Oct. 25 Jake Peavy workout day interview

JAKE PEAVY: This is Jacob Edward Peavy and Wyatt Peavy.

Q. I know you're a guy that's pitched through some injuries and toughed it up to get on the mound at different times. What's your take on what Beltran did over the last couple of days?

JAKE PEAVY: You know, I don't think it's as surprising as people are making it out to be. I think that he's a competitor. We all know what Carlos Beltran, who's played against him for a while, and the guys who played with him, know what he's about. To spend as long as he has and to be the postseason player he has and never have the opportunity to play in a World Series, we knew on our side it's going to keep more than bruised ribs to keep him out of the lineup. And obviously a huge part of their win last night.

Carlos is a tremendous competitor, and doesn't surprise me one bit that he's out there.

Q. Having had a chance to go back over that start in Detroit and the loss of command there, how much do you have a sense of what went on, and what's fixable out of that?

JAKE PEAVY: Everything is fixed, fixable. It wasn't too much to read into it, really. People want to make it -- just a small, small adjustment that can make all the difference in the world. And there's absolutely no excuses tomorrow night. This is what I've lived for my whole life is to -- my whole baseball career, I should say, to have this opportunity to go out there on the biggest stage and have a chance to help your team win a World Series game and a World Series title.

I'm as prepared as I'll ever be, physically, mentally, and we'll go out there tomorrow night and see if we can execute pitch by pitch, and find a way to win.

Q. What did you learn from watching the Cardinals the last two days about pitching to them?

JAKE PEAVY: You know, we had a lot of respect for this St. Louis organization, team coming in. We knew what we were getting a class organization, a class group of guys, very well coached and play the game the right way. Watching the way they go about their business is fun. I think both teams do it very similar. We might have a little more louder of personality on our side at times, but they play the game the right way. They grind out at-bats, just the way we grind out at-bats. Give it to the next guy, don't try to do too much. Everybody contributes, which makes them a dangerous team.

So utmost respect, it will be a war. As we saw last night, the team that executes the best and makes the fewest mistakes is going to win these big games. And two, two great baseball teams playing each other.

Q. You spoke a little bit about Beltran earlier, I was wondering if you could talk about the veteran on your own team, David Ortiz. He always seems to come up with the clutch hits. Can you talk about what he brings to the team and having him in the lineup, even though he's a DH playing first base tomorrow?

JAKE PEAVY: Obviously David's bat, at all costs needs to be in the lineup, and I'm sure John will address that. David is a game changer. He's as clutch as anybody I can remember playing with or against. It just seems like he has a flair for the dramatic. When the situation is the biggest, he's at his best. And I'm glad he's on our team.

Q. The adjustments that you made or things that you saw looking at video, how much of those may be pertain to your arm angle, which I know you've been adjusting late in the season? And secondly, you're known as an emotional guy on the mound, to what degree do you think any of the difficulty you had in Detroit may have been being a little too amped up for the situation? Is that a concern going forward, given this is your World Series debut?

JAKE PEAVY: To answer the first part of your question, it is a little bit different making adjustments with the arm a little bit lower. Just because I haven't been doing it as long as you would like. But at the same time, the upside that we do have from getting that is something that we're all comfortable with. And I'm plenty enough comfortable to go out and execute pitches and be able to make adjustments. It just comes with knowing.

Obviously I'm an emotional guy, but at the same time I'm 13 years into this, I'm excited as I ever will be for a start to go out there tomorrow. But there's not going to be a situation that I get overwhelmed in and get too emotional and let the emotions of the moment beat me up. I just feel like I've been in enough situations over the years that there's nothing tomorrow night that's going to rattle me or get in my head, or it doesn't matter how loud the crowd is.

It doesn't matter how bad things are going, it comes down to trying to execute pitches and be able to make tiny adjustments that make the biggest -- it takes getting some balls hit at people, and some guys making some plays and just getting in the rhythm of the game. Like I said, I think we all expect that to happen tomorrow night.

Q. For a guy as competitive as you are, how long has this wait been since the last start, and just to get out there and get the sour taste out of your mouth from the last one?

JAKE PEAVY: Yeah, people want to make a big deal about a sour taste. I had such a sour taste after the game. There's nothing more disheartening than when you go out and lose one of these games. And somebody will have that taste in their mouth tomorrow night, regardless, no matter how well you pitch, how bad you pitch.

I have no extra incentive to get out there to get the sour taste out of my mouth. There's no sour taste, I'm in the World Series and my team won the ALCS. I'm excited and just got prepared for this one as I would always be prepared. I do understand that you have those starts throughout the year and obviously in the postseason, but after the start in Tampa, I was just as anxious to get back out there after a start where I felt in control and did my job as best I could do it. I was just as anxious to get out in Detroit as I am getting off a not-so-good start to get out there in the World Series.

It doesn't matter, as a starting pitcher, you get anxious to get back out there, regardless.

Q. Like you mentioned, you've been around a long time and you've pitched in both leagues. Do you like the DH role being different in each league? If you were somehow made commissioner, would you like to change it so that each league plays by the same rules?

JAKE PEAVY: Yeah, if I were commissioner I'd certainly change it, where we could get Nap (Napoli) in there (laughter).

I think that we certainly have a little bit of a disadvantage, just simply because of the way our roster is constructed as opposed to theirs. They're a National League ballclub, and they're going to play with their normal lineup tomorrow night, with the way they were built. Being an American League team we're going to miss a huge middle-of-the-lineup bat tomorrow night. Because our team was built with the DH in it, and it's unfortunate that that's got to happen.

But at the end of the day got a pretty big weapon and Nap, Carp, Nava, those guys coming off the bench. Yeah, it would be fun to have our normal lineup out there and have Nap, a huge threat. As you saw he won us almost single handedly two games in the ALCS. Not in the lineup, you can't help but say that's an advantage to the Cardinals not having him in there.

Q. Obviously it worked out well for you, you're in the World Series, but before the trade, your name was talked about around here, at least externally. What kind of sense did you have about how serious it may have been coming to St. Louis? As you've watched here, what is the difference in bigness of the World Series versus the LCS?

JAKE PEAVY: You know, to answer the first part of that question, I did know that St. Louis was in on it and were having some talks. I was kept abreast of a lot of the talk through Rick Hahn there in Chicago letting me know. And I know it was a pretty serious conversation I guess they were having in St. Louis. I was obviously excited about the opportunity to be moved simply because of the situation I was in in Chicago.

Really all the teams that I felt I would be moved to were teams I was happy to go to because of the position their team was in. St. Louis is a city, a team, an organization that I've always respected. I love the National League style of game. Nothing excites me any more than getting to be a part tomorrow night and trying to get a bunt down, maybe hitting and running, and feeling like a true baseball player, as opposed to how we are as a pitcher in the American League.

I would have been excited to come to St. Louis. It's a place I dearly love and enjoyed playing in any time through here. But that being said, everything has a way of working itself out the way it should. I found a home in Boston, that I couldn't be anymore thankful to be.

On the World Series, it's, to me, I don't see much difference other than just a few more media members.

Q. There's a group of guys on this team who have been around a long time and haven't won yet, guys like you and Jonny Gomes and Mike Napoli and so on. Obviously you guys know how hard it is to get here, and it would be easy for you not to take a moment like this for granted. Do you feel there's a necessary or special ingredient you guys bring to this team?

JAKE PEAVY: I don't know. I don't think so, simply because we have guys in that clubhouse, a lot of us who have played a long time and never even reached this moment, like you said. Some guys, like Jonny Gomes, never been on an active roster, and David Ross and Ryan Dempster. Guys who have played a significant time and have never reached this. We've got guys in that clubhouse who've won, as well as the Cardinals do, as well. Those guys who have won, one -- David two -- World Series titles. Pedroia, Jon Lester, John Lackey, those guys are as hungry as anybody after another one.

So I don't know if we bring anything else to the mix other than I can tell you there's 25 guys and a coaching staff and an organization on the other side that wants this as bad as we've ever wanted anything in life. And are going to do all we can do to make it happen. That's not saying it's going to happen, but I promise you this, we're going to exhaust every effort we can possibly do as a group to try to win a World Series. As I'm sure St. Louis is doing it, and that's what makes it so great.

Q. Jacob and Wyatt, who is your favorite baseball player?

WYATT PEAVY: Besides my dad, Jacoby Ellsbury.

JACOB PEAVY: Besides my dad, Jonny Gomes.

JAKE PEAVY: They've got good taste.

Q. You were in San Diego for a long time, I'm wondering how you feel about having to leave ultimately to get to the World Series, and knowing how devoted those fans are. How do you think they feel it's been so long there and no progress?

JAKE PEAVY: You know, it's a bummer to see -- from the time I got to San Diego, we made some progress moving into the new ballpark. San Diego gave me some place I'll always love, simply because they gave me the first shot. They believed in me before anybody did. A funny story how your life and stuff comes full circle. Mark Wasinger is the scout who signed me with the San Diego Padres, out of the amateur draft in '99. He came and scouted me in my last start before I got traded to the Boston Red Sox, and he's a Boston Red Sox scout now. So I thought that was pretty neat.

It is unfortunate, but it's crazy how life just has a way of getting you to where you need to go. And I'll always have a part of me in San Diego and love that fan base, love that organization. But I can tell you this, I've never felt the way I do feel when I put this uniform on, when I walk in this clubhouse, when I step on the field with a group of guys that I'm in here. I was meant to be on this team, with the Boston Red Sox, I can tell you that.

Q. The Sox traded you almost for a game like this. That was one of the reasons they were looking for a starting pitcher. It's 1-1 it's a road game. Is this the most important game you've pitched in your career?

JAKE PEAVY: Of course. Let's not sugarcoat anything, this is the biggest game up until this point in time that I've ever pitched. We'd be silly to sit here and say otherwise. I've never been to this. This is why I play the game. This is why we all, I would like to think, play the game, is to be a world champion, is to be the best in the world at what you do at the highest level.

And so to go out in a World Series game and have a chance to sway the odds, the favor, in your direction, on the road, with a team that's got some momentum with a big win at our place, of course. I think this is the biggest start in my career. That being said, that doesn't change anything for me. It doesn't -- I mean obviously you feel a little bit different, but once you get in the swing of the game tomorrow night, it will be another game and we'll get in the feel of it, just a little more intensity, a little more adrenaline from the fans and a little more hype around it. But, yeah, this is the biggest game I've pitched.

Q. I know you're aware that earlier in your career people in the industry seemed to think you didn't want to pitch in the Northeast. And I know that was incorrect.

JAKE PEAVY: Right.

Q. How much have you enjoyed this, not only the World Series, but in a baseball intense city like Boston?

JAKE PEAVY: I've enjoyed it with every bit of me. I was quite the opposite in very laid back San Diego, amongst all the trade talk, "He doesn't want to come pitch in the American League." I was excited to come to St. Louis to be back in the National League and feel like you have another way to have an advantage over the opposition, if you can swing the bat better, if you can bunt better, run the bases better than the opposing pitcher. So I feel like the pitcher can sway the game more so in his favor in the National League. Without the DH, that's just easy to -- but like I said, I'm exactly where I belong at this point in time and I couldn't be any more excited to be in Boston, hopefully for -- we know next year, and hopefully beyond.

Q. As a starter, how concerned are you about Clay Buchholz right now?

JAKE PEAVY: I'm really not that concerned, to be honest with you. We're at the finish line now. I certainly hate that he's experiencing any kind of discomfort, and we all know he missed some significant time with a shoulder injury. But I think Clay is on that same bandwagon, and we started this press conference talking about Carlos Beltran. I can't imagine what it would take in somebody who's been hurt, been injured, I think you could just physically have to not be able to play the game of baseball to not go out there and compete in this environment, when the adrenaline and the atmosphere can help you through a lot of that as well as maybe some drugs (laughter).

Q. Just to get to the World Series and to win a title in this era of multiple rounds of playoffs, how much harder do you think it is to win a title now than maybe in an earlier era when the postseason was much shorter and fewer teams were in October?

JAKE PEAVY: Yeah, I think you definitely have to be hot and play good baseball, maybe for a little bit longer, but at the same time you grind out the season and not as many teams made it. So you had to be the best in your league, which is awfully hard to do, especially when you have -- you're in a league where you feel like you're at a disadvantage with a team that maybe has more money and more resources than you.

I don't know, getting here and what's it taken to get here with a great team and a great group of guys, you see just how hard it is to win the World Series, and you really understand the preparation, the will of not just a few guys, not just a handful of guys, it has to be an organizational philosophy that you're going to win the World Series. It's got to be a team and a group of guys that just refuse to quit and all put their efforts together as a team to be on top. And extremely, extremely difficult even to get to where we are today, and to try to squeak out three more wins is going to be fighting tooth and nail, like you guys already know. A difficult task and I think that's what makes it as rewarding as it is.