Mentally, is closing tougher than a hitter going out there with 600 at-bats to produce ... tougher than a starting pitcher? For the great closer, it's as tough. He watches the club for eight innings. Then if he goes out there and screws it up, he's got 24 guys to answer to. It's a heck of a deal. Some guys can't handle it. |
Most of it is the same, he's struggled, he's done a lot of the same things [poorly], ... And when he's done well, he's done the same things [well]. |
Most people know the kind of player that he has been his whole career ? I mean, just a gifted all-around everything, |
Mostly what he's shown is that the managers who have had him are high on him. When you watch him, he's a young player who's developing every day. He's got a chance to be very good. He fields well, got a nice arm, got a great approach to the game, left-handed hitter. He should be a good big leaguer. |
Much more of my enjoyment this season has been watching significant players hurt and then watching guys stepping in to play like stars, |
Mulder was spectacular, but there were a lot of outstanding things, ... Mostly, the way we competed, that was outstanding. In the end that's the most important thing we can do. |
My point was (Saturday) that amidst all the runs, both of the guys did a lot of good things. (Sunday), Wainwright pitched well, but he made a couple mistakes that he got away with. |
My whole concentration on the game is affected by a pitch that got away. You know, that looks so terrible. The guy is a great pro. I just talked to Julian in there for a long time. Nothing against him, as soon as he fell out of his delivery...the ball has to get down. He's a sinker ball pitcher. That incident screws up the whole night for me. |
Needs a lot of work. I think the way he swings, he's not gonna be on base a lot. |
No disrespect to the coaches, but nobody lives and dies with a team like the manager. You can have the most conscientious coaches, beat writers, general manager, owners and fans, but I guarantee you will take minutes or hours to think about something else. A manager can't let it go. |
No doubt about it. That's part of why he's the most valuable. The team needed him to expand, he expanded. I'm sure it hurt his average. |
No kidding? Wow. He hit it against a guy that hasn't been giving up anything. You check what Al has been doing. Nobody's been getting anything off him. |
No matter who we put there, they cannot cover Albert, ... The only guys with a chance are Rolen and Sanders, and we don't have those guys right now. |
Nobody's more frustrated or upset than he is. He's not a happy camper. |
Normally, when you miss chances like that, ... it comes back to haunt you. |