If I understand correctly, it’ll be a couple weeks before they even want him to pick up a ball. That’s going to set him back there. We’ll make sure he’s ready to go.

It’s big-league baseball, man, … Get out and get after it, you know? There are worse jobs in the world.

He’s got one of the best arms in baseball. On any given night, he can shut out. I just think he’ll fit in perfect.

We gave them out best shot. We had the lead late. Aside from maybe Yankee fans and our own fans, nobody else in the world wanted to see us win that game for the weekend’s...

Our pitching (staff), we haven’t had a whole lot of breathing room out there. The last couple of weeks, every pitch is meaningful.

It could happen. We’ll just have to wait and see. We’ll make sure [Burnett is] good and ready, but we could do that. Never say never.

You never really know what to expect. He did OK. He was overthrowing, but that’s [something] to be expected. But he hung tough and kept us in there. He’ll be a good one — get...

We’ve got the right guy on the mound. [The day off] is big. Everybody can kind of regroup a little bit. Normally, you don’t play six games without an off-day at the start of the...

He makes us that much stronger behind the plate. He can intimidate you a little bit with his arm. You can’t just run at will when you’re in that opposing dugout.

It’s going to be nice to have a say in it.

We told him to hit Dave Berg.

He was dynamite, he had it all. His fastball, he threw a good breaking-ball, then his change-up. He threw from behind in the count. He’s pitching beyond his age, that’s for sure.

If we need another guy, it will be (Scott) Downs.

I thought Wright looked really good. It looked like he got his fastball back. We didn’t see that early in the year.

All we can do is hope he’s not out a long period of time. It’s unfortunate because we’re expecting a lot out of him this year.

We’re due. We’re overdue, … These guys can hit. We’ve all seen them hit. Believe it or not, what happens, when you struggle as a whole, everyone tries to do that much more. It may...

He’ll stay down here and catch in extended.

He’s pitched so good lately and he hasn’t had much to show for it.

He was the best we had out there. It was his game. Sometimes your best moves backfire and your worst moves don’t. Naturally, if you make a decision and it doesn’t work, the other move...

He’s so locked in, but he’s worked at it. He was a perennial slow starter until this year. All that tells me is he has a chance to have a big year.

We’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain. Especially for young guys, it’s tough to accept that, … You know you’re under the gun. Even though it doesn’t affect us as a team —...

We even talked about it last winter, about him possibly being the leadoff guy to start the season,

We are hoping it’s not. Even if it’s not something serious, it’s going to set him back a little bit anyways.

It’s always important in head-to-head games. If you want to get where they’re at, you’ve got to beat them. We’ve got to play good against them.

It’s a team effort,

Those guys have been doing that all year.

If he’s going to be in a role where he’s not going to pitch much for us, it does him no good at this stage of his career. In saying that, it doesn’t mean he’s...

I’m grateful for it. Now it’s my job to make it work.

It breaks it up a little bit — gets them out there to face some competition. It gets the guys on the mound seeing hitters that are swinging and working on making some pitches. It...

It was actually working to our advantage. After the rain came, it was going to take a while to fix [the field], though, so we just have to move on.

Top to bottom (of the lineup), we have been pretty effective for the most part. And good teams have that, contribution from everyone … so you don’t have to worry about it too much.

You don’t want to make a mockery of this [expletive deleted], … But it might work.

We could go with Reed if he’s in a particular lineup. We might have McDonald in there against certain lefties. There’s some flexibility there. I expect Russ to be even better there this year after...

He’s one of the best players in the league and he’s taken some heat for being a slow starter.

We had no choice (yesterday), we had to get some innings out of him. But we weren’t going to abuse him by any means.

I don’t see any evidence of guys pressing. We’ve had some good at-bats. We just have hit any long balls lately.

He’s a proven winner, some years some guys just get that.

You watch Ortiz over the last few years, there’s not a more clutch player out there. And you can’t walk him because Ramirez hits behind him.

Personally, I don’t see him making that start. He has to come out and throw in the ‘pen but whether he can push himself out there to really know, we don’t know. If (he can’t...

Ski had a very good spring. He deserves this.

I would’ve done it again. It didn’t cost us the pennant or the World Series, … It wasn’t quite the Pedro Martinez versus the Yankees in the postseason decision, but I thought [Towers] earned it....

Look at his arm, his age. He’s got a chance to be a very good starter. I don’t think we’re even considering the bullpen right now. He’s got too much going for him the other...

He’s got to be able to move laterally. And he’s still got some pain, … If he goes that long, I don’t think it makes any sense [for the] final three games of the year...

I don’t think we have any questions this spring other than to find out whether Eric can play right field.

Expectations rise and players have to go out there and perform, but ultimately the manager is the one held responsible. But I like that. I’ve got no problem with that.

We’re not dead yet, but we’re tired. In the end if we hang in there, it’s because of the way they go about their business. If we don’t it’s because we’re not good enough, yet....

One run wasn’t going to do it, anyway. We caught a break on the force at second and they got one there. It’s a wash.

We’ll look at it and see who is pitching the best when that time comes. The thing that he does is give us flexibility. If he’s in the bullpen, he makes us that much stronger...

I don’t think it is anything serious. He went back to Toronto with tenderness in his forearm. It should just be one start.

It’s in the same area he had the problem last year. He only threw a few pitches and we shut him down.