February 19, 2007

The Week in Quotes

February 13-19

by Alex Carnevale

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"I don't know yet, but it won't be eighth."
--Yankees manager Joe Torre, on where he'll bat Alex Rodriguez in 2007.

"I would say sizeable."
--Torre, on how much "work" Carl Pavano has to do in the clubhouse. (New York Post)

"Joe obviously has his opinions on it. I didn't come in here nervous that my teammates are going to oust me or give me the cold shoulder. I know that definitely there's respect to be earned. Other things that were said, I think were just things that you guys are having a lot of fun with."
--Carl Pavano

"He's only looking at it from his perspective. We're looking at it from our perspective, those of us that have been through both years. We want him to go out there and show that he wants to do this. It got to a point where we just didn't even want to hear about it or talk about it anymore."
--Yankees starter Mike Mussina, on Pavano (ESPN)

WE SHARED A TENDER ESKIMO KISS...I THINK WE'RE ALL EAGER FOR THE SEASON TO START

"We were great when we left the room. I think it was really necessary."
--Mussina, on his conversation with Carl Pavano.

"I wasn't setting out to go after anybody."
--Mussina, on his comments.

"He didn't seem to have any concerns. He told me he respected my opinions and he wasn't in the clubhouse last year."
--Mussina, on Pavano's reaction.

GOOD THING THE YANKEES PUT THEIR FOOT DOWN ON THAT OVERSPENDING

"You never know."
--Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, on whether he'd pitch for the Red Sox.

"Mo will be here next year. Where's he going to go? ... I'm just playing. But I'm sure it will work out."
--Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, on Rivera's situation.

"I'm just telling you right now, this is not a story to be covering until the end of the season."
--Yankees GM Brian Cashman

"The Yankees are always good at writing the checks."
--Cashman

"It's very hard, despite how great Mariano is, to all of a sudden pick and choose who to start discussing contracts with. If you start picking and choosing one, someone else is sitting there saying, 'Well, why not me?"'
--Cashman

DID HE MAKE THE TOP TEN OF KEVIN GOLDSTEIN'S TOP 100? FIND OUT WEDNESDAY

"Pure fuel."
--Giants hurler Matt Cain, after watching 2006 first round draft pick Tim Lincecum throw in spring training.

"Maybe a little bit, but you've got to be open-minded and know you've got a special talent with this kid. It comes out of his hand awfully easy. He has a great presence."
--Giants manager Bruce Bochy, on Lincecum's chances of making the opening day roster.

"It works well with my body, it's kept me from getting hurt and it helps me get as much as possible from my slender frame. [Coaches] always shied away from trying to help me because of how unorthodox it is or they say it is. They really haven't tried to change me at all, anywhere."
--Tim Lincecum, on his delivery.

"I heard him say, 'He won't do that all spring.'"
--Pitching coach Dave Righetti, on overhearing Cain on Lincecum. (Andrew Baggarly, Contra Costa Times)

BRIAN SABEAN'S THERAPIST IS THE UNHAPPIEST SHRINK IN THE WORLD

"I'm just trying to measure my stride to get out there a little farther. With the bounce, I'm trying to take my weight down the mound and use my legs more."
--Giants starter Barry Zito, on his new delivery.

"With that backward step, he could wind up at second base. He may not pitch that way, but we'll find out. That will wear him down on different mounds, and it's going to be tough. He's a good athlete, and to me it's all about making his pitches."
--Righetti, on Zito

"If he loses his curveball ... which he could because he's throwing from a different angle now instead of straight up as before. Now he's way out there. We'll see how his groin is tomorrow."
--Righetti (MLB.com)

HEY, AT LEAST THEY DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT THEIR YOUNG STARTING PITCHER

"Some players get a lot out of winter ball, and you don't want to take that away. Like Francisco Rodriguez - he loves to pitch winter ball, and he's come into camp [in great shape] because of it. We monitor what he does, and it's been a plus."
--Angels manager Mike Scioscia

"In Juan's case, you're asking me to second-guess. If he came out of winter ball healthy, we're probably happy he did it. The guys who don't reach the fatigue thresholds are guys you usually want to get more at-bats and innings pitched."
--Angels general manager Bill Stoneman, on outfielder Juan Rivera, who broke his leg playing in Venezuela (Mike DiGiovanna, Los Angeles Times)

"I don't really care much for Mike Scioscia. I don't have any respect for him anymore. He is like a piece of garbage."
--former Angels outfielder Jose Guillen

SOMEONE SPIKED THE PHOENIX WATER SUPPLY WITH A NASTY CASE OF CONFIDENCE

"Are we going to get there and win a world championship? I'm 100 percent convinced of it."
--Brewers manager Ned Yost, in his fifth year.

"I think it's set in stone, in my mind. When? I don't know. It could be this year, it could be next year. But, for me, it's written in stone. And I'm going to work every single day to try to accomplish that goal."
--Ned Yost

"You don't obsess over [tough losses]. It doesn't ruin your next day. But it sure ruins your night. I feel horrible after those games. You know an opportunity has slipped by. But when I wake up the next day, I'm ready to go. That's forgotten. I don't want guys crying and moping and all that after losses. But I want it to hurt. I want them to know we lost a ball game and I don't want to have that feeling again tomorrow."
--Ned Yost (Tom Haudricourt, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)

THE REST

"Definitely that would have to be Minnesota, in terms of clubhouse space and the accommodations. The clubhouse guys do a good job to make it a little easier, but they don't have the space to do anything in there. The batting cages in most stadiums are close by the clubhouse, but the cages in Minnesota are in the right field bleachers and they only have one cage. The weight room is right next to the cage and consists of a lot of weights they used in the 1970s (if they lifted back then). The worst part of the accommodations is that the clubhouse is about 100 yards of stairs removed from the dugout, so there is no looking at video of your last at-bat unless you want to be late getting onto the field."
--Blue Jays first baseman Lyle Overbay, on his pick for the worst clubhouse in the majors. (Buster Olney, ESPN)

"I mean, I am excited. This is an opportunity that everybody looks for, whether it's a team that only has one starter or not. It's still the opportunity to pitch on Opening Day and be the head of a staff. I have the ability to do it. If I stay healthy, there's no question in my mind what it'll end up as at the end of the year."
--Nats No. 1 starter John Patterson (Barry Svrluga, The Washington Post)

"$12 million is a lot of money, but $12 million in Tennessee? He might as well be Donald Trump. That's a lot of generic-brand beer, and a lot of NASCAR tickets. You know how many fishing lures you can buy at Wal-Mart with $12 million?"
--Tigers reliever Todd Jones, on former teammate Jamie Walker.

"If it fits in a skillet, I kill it. I eat everything I kill."
--Orioles RP Jamie Walker (Jeff Zrebiec, Baltimore Sun)

"He wrote out a heck of a lineup, probably the best one so far. I'd be too ashamed to say I'd use it, and if I do use it, it will not have been his idea.''
--Jim Leyland, on the Tigers lineup his fifteen-year-old son came up with. (Danny Knobler, MLive.com)

"How many people didn't like Freddy here, and all of a sudden we trade him and they say we're crazy? That's part of the game. We have to show up and show people we were right."
--White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, on trading Freddy Garcia

"I didn't pull his shirt up. We're semi-close, but we're not getting that close."
--Red Sox manager Terry Francona, when asked if he was pleased with Curt Schilling's condition (Gordon Edes, Boston Globe)

"The way I throw, I'm obviously going to have issues with it. It's bothered me since I was in high school. My mechanics are a little different - long, a different arm slot than everyone else. This just comes along with it."
--Angels pitcher Jered Weaver, on his biceps tendonitis.

Alex Carnevale is a contributor to Baseball Prospectus. You can reach Alex by clicking here. You can also find his Football Outsiders work here.