That's a strong position. If we miss one guy (such as Posada), we'll have somebody who can replace him. |
That's the only one that took me by surprise. We all expected him to be there. He's a regular in Cincinnati. He's not competing for a job. But you can't say anything. This is voluntary. A guy has a right to say no. But he would have been good to have on the team. |
The guys played aggressive baseball, but they were also being selective at the plate, unlike (Tuesday) when they were swinging at many first pitches. |
The passion is going to be a lot more than in the first round. This is what people were looking for. There's a lot of rivalry between islands. Fans are going to take it like a fight. We're going to take it as bragging rights and respect each other. |
The things that I know from watching him in Milwaukee and Arizona, the thing we're going to work on is to charge harder. He kind of plays deep a little bit. He has tremendous range and a tremendous arm. Sometimes he has to charge the ball more and not lay back. |
There has always been a tradition of competition between the islands, because they are so close to each other. |
There's a lot of rivalry between islands. When we get together in the States, we all talk about bragging rights and we have fun with it. The fans are going to treat it like a fight. |
These are very proud people. They are proud of their heritage and haven't forgotten where they came from. I don't know how it will be received here, but it is something big in Latin America. |
They have a lot of good players that any team in the United States would be happy to add to their rosters. |
They know how to throw strikes. And I want them to throw strikes. That's what I've been emphasizing. And they did a great job getting ahead of the hitters. |
They played a little better than us. |
They were pretty solid. The pitchers got their work in, and the guys did a good job behind them. |
This is what the event was made for. The fans are going to take it like a fight. For the players, it's all about bragging rights. |
This was a good win for us, but it's not over. The game tonight is over but the rest of the round is not, so we have to think of our next game. |
Vazquez was working too fast and he was pitching a little too high in the strike zone. |