebrating like the game was done. Like, they got us. Was it Brandon Becky or something like that? One of their pitchers was celebrating and doing like that champagne thing.

And I look over there, and you know one of those things. Like, hey, I wasn't coming in that inning. I was hitting fifth. Right. And I was like, God, just give me an opportunity. I want to be the last guy to make the last shot. You know how. Yeah, give me that shot. I want the opportunity. Like, you talk to Michael, and everybody knew Michael, LeBron, all those guys. You know they're going to take that. They want the last shot. So I was hitting fifth. And normally, when I'm hitting fifth, I don't put my body in glow until I'm in the out-the-circle, maybe like.

you know, in the hole. And as soon as I got to the dugout, man, I put my batting glove, I grabbed my bat, I was ready. And up to this moment until 2022 when I was still playing,

I practiced the same way, like the same thing, like sit in the same spot because he takes me back to 2005. Wow. And after that, I remember I was enemy number one in Houston. But for me, it was about what set up that you guys didn't show. It was that first pitch slider. I was like, Brad Lech is not going to challenge me. Remember, he wasn't throwing like

a cookie either right 90 92 he was throwing 97 98 99 sometimes filthy hard with a nasty slider i was like he's not gonna challenge me with the fastball in this situation i'm gonna put that away and i'm gonna focus on that slider

And the thing that really, really set everything, and you guys know me for a long time, I don't look for pitch. I don't sit and pitch. I wasn't that kind of hitter. He threw me that slider, first pitch, and I chased it down in the dirt. And I was like, that set the horror, but I was like, I got him. Because the pitch that I knew that he was going to go to, he was going to repeat it. So now he repeated it, and it was like as soon as it released his hand,

I was sitting in the box like, you know, when we watching TV and was like pass until. Right. That's how it was. Like I saw it. I saw the home run before I even make content. Framing it like boom, boom, boom. Until I make that content, I hit it out of the ballpark. But remember, as we talk early, it's about preparation, about knowing the situation.

That's why you watch video. That's why you watch the game. Because you need to know, okay, if this situation comes up, how is that guy going to pitch me? If I didn't do my homework at that time, I probably wouldn't have the success. But knowing that because I did my homework, trust the work, trust the process, and then trust the success, you know, it came to the success. So

Everything that said that about it was that first pitch, really, that slider that I knew that he was going to probably... I knew it, but I didn't know until he threw it and I ended up chasing it. And then the next pitch, it was really hanging slider that I hit it, you know, to the moon how Bra Osma describes it in Lance Burtman. But, you know, it was a great, great series, great battle, you know, 4-0-5, obviously, next day.

We ended up shutting down by Roy Oswald. You know, he was strong in San Luis. He threw eight strong innings. And I remember I had so many at bat against Roy Oswald. And game six, our face and he striked me out with a 97 miles per hour sinker going in.

And I never say this to a pitcher. I never say this about any pitcher. But I walked to the dugout. And as I'm walking down to the step, I told the guys, we're going to have a long night, boys. Because Roy Oswald was in a mission, you know. And then they end up beating us in St. Louis. And then going on to the World Series. Yeah. I appreciate it, man. It's always good to get behind a curtain, you know, to see. Because we see the result.

You know, we know who you are. We've played against you many battles. And trust me, we did not end up on the right side of that battle. But it was always a pleasure watching you go to work because it was a thing of beauty. You know, we can watch you set up pictures. We know what you're doing. We can tell the picture. And it's like, you don't see it. You don't get it.

And when you see a master at work, you know, you're like an artist with that bat in your hand. You're painting a picture and you weren't just one dimensional. You would get the single, you would move the guy over, you would shoot that hole, but you also had the greatest weapon and that was discipline and power. So to sit here and talk to you and, uh, you know, get behind the curtain, man, it's been a pleasure. Absolutely. I appreciate it. Thanks for having me guys. As you guys know, it's all about trusting your work, uh, your passion.

I think that's why we miss a lot in this game right now. Like we grew up in an era where we were taught how to hit. I feel like I watch games right now and gets me a little frustrated because the guy just getting in there just wants one thing. The ball ballpark. There is no more getting the guy over to third base. I'm like, I like it hurts, you know, but hey, we're living in a different era. I'm glad that I play just a little bit in this era, you know, but we came from an era that we

really learn how to play the game that we all grew up watching and play in our backyard, different situations. So those were the things that I grew up doing. One thing about sports is you never know when that moment is going to happen. You know, when you're called upon, your team is relying upon you. The fans know what's supposed to happen. Your team is hoping that everything goes right for you, whether you're pitching or hitting.

And that moment's there. And to live through that moment, to be able to think through that moment, to relive that moment and think about it over and over. There are times that, you know, you happen to be the man on the spot. Most of the time, you're the man watching somebody else do it. And we've all lived those moments. And our guests today have lived those moments. We're able to go behind the scenes, get into their psyche, understand what

help them, I guess, to minimize that moment, I guess. You know, to make it not so big because sometimes you can get lost in the grandiosity of the moment and find yourself lost in thought and not focused on what the job is at hand. - No, I mean, absolutely. Like to be able to, like you say, minimize in order to maximize the moment. - Bars. - You know what I'm saying? - Can you say that a little louder for the people in the back? - Sometimes you just gotta minimize

to maximize. - To maximize. - So being able to see that and dive into the minds of our guests from today, I definitely learned something. - I did. - Definitely learned something. I mean, you see it from all the different perspectives and what these guys were able to do in order to help propel their teams in those moments

in the post-season. - Big moment. - As I know one man next to me had a very big moment in a very big situation for us as well. - Appreciate you big dog. - Against my man, Jonathan Broxton, you know,

Those types of situations, I'm sure you had the same type of mindset to understand what it is that you were going to do in that situation. And that's what I was speaking of. Like most of the time, 99% of the time, I was watching you. I was watching Chase. I was watching Shane. I was watching J-Dub. I was watching Patton in those moments. And when it happened, I remember walking up like,

It's my turn. It's my turn, but also thinking to minimize the moment. Of course, everybody wants to be a hero and hit a walk-off home run. That's the biggest thing. It doesn't get any bigger than that. But our motto was pass the baton. And I knew if I got a single and we tied this game up, Shane can get the job done. And if he doesn't get the job done, I did my job. And now the next inning, when we get back to the plate,

It's up to the big guys. So being able to minimize that moment and just think down, of course, my first thought, we'll hit a home run.

Now it goes to single. That's how you live in those moments. What needs to be done? What is the purpose of this event? What is the purpose of this pitch? You execute that, you get the job done. And there's always a psyche behind. There's always a psyche to greatness. There's always a psyche to clutch. And we got to hear a little bit about that today. And I hope you guys learned something. I know we did.

Tune in to 611. It's where we get all the information that you need. BTS. Big peace, Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins. See you next time.