Heck, Eck; Gibson’s Not on the Yankees

St. Louis Cardinal closer Dennis Eckersley still is contemplating whether he will retire in a few weeks, but the kind of fun he’s enjoying these days, he’s not sure he’s ready to give this all up.

Eckersley once again stepped onto center stage and closed the door in the ninth, preserving the Cardinals’ 3-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves and wondering how in the world this is all possible.

Eckersley spent the winter believing he was stuck with the Oakland Athletics for his final season, but was traded in February to the Cardinals after closer Tom Henke decided that he would retire. Eckersley has been a godsend, saving 30 games during the season and four of the Cardinals’ five postseason victories.

“If he [Henke] doesn’t retire,” Eckersley said, “I’m still stuck in Oakland watching all of the [stadium] construction all summer. What a great decision he made, huh?

“It was so weird how I got here, and I feel so damn lucky. I can’t believe how good it feels to be here in this atmosphere.

“Oakland was never like this. Nothing against Oakland, but these people get fired up here.

“If I was a kid, I’d be out of control.

“This is a dream come true.”

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Cardinal catcher Tom Pagnozzi, when asked what’s the best way to pitch teammate Ron Gant, who hit two homers Saturday:

“Ball 1, Ball 2, Ball 3, Ball 4.

“You hope he’ll swing at a couple of them and get lucky.”

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Denny Neagle, who struggled since joining the Braves, going 2-3 with a 5.59 earned-run average in six starts, said his biggest problem might have been simply keeping up with the rest of the Cy Young staff. Neagle, who will start tonight against Andy Benes, said that he believes he since has conquered his anxiety.

“I think that was part of the pressure that I put on myself when I first came over,” Neagle said. “No matter how long you’ve been in the game--even though I think that I’ve pretty much established myself over the last couple of years--when you join a staff like that you tend to put a little bit of pressure on yourself.

“You’re trying to justify [the trade] and justify yourself because of the class that these guys have built themselves in.

“I’ve won 27 ballgames over the last two years with Pittsburgh. It’s no fluke of me doing that, I don’t care what anybody says.

“But for me, it just felt like I was trying to get my first win of the season again.”

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Eckersley on the fact that Brave third baseman Chipper Jones, 23, could soon have two World Series rings:

“Chipper probably doesn’t know any better. He probably thinks you’re supposed to go to a World Series every year. Sometimes, you’ve got to be out of it just to appreciate what you’re missing.”

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Cardinal Manager Tony La Russa loves Colorado. He and his wife visit nearly every winter. It’s the perfect get-away, he says.

But he won’t be going back this winter.

Not after the Cardinals went 0-6 in Colorado this season, outscored 56-33.

“Those were six horrible games,” La Russa said. “I loved Denver. That’s past tense. We’re not visiting there like we planned to.”