Stlcardinals.com
July 20, 2001

Through Mo's Eyes

By Derek Glanz

stlcardinals.com: What's on your mind these days?

Matt Morris: I'm just worried about the team. We can't fall too far behind. The attitude on the road -- you saw us, we were dropping ball games we should have won. When you're losing, the whole atmosphere just sucks. You go into the clubhouse, it just doesn't make it fun.

stlcardinals.com: Can some guys dictate whether it's fun or not when you're winning or losing or is it all pegged to the wins and losses?

Morris: We all do. That's why everybody has to put their piece in. When we have guys that don't have that attitude, they're hurting us. We need everybody, especially now, when we're battling to win consistently, we just need everybody. Right now, we're all trying, we're all focusing, it's just not on the right stuff. It's trying to go in that right direction, but it's not on winning or the big picture of things. Everybody's trying.

When you're expected to win -- we have a great team on paper, but you don't play the game on paper. When you're expected to win it's a lot harder. People put a lot of pressure on themselves. You take Minnesota, for instance, they weren't expected to win. They're just going out there and playing ball games. Soon, if they keep doing that, and get a reputation where you've got to win, that's when it gets hard.

"Sometimes (the media's) too easy here and they don't push us."

stlcardinals.com: Was there a moment in this season that you felt things start to go in the wrong direction?

Morris: We've been through some tough stretches, especially on the road, where we're just playing bad baseball -- giving games away that we should win and from the first guy to the 25th guy, the team just wasn't there. The team just wasn't together. When you have that feeling, you just feel so out of it. It could only be one loss, but just the vibe around the clubhouse and everything, you just feel like you don't have a chance. But it all stops with good pitching.

Every time I take the ball I just want to go out there put my piece in and make it the biggest piece I can, because I only get the chance every fifth day. What's it to ask me to go out there to go out there for three hours every five days and give it everything I have. Not that no one's doing that, everyone's doing that, but man, we have to make adjustments and do the right things. It's not just about going out there and giving 110 percent.

When you have good pitching it takes the pressure of the offense. When you have good offense it takes the pressure off the pitching. Lately, though, we were pitching not to give up runs and we were scrambling to pick up a couple runs on offense. It's a lot easier for most guys to pitch with a lead.

stlcardinals.com: You haven't written off this season, have you?

Morris: No, not at all. I just want to be on top. I hate seeing these other teams on top. Not by any means are we out of it, but we have to make our move now. We can't wait and wait and wait and then have to look at other teams whether they're winning or losing. We want to take these ballgames now and get on track.

I think we made some good moves, bringing Bud (Smith) up. Andy (Benes) is going to the bullpen and he's going to relax out there for a bit, get his stuff straight.

stlcardinals.com: Early in the season, we heard people say a lot, "It's early." Is that a veteran attitude, a complacent additude -- what did it mean to you at the time, to hear that said?

Morris: It's never too early to win a ballgame or to look at the standings. But I also think that some of the focus is put on other teams, because it's early in the season and it's hyped up and, 'Oooh, the Cubs are in first and the Cardinals are trailing' and that's a rivalry and those are the things people want to hear for the fans, so it's made a bigger deal. But still, you want to be that team on top. It's never too early to win ballgames, though it may be too early to concern yourself with other teams.

stlcardinals.com: Is it a good idea for a team to be on top the whole season, or to think it can be on top the whole season? Can you just peak?

Morris: Not if you're good enough. Your average play could be their peak. Like Seattle. They've just been playing good baseball. Have they peaked, will they peak? Who knows? They're just going out there and competing hard all day. I'm sure there's more behind that, behind winning that many games, than competing everyday, but if you're good enough ... Look at Atlanta, the run they've had over the years, the Yankees dynasty. To measure greatness is by longevity, you can't have one year and say this kid is great. You can't say, this kid is great for just one season, maybe for that one year.

stlcardinals.com: Looking at this season, like you said, Atlanta started slowly, but has come on strong to be right at the top like every year, whereas the Cardinals and Mets, who competed for the pennant last season, started slow. The Mets, your hometown team, are out of it.

Morris: The Mets have a lot of that off-the-field distractions just because of their media circus. That makes it tough to play. If that city wants to win it needs a winning environment. Not that they're losing because of the media, but I'm sure it's a distraction, it's annoying. Sometimes they're too easy here and they don't push us. That's my personal opinion, because I'm from (New York), maybe that has something to do with it or just the type of person I am. I respond a lot better to negative stuff. Somebody telling me stuff rather than patting me on the butt. But everybody's different.

stlcardinals.com: The media seems pretty light here?

Morris: I think so. You hear people say, '(Columnist) Bernie (Miklasz) said this, Bernie said that.' I like Bernie. He shows up all the time. He writes what he writes. He's a stand up guy.

stlcardinals.com: Do guys talk about trades?

Morris: You got the Cubs trying to get Fred McGriff and he's not going. When you start talking about stuff like and they don't come true you start questioning your team. Shoot, we almost had McGriff and now we don't what are we going to do now? Instead of taking what you've got. In this case (the Cardinals) make a move if we need it really bad. They're not cheap like that. But to say we need something, we need something and then not get it -- that would be worse.

We're good enough with what we've got right now. We just have to all put our piece in. We all have to play up to our capabilities. That's hard to jell like that because some guys are hot and cold for long periods of time. When the pitching was dominant, we were hitting good and we looked awesome. But you don't need both of them to be good. Then all of a sudden you lose one or two of them and -- if you're not hitting well, and you're pitching, you're going to win ballgames; if you're hitting and not pitching, you can win ballgames. We haven't had that kind of combination where we can win games without one of our facets.

Like I said, good pitching wins.

I went out there in Cleveland and I threw like two innings. A game like that, you give it to the bullpen and already we're out of it because it's such a mental mess to come back from that game. Third inning, we're in Cleveland, we're down eight runs and these guys just want to get the game over with for the most part. They're battling their at-bats, they want their hits, but that's a big hole to put anyone in.

If you're battling every game out, even if you win it's going to take it's toll.

How many times the last two weeks have we gotten a guy at third, leadoff double, second and third, less than two outs and not been able to score him? Those are free RBIs. Those are RBIs where we don't even count in the beginning of the season because those are outs. During the course of the season you take your three or four-hitter and that's 25 RBIs a season, just for grounding out to second base. Not that we're not trying, but when we're not doing those things and the game is staying even for too long, our breakout inning is late in the game and by that time it could be too late.

This game is won and lost on two-out hits.

stlcardinals.com: Why do some teams get those two-out hits?

Morris: The few plate appearances I've had -- and I can't speak for these guys -- sometimes I look like the worst hitter in the world, but sometimes I put it in play pretty well. Those times I'm thinking of looking for the ball, not thinking about keeping my weight back and all that. It's just about how you approach that at-bat. Previous at-bats stick in your head, but you just don't think too much. Everybody here has the talent to just do it, to just play the game.

When you start thinking about all those things for some reason it gets much harder to do, rather than just hit that ball in that direction -- you're coordinated enough to do that. It makes a lot of sense. When you keep the game like that, it makes it a lot easier. It's just tough to have that focus.

Everybody here is athletic. These guys, to run and swing the bat everyday and compete everyday has a lot of talent. I think it's mostlyy the frame of mind and what you're thinking about when you're at bat. Nobody's got it all figured out. I had a game the other day, it wasn't my best game stat-wise, but I was trying to prevent runs, how come I can't repeat what I did the start before? I can remember the double I gave up, and what I should do on that pitch, but why can't I remember that great curveball I threw down and repeat that every time?