Rest Is Best For Renteria
Tom Timmermann Of the Post-Dispatch
October 13, 2004
Cardinals shortstop Edgar Renteria wants to be on the field every
day, so
when manager Tony La Russa came to him late in the season and asked him
if he
needed a rest, Renteria was not about to say yes.
"I said, 'What do you think?' " Renteria recalled Tuesday. "He
said, 'Yeah,
you need it.' So that's why I took it." The rest did him well. At the
time La
Russa asked, Renteria's batting average was declining. It had gotten as
high as
.301 in August, but had dropped to .281. Renteria sat out games on
Sept. 21 and
22 -- giving him three days off in seven days -- and he came back
refreshed. He
hit .324 in the remaining games of the regular season.
"That (rest) helped me a lot," Renteria said. "I was a little
tired and Tony
knew when I needed the time off."
La Russa said he "could tell" Renteria was tired. "His swing was
getting
long," he said. "At some point, they all need a break. It's a long
season,
especially for the guys who play every day."
Renteria's late-season recovery has carried into the postseason.
In the
four-game series with the Dodgers, he hit a team-high .455, with a .600
on-base
percentage. At a time when some bats in the Cardinals lineup have
slumped,
Renteria is going strong.
Not that doing well in October is anything new for Renteria. This
is the
fifth time in the past eight seasons he's been in the postseason, and
with one
exception, his statistics keep getting better. His batting average in
the first
round has improved with each subsequent appearance. Except for the 2002
NLCS,
his average has improved from the first round to the second in each
postseason.
Renteria has reached the World Series once, where his most
shining moment
came as late as possible in the postseason. In the 11th inning of Game
7 of the
1997 World Series, he singled in Craig Counsell for the Florida
Marlins' winning
run.
That moment may be impossible for any player to top, but Renteria
is game to
try.
"We'll see what we can do now," he said. "That was the time we
were the best
team in the country."
Renteria's knack for clutch postseason hits has been reinforced
this season.
Against the Dodgers, he drove in two runs in the third inning of Game 1
to begin
to open that game up. His double to right in the second inning of Game
2 started
a three-run inning, and his single in the fifth inning broke a 3-3 tie.
"Edgar is a timely guy," teammate Reggie Sanders said.
Renteria said the key to his postseason success is to treat it
like any other
game.
"It's no difference," he said. "It's still the same game. I keep
myself ready
to go. I've always been like that. If you prepare well, you play well.
I'm
prepared to do what I have to do.
"Right now, I'm trying to focus and take everything positive.
Right now, I
feel good. Everything is good. I try to do the best I can for the
team."
La Russa said: "I think he's excited. The worst thing you could
do is be
unfazed (by the postseason). The guys who do well are the guys who get
excited
about it."
And the excitement and added pressure of the playoffs seem to
make Renteria's
game even stronger.
"I think (his game) is better than ever," La Russa said.
Back to 2004 Articles Page