Ned Yost Three Quotations

We're going against three of the best pitchers in the National League, and if you look one minute past today, you're going to be in trouble. If you start looking down the road, you're going to get sideswiped.

(Capuano) just struggled all day. He could never get it going. We had too many walks all day. We ended up with nine. When a team has been struggling to score runs a little bit like they have, you can't help them out by putting runners on. Then it only takes one hit instead of three to score a run. That was evident in the first inning.

I don't know why people want to think it's a curse. We've been waiting three years for this.

Hudson is 83-4 when given a four-run lead. Our goal today was to keep it to three runs or less to give us a chance to win.

He had struck him out the first three times up. I was going to give him an opportunity to face him, and he struck him out again. That was the turning point of the game.

His workload has been real heavy. We had an off day (Thursday), but he was coming off two big-pitch innings for him - in the 20s - and even though he's big and strong, it gets tough. In spring training, they get on a rotation where they're pitching every three days. Then you pick it up a little and they're pitching every other day. Now, he's been in four out of five days. To be thrown into that, even though you're big and strong, it's still a little early to have that type of pressure put on you.

He's been an important piece to our starting rotation, along with Ben Sheets and Doug Davis. They've really solidified the first three starting spots.

Really, we had three pretty good games. Rick Helling definitely gave us that opportunity for that to happen today. He had seven real strong innings. He has done a real nice job with his opportunities.

J.J. has been outstanding. We have turned some nice double plays already (nine in three games). He's been great.

I think we all were (impressed). There's some reason why he has jumped three levels in a year and a half. You could see why today.

Corey came in, got off the plane, got dressed, took batting practice and smoked the ball two or three times. He finally got a hold of one.

The whole plan three years ago was to tread water until these kids got here. And it's not just those three. It's all the others, too, a whole corps of kids that are coming.

I want them to get used to playing all three outfield spots. Versatility is certainly the key to what we want to do.

How about a little mental intensity? How about substituting some of that if you get tired? Let's develop it. It's a habit of giving all that you have three hours a night.

We just let too many opportunities get by early. We got his pitch count up and three times we had runners in scoring position and fewer than two out. We just couldn't put the ball in play. That has a way of catching up with you.