It feels great. I've been working on some stuff, trying to really relax myself, working in the cage and in (batting practice). Tonight was kind of the first night that I've gotten to get in there. It's just one night, so I've got to keep it going. |
It felt good. I think I was one of the only guys who didn't hit a home run in Spring Training. Doing that [Monday] on Opening Day was pretty awesome, especially in this environment. |
It's different from the aspect that when I come to the ballpark, I know my name is probably going to be in the lineup every day. That's probably the big thing. It gives me the feeling that I have a chance to contribute in a major way every day. |
It's frustrating when you lose games that you should win, |
It's pretty special being in the lineup on Opening Day for the first time. It's just a different kind of excitement. |
They beat me up pretty good. But I feel great anyway. |
This one is the best, ... It's September and we're coming down the stretch, where every game is magnified. Being able to do it in this situation feels pretty sweet. |
Walking up there, I try to tell myself, 'I'm lucky to get to hit in this situation.' I expect myself to come through. I think that helps take some of the pressure off. |
We don't have to go out and set the world on fire. We've got good veterans in this clubhouse who will work with us. |
We just didn't take advantage. I helped him [Reds pitcher Matt Belisle] out. I didn't make him throw good pitches. I just didn't get the job done. |
We want to keep it going, ... We're all young and it's almost like a motivation to know we have the chance to keep this thing going for a while. There's still a lot of work to be done this year but it's a confidence thing. Sometimes when you're young like this, sometimes you don't understand the magnitude of what you're doing. |
We were just trying to make something happen, and we did a good job of not swinging at many bad pitches and letting things come to us. It's good to get that first win under our belt. You grow up wanting to play in games like this. |
You generally think of California being perfect weather. It's been pretty wacky this week. |