April 13, 1998

The Week in Quotes

April 6-12

by Dennis Cleary

UPS ...

"This is going to be a good club, but I don't know to what extent yet. It will be an exciting year. We've got a pretty good ballclub. We've still got to see how things go, see how things fall into place."
-- Tony Gwynn, Padres outfielder

"The crowd reaction today was great for me. I just hope they know that I'm not going to be perfect all the time."
-- Pedro Martinez, Red Sox pitcher

"We know that things are not going to continue at this torrid pace, but hopefully things will continue to go well for us."
-- Quinton McCracken, Devil Rays outfielder

... AND DOWNS

"We all stink."
-- Jim Leyland, Marlins manager

"I have instructed my agent, Dan Lozano, to shut down contract negotiations with the Dodgers. I let the talks become a distraction, and for that I apologize to my teammates and our fans."
-- Mike Piazza, Dodgers catcher

"If we are going to have nights like this, guys are going to find themselves in Triple-A."
-- Don Baylor, Rockies manager, on losing 18-7

"With the exception of opening day, we haven't played one good game."
-- Dan Plesac, Blue Jays pitcher

THE REST

"They say you can't win it in April, but this is where it all starts."
-- Rod Beck, Cubs pitcher

"Who says you have to score runs on a home run? That's the beauty of the game, you can score runs any which way."
-- Mark McGwire, Cardinals infielder

"Playing second base is something that has gone 1,000 times better than I ever thought it would go."
-- Craig Biggio, Astros infielder

"If I have a chance to win a game in the 9th inning, I'll use everybody I have. Why save anybody for the 10th?"
-- Phil Garner, Brewers manager

"Wil Cordero is not the person that the media put out there. I want people to know that I don't go home each night and beat my wife and that is what people think."
-- Wil Cordero, White Sox outfielder

"We can't go wire-to-wire; we proved that opening day. But to win the tough games, that makes everybody kind of relaxed. We know that if we can't outslug them, we can do the little things and win with our pitching."
-- Ray Miller, Orioles manager

"Over the next three years, we have a chance to be one of the quality organizations in the major leagues."
-- Chuck LaMar, Devil Rays GM

"[Marge Schott] was always very nice to me. I don't know if she knew who I was, but she was always nice to me."
-- Dave Burba, Indians pitcher

"You can feel the intensity and the electricity in the stands when [Mark McGwire] comes up, and rightfully so. He hits a baseball like no other human being."
-- Bruce Bochy, Padres manager