http://cincinnati.reds.mlb.com/NASAp...7/c1651240.jsp
Schoeneweis: Back in the race
09/08/2006 8:41 AM ET
MLBPLAYERS.com


We were on the road when I heard I'd been traded to Cincinnati from Toronto and I was very shocked at first. But I got myself together and realized it represented a good opportunity. The Blue Jays had sort of fallen out of the race, and this team -- and I had to look it up in the newspaper -- was right in the thick of a pennant race. That makes it exciting.

This is the second time I've been traded under these type of circumstances. The first time, in 2003, the White Sox were in a pennant race and the Angels had fallen out of it, so it was a typical deadline-type deal.

This is my first time pitching in the National League. The games are generally quicker and I like that. There's also more strategy involved here and more opportunities to warm up and possibly get in a game. In the AL, there are fewer pinch-hitters because pitchers don't bat. You sit around and wait for the three-run homer.

This is also the first time I've pitched in such a small ballpark. I try to keep the ball on the ground anyway, but pitching in Cincinnati will intensify my efforts to keep the ball down. There are a lot of small parks in the big leagues these days, so you just adapt to it and not worry about it. If you make good pitches, you will come out on top most of the time.

There has been quite a bit of change on this club from the beginning of the season, including the bullpen. It's funny that the bullpen is often the last part of a team that's put together, but it seems to be the first thing a team tries to solidify coming down the stretch.

But it seems like the group of guys here in our bullpen now are meshing together and I think we'll end up being a strongpoint for our team.

Acquired by the Reds on Aug. 16, Scott Schoeneweis became the seventh reliever picked up by Cincinnati since July 6. In his first nine appearances for the Reds, Schoeneweis has allowed just one run over 8 1/3 innings.

This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.