Spring Quotations | Page 7

He had a very good spring for us. We put him in all three outfield positions. We hit him up and down the lineup. He has been told he is an overachiever. We get to a point where you'll just be called an achiever.

He handled it very well. That tournament was probably better for him than being at Spring Training.

He works hard. A lot of guys who have been around for 11 years, they just kind of go through the motions in spring training, but that guy works hard.

I'm a little frustrated it's taking this long, but it is spring training. It is what it is and I know what I can do when things are right.

I'm always ready on Opening Day. It's been the weirdest Spring Training that I've ever had. The World Baseball Classic didn't help, but I feel great and my body feels great.

He's going to have to go through Spring Training.

HISTORY' means the goal this year was to go make history and win a bowl game. Rutgers has never won a bowl game. So we'll try to make history. That's been (the goal) since spring ball.

His velocity is so much better this spring than it was before. You can see the work ethic is paying off for him in a lot of ways.

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.

His strength has increased since he left college by about 15, 20 percent. So he comes to spring training really after a six . . . seven-month extensive training program.

His stuff has gotten better each time out. What that tells me is his arm is quicker than it has been. Last year at the end and in Spring Training, he wasn't showing the quick arm that I remember seeing. He has done everything we asked him to do and that's really what the conditions were. We need a fifth starter and he's going to be that guy.

Historically, a La Nina that forms in spring has a tendency for most of Illinois to be dry.

Going back to the early '90s, the mill ground 90 percent durum and 10 percent hard red spring wheat. Now, we grind 90 percent spring wheat and 10 percent durum. There's been a lot of consolidation in the pasta industry, with the big plants building their own mills, so the market pretty much went away for mills such as ours. Now, we package some durum for smaller, specialty-type pasta manufacturers.

Going into spring ball, the strength of the program may lie on the offensive side. It's going to be a pretty competitive spring on the offensive side of the ball.

When he does get back, it will be like he has to start with spring training all over again.

The pace he was keeping up in the spring was pretty intense. It's probably not realistic to expect that level of attention to be paid forever, when you've got Supreme Court justices and lots of other things on the plate.

His movement has transformed successfully from one organization into about 14 organizations that spread out across the world, ... Efforts by the Pakistani Army to go after bin Laden, the so-called spring and summer offensives, have again and again ended in failure.

He's had the kind of spring he needed to have. He's made a lot of mistakes but that's what you learn from. Fundamentally, he's getting better. As far as assignments, he's getting better. Catching is something he hasn't done before. Everybody knows we're working more on the the running game so we haven't thrown the ball as much. But he's only had one day where he struggled catching the ball.

He's having a nice little spring down at Triple-A. Right now, we feel like he's the best option for us. We'll bring him up and get him started.

He's done the best job he can. When he was named the head coach at Cincinnati, we're talking about a point in the spring where 95 percent of the best players in the country are already accounted for.

He's demonstrated to me to have the best work ethic. He has the most passion of the next best tackle that I think we have on our team. He has the size, the strength and the athletic ability we're looking for. I just felt as we head into spring that he's going to line up there. It's based on what he's done and what other guys didn't do.

He's doing better. He's improving. I think he's got a real good team attitude and as he improves, he'll play more, ... But right now, we're playing as well as we can play with the people that we are playing with and the guys that have put the most time in. There could be a chance -- maybe it might spring out this week.

He's a very good defensive shortstop. He's always been known as a guy who can really play defense. In spring training, he started showing he's really coming around as a hitter.

He's been pretty special. Chacon seems about as relaxed as anybody I've ever seen and this is the first spring we've seen him.

He's been swinging the bat good. He started the season with us because he had such a big Spring Training. We like the kid a lot, and we think he's going to have a good big league career. We're going to give him some playing time this month, and he's taking advantage of it.

He's been telling us all spring he feels great. That second at-bat, that's what he's all about. You could tell he was excited . . . and he looks good in our uniform.

He's just doing the things that we thought he had to do. He's doing the things he did in spring training and he's done in batting practice. Now he's taking it to the game. Has he got it completely down? No. But he's certainly got it down to the extent that he's a tough out.

He's kind of at a standstill because he has blister problems. We have to see more from him. Last year he got off to a good start, but right now he's a one-pitch pitcher because of the finger problem. So far, he's been fine this Spring Training. I'm not ready to say he's going to be a front-line guy yet. He hasn't made me a believer yet. He has a Major League fastball, though, and it gets on you in a hurry. He's another long-range guy and will be vying for a job at Fort Wayne.

He's a senior and he needs to have a career best year. That starts with spring practice.

He's a little bit behind, but we just have to make sure we don't rush him. He still has a ways to go. It's almost like day one for him for spring training.

He's a location and change of speeds pitcher. It takes a little time during the spring to get all of your pitches going and get comfortable with them. He's doing good.

Hopefully, the spring will be nice and warm and we'll be able to enjoy it.

He's been a real pleasant surprise, honestly. He's improved a ton from the spring. The fact that he went through spring football was huge. I think that gave him a chance to get on the field this year.

He's been a starter most of his career, but in Chicago, because of the depth in their rotation, he pitched out of the bullpen. He has looked very good in Spring Training. He is in the mix, along with a few other guys, but he continues to impress us.

He's been incredible all year. From the latter part of spring training on, he's been a machine. I've never seen a guy with as limited number of at-bats put up the numbers he's been putting up, with consistency and in key situations.

He's been in good situations. Nobody wins by themselves, but he definitely contributes to a winning environment on and off the field. The first couple of weeks of September was like spring training all over again for him. Little by little, he got sharper and sharper, and now he's himself again.

He's getting better. I thought this spring that he didn't indicate to me that he was that type of (one-dimensional) hitter. He indicated to me that he was a lot better.

He's, by far, the most improved player from spring. The new coaching and the new technique and all those things combined tend to make for a tough transition (for a junior transfer) in the first four weeks of spring ball. But now the kid has just completely dedicated himself to the weight room. He put on 15-20 pounds of muscle, got after it and did an incredible job of doing what Bryce did when he was here. He's not necessarily walking in Bryce's footsteps, but he's got something to uphold here. He's coachable, he listens and he really works hard. I think that combination is going to make him successful.

He's going to battle just like he has every year. Nothing's been given to him ever. This organization has always been in a position where we're trying to win. He's never had the opportunity to play every day and he's had to fight for everything's he's gotten and this spring it's going to be the same way. He's going to be fighting for his at-bats and to make a team. He's a very talented guy and usually you don't have a guy that talented in a situation like that.

He's a spring time horse who always does his best work at this time of the year and he gave me a great thrill last March when winning that big race. Mark gets on with him well and I'm daring to hope that they will again be a winning combination in the Kim Muir.

He's a tough guy. He catches the ball well. He developed as a runner last year and really developed as a runner this spring, but his blocking this spring was unbelievable.

He's a tough guy. He'll pitch through just about anything. And you know what? We expect him to be sore here in spring training, just like he always is. It's no different, and we expect him to take the ball every fifth day just like he's always done.

I feel good. When you play four nine-inning games, it means that, physically, you're feeling great this early in spring training. I'm feeling great. This spring, my body feels strong, feels great. I was real happy about that.

Today is the first game of many. It definitely gets your juices going. I don't care even if it is a spring training game, you still get those butterflies and those competitive juices that flow through you every time you take the mound and compete against other players.

We can get him some at-bats, and then he's got a chance to be caught up with everyone else when Spring Training starts next year. This kid needs some at-bats. He needs to play.

He came in last spring and got all the reps and did a fine job. He's a guy who's going to make all the right decisions. The times he came in last year, he did a great job. We have all the confidence in the world in him.

He made a couple comments to me at spring training that he no longer worries about going to first base and playing every day. He's more in a relaxed state. When you're a relaxed player, you'll do bigger and better things.

He does have bone chips. We knew that after he took the MRI during spring training. He does have it, and he's going to have intermittent discomfort with that. A lot of players have those ... There's nothing we can do except keep an eye on it.

There is going to be spring corn. There was a lot lost, but there will be corn in the spring and plenty of it.

He is a great athlete. He has tremendous range. He has a good arm. A couple years ago, Womack worked hard and got better. With (Spivey), it doesn't end with spring training. You keep working all season. That's how you make big improvements.

He has to be, and should be, proud of the spring training he's had.

He hasn't started working out hard yet. I don't know enough about his stroke. He missed a lot of playing time in spring training, so I don't know how quick (his return) can be.

He is just flying by guys this spring and making plays.

We've been to a number of spring trainings together and I've had a chance to watch him progress as a hitter, as a catcher, as a first baseman. He's going to help this team for a lot of years. He really wants to learn and do things the right way.

We've been very pleased with the initial, strong interest in the Used Car Manager Spring Training Conference & Workshops. This event is designed to provide dealership management with the very best used car skills training available in an easy, affordable, one-stop shop. Dealers and their managers will take something from this event that can potentially have an immediate, positive impact on their used car business.

We've been very pleased with the initial strong interest in the Used Car Manger Spring Training Conference & Workshops.

We talked all spring about this, ... We talked about it at town hall meetings, at concerts, everywhere. Seventh- through 12th-graders should take some responsibility. The students need to tell their parents.

He'll get a lot of reps early in spring training, and if he shows us he can handle Class AA, that's not out of the question. That's something he's probably shooting for personally.

He'll go into spring training as the closer and he'll have every opportunity to be the closer for 2006.

He'll probably pitch as much as he would if he was in Spring Training.

He'll return this program back to the feared '90, '91 style of the game. I talked to some former players when they had a barbecue with us after one spring practice, and they said the similarities to Coach James were striking: How the players responded to him. The respect he had. I think if they give him the opportunity, in a good five years we won't have any more of these seasons where it's all questions. I think it will be all answers.

He goes through streaks every year, good streaks offensively and defensively. He was very diligent during Spring Training. He's got a great swing path working right now, and just happens to be swinging the bat real well.

We took great at-bats tonight. We hit four home runs. And the beautiful part of it was the run that we scored to go ahead was something that we worked at very hard in Spring Training.

We took our fee down a couple of months ago, in the spring actually, and we did that to help the market expand because we could see the prices coming down with our providers,

We took our time and contacted every team and made the best deal we could. The timing of the year, being at the end of spring training, and the fact that he was out of options made it a little big more of a challenge.

Just seeing it in spring training was something that was pretty special. We wanted the winning one, and hopefully we can turn that around and maybe get one.

Keith is a guy that really sticks out this spring and he could be an outstanding player for us. He needs to play hard every snap.

My past two years have been injury-plagued. This spring training is very important for me.

My theory on him is he's essentially still in spring training. He's behind, and he's going through a bit of a dead-arm period, something like that.

My theory on him is that he's essentially still in Spring Training. He's behind, and he may have hit a little bit of that 'dead arm' phase. In general, he's throwing the ball better than he was when I saw him in January. It's consistent, he feels very good about it, his balance is good. It's a lot better than the films I've seen from last year.

I was actually able to go last year, because at the very end of Spring Training I was released by the Red Sox. So I went home and it was Masters week, so I went out there for a day or two.

I want to win a World Series, so I'm going down to spring training and get ready for the season.

I went to a meeting last spring in Jacksonville and realized what was going on.

I went into spring training that first year (with the Cubs) in '82 and No. 23 was hanging up in my locker, ... I thought it was kind of an odd number. I believe I asked for 14 and (former Cubs clubhouse manager Yosh Kawano) totally turned me down and said that number's been taken and retired.

My mind-set right now is I'm not even on the team. I've got to go into spring training to earn that spot to be on the 25-man roster. From there, everything will take care of itself.

I was a little bit surprised only because I talked to him about a week ago and it seemed like he was pretty excited for spring and everything to get going.

I was delighted that they were selected. It was a unanimous selection of the dinner committee. I think they're very deserving and exhibited tremendous compassion and bravery and initiative for what they did last spring in response to the tsunami disaster in their homeland of Sri Lanka.

Matt is a versatile player who can either play down as a conventional tight end or align in the slot. He has good speed and is developing strength this winter. He will compete in the spring for one of our two tight-end positions.

Looking to the remainder of our fiscal year, we anticipate stronger fourth quarter sales, but expect a much weaker third quarter in light of continued delays in our customers' purchasing decisions. In response, we have cut back our production of potash and phosphates to limit increases in our inventories, especially because of current high raw material costs, and to better match supply with current purchasing activity. As a consequence, the industry may face acute logistical challenges when spring season begins if domestic shipments don't accelerate soon.

Look at what we have here. These kids have great leadership, and they've worked all winter, and spring for a day like this.

March and April are traditionally big snow months. And then you also get the nice sunny days in between, so spring skiing is my favorite time of the year to ski, and hopefully folks take advantage of it.

March did make a dent in the long-term drought over the wintertime. It was like the cavalry coming over the hill. The rain we got should help set up local farmers for the spring season.

March is typically a time of year when prices start to go back up. Spring break really makes people want to get on the roads, and everybody in the country has a spring break at some point in March or April. There's a spike in demand, and prices start to go up in anticipation of it.

March was amazing and April has gone far beyond our expectations. This spring was more than double what we expected in every aspect.

That ball actually went farther than I thought it would, so that was good. I've said before I'm not the greatest spring training player in the world. I saw a bunch of pitches today which was good. The more pitches I see the better I'll get.

That far exceeded my expectations. We had two one-goal games previously. The girls have worked hard since spring break.

That cat goes on a kill-crazy rampage when spring comes. She eats them.

I said in Spring Training that was the perfect spot for him.

Some of the things going on here kind of get you going and excited for the season. Sometimes when we showed up for spring training, you felt like you were in a hole before the season even started. With these guys coming in, there will be some kind of climb in payroll. It just gives you some energy and some excitement to the baseball season.

Starting with spring training, from Day 1, they really talk about winning here, and preaching winning. It's been very fun. It's been great. I can see now why this team wins. They're very focused, they're very upbeat about playing every day, and it's great.

Spring break gets us year after year. I wish we could schedule it differently, but there was no way around it this year.

Spring Break is such an important time to donate. Kids are out of school, parents are busy and there's not as much time to go and donate. That's why the Blood Center will have (several donation sites) throughout the month of March.

Spring Break tends to be a very busy time of the year for the Transportation Security Administration in West Texas. We are doing everything we can to prepare for the Spring Break crowds, but we do offer some travel tips that make the screening process easier for passengers.

Spring cleaning doesn't have to be a dreaded list of chores. It can be a rewarding experience that helps provide some structure and organization in your life.

Spring cleaning is all about personal satisfaction. It is the time of year that triggers homeowners to revive their home and renew their lives.

Spring conditions caused the course to change between runs. The early run was icy and fast while the afternoon run was several seconds slower because the snow was a little slushy.

Spring Fair offers this headline act, as well as daytime stages with lots of high quality local bands that really highlight the energy we want.

Spring Fling is expected to draw an even larger crowd this year and so what we are probably going to do is extend it down and set up the main stage down by Student Wing.

Spring football is a two-way street. You don't want guys that are going to be out long term and have to have surgery, but yet, you've got to protect some guys, too.

Spring Hill Church near Hebron has a kick. St. Martin's Church in Worcester County has a kick and cove, as does All Hallows in Snow Hill. Pemberton Hall, an 18th century house not far from Green Hill, also has the two features. That got us thinking Green Hill may have had a kick and cove, too. We found evidence -- though very faint -- of a corner cove molding and it really rings true when it was put back -- it looks right. The evidence remains on the timbers from where the kick was removed.