Jim Richards Quotations

We know what areas we need to improve on defensively and what areas we need to improve on offensively,

Words cannot describe what we felt in terms of the support we received the night after Mike's passing, ... A number of people made a special effort to be there that night and express their deepest sympathy. The outpouring of cards, e-mails, and phone calls received here and in his hometown have been incredible.

Obviously, from the wins and losses standpoint, it was a very disappointing season for the Bend Elks,

For us to win the championship we're going to have to be on the podium at, at least three of the next four races so we're going to have to push hard,

To come in fifth place was frustrating to all of us. We went from 24-12 in league last year to 13-23 this year ... almost a complete reversal from one year to the next.

Our car's gone great, but the other guys are going well too. We're going as hard as we can but tomorrow will probably suit the smaller cars, but I think we'll do alright, hopefully.

We really struggled offensively and lacked the timely hit,

We had several one-run losses. Had we been able to convert half of those into wins, we'd be in the playoffs right now.

The one glaring stat from this year is 30 players came here to play and only 29 went home. That will be a powerful thing for us to go through and is the vivid reminder of our 2005 season. But the support of our community, not just that one night but throughout the season ... we're just fortunate to be in a town that has the same passion for baseball and its players that we do.

That is clearly an indication that as summer progresses and we get into the warm summer evenings, people will come out and enjoy a night out at the ballpark, ... The Bend Elks continue to excite the fans.

If you're not giving your pitchers the run support, you're not going to give them a chance at wins, ... And to compound that, we struggled defensively.