I like the fact he's aggressive. |
I never solicited a job, ... I never looked for a job. I said, 'They know where I'm at. If they want me, fine. If they don't, fine.' |
I never worked for a better owner in baseball. I've worked for a few -- Charlie Finley, Ted Turner, Ray Kroc, Ewing Kaufman, Marge Schott. Jeffrey has been the best owner I've ever worked for. He let you do your job. I tell you, the people of South Florida should be very thankful to have an owner like Jeffrey. He has such a tremendous desire to win. He has said that so many times. He's one owner who has talked the talk and walked the walk. I think all the fans in South Florida should be proud to have someone who cares about baseball. |
I saw him last night in a restaurant. We chatted. I told him how proud I was of him. You go through what we did in 2003 with guys like Lee and [Ivan Rodriguez] and them guys -- you really appreciate the gamers. They were two of them. |
I think he will have a good last month. I think you saw in '03 that he has a way of always coming through in the clutch. |
I think it's special for the whole club. The first 20-game winner this club ever had. [He's been] a Rookie of the Year and an All-Star. He conceivably could get 23 or 24 [wins] in the regular season. He's done everything you can ask for. I'm tired of talking about what a great competitor he is, but he is. You've got to give him credit. Some could say someone else helped him. ... Baloney. He did it himself. |
I think over the last part of the year he wasn't as sharp; he may have been tired. Most of the time he has pretty good control. He has shown that he can be a good fifth starter. |
I told these guys the first day: 'I don't need this job,' ... I told them, 'The only way to get better is to work at it.' And that's what we've done. |
I used to do that all the time. You got to play the game, that's all. |
I want to finish up on a good note. |
I want to get Conine in the lineup, and I'd like to get Hermida some playing time. We have to figure out a way to get some offense. I talked to Mike about it. |
I want to thank Jeffrey for giving me the opportunity, |
I want to thank Jeffrey for giving me the opportunity. He's the only one who had the guts to give an old senior citizen a chance. And it took a lot of guts. He also made it possible to live my dream out of some day going to the World Series, and winning it. South Florida ought to be proud of it. |
I was glad to see that, for the kid's sake. He will always be mentioned every time they mention pinch-hit home runs. He's the only one who can say he did it [pinch-hit grand slam] in modern times. |
I was happy to win this one, go out on a winning style. |