Caleb Joseph: "I'm fine. Bruised ego mainly"

When a couple of reporters approached catcher Caleb Joseph at his locker today, he knew what the line of questions would be. He knew we wanted to ask him about what he called his "epic fall" last night. It was in the top of the fifth inning when Joseph chased a foul pop near the Orioles dugout. He slipped on the on-deck circle and went down hard. It sure could have turned out worse, but he did not get hurt. "I'm fine. Bruised ego mainly," Joseph said this afternoon. "I saw the ball a little late and was going after it full speed. I realized I had enough time to slow down and maybe reach over. The minute I started to hit the brakes, I hit the on-deck circle. "We've known it's been there. It's something we address at road cities. Like in Cleveland with the slick turf they have. But sometimes in the heat of the game, you are not going to deviate your path to the ball to try to not slip. It is something we've addressed before and that is why you saw the immediate removal of them right after that." Manager Buck Showalter today said those on-deck circles are gone forever, but the club must have something to signify that space as the on-deck circle according to major league rules. Did Joseph feel fortunate he did not get hurt? "I was dying laughing when I went back and looked at it. I thought it was hilarious," he said. "Only me would that happen to, going after a foul ball and bust rear. "The way it all happened, it was pretty fortunate to not smash my head on that rail, or go in (to the camera well) feet first without hitting anything." The Orioles take a 9 1/2-game lead, their largest atop the AL East since Sept. 6, 1997, into tonight's game. When you ask O's players about the big lead, they all seem to answer in a similar fashion. They say it's nice, but nothing is clinched yet and they have to keep playing hard and winning games. Joseph said that focus comes from the team leaders. "It's impressive how the leaders on this team continue to lead, guys who have been there and experience this type of atmosphere," he said. "There are a lot of guys in here that have played meaningful games in September, even October. "They know the drill and as a young guy, if they are not talking about it, well you're not talking about it. If they are doing this, you are going to do that. That is what we are trying to do. Follow the guys that have been there. "No matter what, whether you look ahead, back or whatever, if you continue to win, you control your own destiny."