Justice recently joined ESPN's Gary Miller on Up Close to talk about his career in the post-season and what the Indians need to do to get back to the World Series this year. Justice also touched on his feelings towards the fans in Atlanta, and how long he plans on staying in the majors. The following is an edited transcript of the interview.

Miller: What will be different this year with the Indians? Is there a sense about how close you came in '97, when you thought you should have won it. How is it going to be different in '99?

Justice: Well I think we've got a solid team this year. We just have to get all the guys back that we had injured this year: Sandy Alomar, hopefully Travis (Fryman) can come back. If we can get all our main guys back, I like our chances. Granted we haven't made a move to get another pitcher. Do we need it? I don't know. You never know, man. When the playoffs come around, all of a sudden Jaret Wright, Bartolo (Colon), (Charles) Nagy, they may be on top of their game for those two weeks. And if they are, we've got a real good chance.

Miller: Was there a disappointment in the clubhouse because that's been the thing: there hasn't been a true #1 (starting pitcher). When you played for the Braves, there were three of them. Nagy was the best pitcher in '97 but they passed over him for the Game Seven start. Not a lot has changed in that rotation....

Justice: That's true, but we don't feel like it's a disappointment. We're going to go with what we have now because we think it's good. We don't think we have a bad situation. I don't think that our pitching is bad. I think though that you do need pitching if you want to win a World Series. I think every team out there wants to get more and more pitching. Even when we're raking it as team, we go in to face Pedro (Martinez) and we might score one run. That tells you that's just how good a pitcher that he is and if you have a guy out there hitting those corners and keeping guys off balance, it's tough to score a lot of runs.

Miller: There is a chance you guys could meet in the World Series. What would it be like facing Glavine, Smoltz, Maddux, guys you spent so many years with?

Justice: That would be amazing, but I think we'd win.

Miller: Why?

Justice: Because that's the kind of stuff that happens in my life. I'd go back to Atlanta and probably hit the home run to beat the Braves. I just believe that would happen. I do.

Miller: Is '95, when you hit a home run in the decisive Game 6, why you believe that or did you always feel that way?

Justice: '95. Because in '95, in that particular game when I hit, I felt like I had everybody in that stadium against me because of the comments I made about the lack of support that I felt like we were getting from the fans. So imagine walking up to the plate every at bat and getting booed by your home fans and then you've got the Indians trying to beat you as well. For me to hit the home run and it be the only run of the game, I felt like it couldn't of happened any better for me. You better believe that had we lost that World Series, I would had to pack my bags quickly and get out of there.

Miller: The difficulties with the fans was throughout you history there, wasn't it to some degree?

Justice: Just at times, at times. At times I spoke the truth. A lot of people don't like hearing the truth. But I learned that you just can't speak the truth all the time. I just learned that with maturity, that's all. Really, only a couple of times in my career there they kind of got on me about some things that I said. It was so funny because, like in '92 when we were playing Toronto (in the World Series) and I thought, I think it might of been Game 3 or 4, I didn't think we had the enthusiasm as a team. We came out kind of dead in terms of enthusiasm. We played hard but we seemed kind of dead before the game and I said that, and they jumped all over me for saying that. Yet, (first baseman) Sid Bream said the same exact thing in the press conference but nobody said anything to Sid Bream. So I just had little things. As far as my career in Atlanta, the positives far outweigh the negatives. I mean, you're talking about two or three incidences my whole career. I mean, Bobby Cox, I will always love Bobby Cox. because he believed in me when I was in the minor leagues. He is the main reason I played for the Braves. He is the one who really wanted me on that team and then he became my manager. He's the best manager I ever played for. I will always love Bobby Cox. (General Manager John) Schuerholtz: now that's a different story because Schuerholtz looked me in my eyes and said "I'll bet my family and my house that you will not be traded." That was the spring of '97. Now that's a confidence builder if you ask me, I've got the General Manager telling me that. A week later I'm traded. Yet still the positives of being a Brave and coming through the minor leagues with all those guys, I will always love each and every one of them. They will always be important to me. I still talk to everyone of them. I still want them to do great. But I'm and Indian now. I love these guys now. But I will never forget that experience I had in Atlanta and the friendships I made with the people in Atlanta who really treated me well. At the stadium it wasn't always so good, you know me, but in public and the friendships I made there, it was awesome.

Miller: How long, it sound like it still hurts in some part of you, did that hurt in '97 'till the point like "okay, I'm here in Cleveland now?"

Justice: I always wanted to be a Brave. I wanted to play until my last game as a Brave. I loved the Atlanta Braves. I loved them. There was no other team that I ever wanted to play for. Then, if you (Schuerholz) tell me I'm not going anywhere, then you're going to do something like bet your family and your house. That's a heck of statement right there. Yeah, I was hurt, I almost cried. Then when I was traded, and all the guys coming up to me and they were looking sad, I said "Don't you'll say nothing else to me, you're all going to make me cry out here." I have never cried in front of my teammates for me. That was a sad day for me, leaving. But you know what, it was also a great day because they could have traded me to some teams that were not successful. They traded me to the Indians.. Your teammates you play with, all of them are great guys. I am happy that they sent me to the Indians.

Miller: How bizarre is it play along side the guy you were traded for, Kenny Lofton?

Justice: I wasn't traded for Kenny. Let's get that right. Marquis Grissom was traded for Kenny. I was traded for Alan Embree. They just threw me in the deal, all right? You can say I was traded for him now because I've been successful as an Indian, but when that deal was made it was one Gold Glove center fielder for the other and we'll just throw Justice and Embree in there as secondary. You know what I mean? That was the trade you see. But now if you look at the trade, I'm gone, Marquis is gone, AND Kenny is gone.

Miller: And Embree is gone.

Justice: And what did the Braves really get for it? Are going to say, "well, we need to free up money? We're going to trade Justice because we need to free up money." But then the payroll gets higher. So what was the real reason? It wasn't the reason that you told everybody in Atlanta, all the fans. It wasn't to lower your payroll because your payroll is higher now then it was then. So be honest with your fans and tell them what the real reason was.

Miller: Kenny never seemed to fit over there and now he's back with the Indians, why do you think that was?

Justice: I can kind see that, because Kenny pretty much felt like he was raised here in Cleveland. Now all of sudden you tell Kenny to go a whole other place, he didn't know all the guys over there. He didn't feel comfortable over there with them. You can't play your music in the clubhouse. You can't wear Oakleys, all the things that Kenny likes, that Kenny feels like he needs to play. Bottom line: their system was different than the Indians' system. We can play music we can have a good time in the clubhouse beforehand, all different types of music. Kind of lax on our, I wouldn't say lax, but you can wear different types of things in batting practice. Just more free-spirited whereas in Atlanta it was more regimented. Bobby (Cox) wanted it that way. Everybody has to have the same shirt on, almost the same shoes. More regimented, like the army so the speak.

Miller: The old style..

Justice:Exactly, which worked great for us.

Miller: They both get to the World Series.

Justice: The thing is, both styles work. But Kenny, I think, probably liked the Cleveland style a lot better than the Atlanta style.

Miller: You're 33 years old and you have a baby boy on the way in December. How much longer are you going to play?

Justice: Three years. Three more years and then...

Miller: You are going to be able to walk away in three years?