Michael Barrett Guys Quotations

Last year, we saw him have a couple starts like that, and I don't know how to explain it. I know he has good stuff and that he's a competitor, and he's one of those guys who, when he's pitching, everybody wants to help play and win. Sometimes things don't add up.

I believe that when the guys come back, they will come back to maintain our position and not have the pressure of pushing for your position. That's a lot of pressure for guys coming off (injuries).

He may be one of those guys who we have to see a few times before we get used to him. A lot of guys, you don't see them using their breaking balls this early and he uses more breaking balls than anything else, and they're good breaking balls. It kept us off balance.

It was vintage Maddux. He's been able to locate the ball really well early in the count. He's getting the ball down and away. Late in the count, he's keeping guys off balance by mixing his pitches. You can't say much more than vintage Maddux. He did today what he's been doing the last couple starts -- not trying to do too much.

I like the way that they've come together as a team. You watch them, and it's like they're all playing on the same level ? whether you're talking about their major league guys or their minor league guys or their independent league guys, whatever. They look like a team.

I really push having conviction in pitches that you throw, versus the selection. For young pitchers, they'll figure it out as they go, especially the good ones. Over years of learning, I can't keep giving them information. They have to learn to process it themselves. Some guys learn faster than others, and some guys don't learn at all. Things can get confused if I try to do too much.