Buck Showalter Guys Quotations

Years ago, that's how it was done. Guys came up as relievers and worked their way into being starters. C.J. has had his challenges as a starter, but I'd like to test drive that again before the end of the season.

Knuckleball guys are going to have their ups and downs. This was a down for R.A., who's had some good ones for us. We'll sit down and talk about it.

I wouldn't put any limits on him. He can be a difference maker defensively, one of those guys who turns hits into outs.

I think what he's doing is showing everybody what (the A's) lost last year, ... It's always good to see good professional people like (Ellis) come back. We need guys like him.

Our guys had a lot of fun tonight. I thought we got good at-bats and Gary (Matthews) had a big one for us.

Those guys posted up every day. They deserved that cookie.

We've played six games. There's a lot of season left. It's very easy to trust these guys to come through.

To get him back, he's been a real shot in the arm for us. He's swinging the bat well and the guys really rally around him.

With guys like Brad, they're going to trust their track record. They're going to get there if you stay with them.

We had our hearts broken last year, and this year we've seen our off-season dreams of a World Series erode and go away, ... It's normal human feelings to be disappointed. In this game your IQ changes with wins and losses, and right now we're not real smart. But the guys are competing. We haven't given up.

Both guys worked fast and threw strikes, ... You know we have high expectations of them just like they do. I wish we could get them each a win.

I've been really happy with the walks. Guys have been aggressive attacking the strike zone. It's always something you want to do but you don't want to get stupid. You still want to get as many people out outside of the strike zone, too.

These are some of our best players, the best young prospects in our system. These are guys who will play at the Major League level and contribute.

You need to look at your lineup and decide how many guys you'll be willing to pinch-hit for in a game. You like to have speed on your bench, but in the AL you can have a more one-dimensional player, guys who can hold the fort and can play if one of your players is out for a couple of weeks.

They're an impatient group, and I say that with admiration. Mentally, our guys are in a great spot and a great frame of mind about what they want to get out of this season as individuals, and more importantly, as a team.

It's the time of spring where guys are getting their arms in shape and their legs under them. We'd like to see them start showing what they're capable of doing in their next couple of outings.

He's a guy who has done it in the past. There's a lot of different ways to look at it, but it's what helps you produce runs. Obviously on-base percentage is something you look at, but there's a feel you get. What's the feel of the lineup? You see how guys complement each other and the problems you present other managers late in the game.

He's managed his rotation and especially his relievers beautifully. You never see him leave guys out there too long or use them too often. You might wonder why he's taking somebody out after 10 pitches of a 9-0 game in June, but it's paid off. His guys have stayed fresh. He gives guys fresh innings.

He ate up some important innings so we could save some guys that we didn't want to pitch. He did a good job in his Major League debut. I'm sure he had some anxiety out there, but he did a good job.

The depth of it really is impressive. You look at how many guys we have with career highs in homers.