Jim Tracy Pitches Quotations

We know he's very capable. He has the pitches to get major-league hitters out.

I don't care what the numbers suggest. I thought the life to his fastball was as good as we've seen all spring. I think there could have been a couple different choices he made in a few two-strike counts, but I'll tell you: He was throwing nothing but quality pitches in the strike zone. ... He was actually too fine.

He had two perfect pitches to bunt. That's the guy you want up there to get the bunt down. You get the bunt down, it makes them have to make decisions. And we had a guy coming up who's a contact hitter who can drive the ball to the outfield to drive the run in.

When he's right, he's throwing quality pitches down there.

He really understands that he needs command and the ability to throw strikes when he pitches in the latter innings of games. I'm very pleased with the progress he has made in that area this spring.

I thought he did a nice job; he battled and made some good pitches when he had to.

You make bad pitches to Major League hitters, they put the fat part of the bat on the ball. When you are involved in games like that, regardless of what stages it's at, you don't have the luxury of making a mistake and not feeling like it's going to cost you. It is.

Two perfect pitches to bunt -- they are fouled off and we left our guys stranded. (Chicago) created a two-out situation and got a base hit that scored a run. It's huge.

About mid-thigh, right down the middle. They're going to hit pitches like that -- Cody or anybody else.

His (left) elbow is lower than it should be and he's not pitching like he's coming off a slope. At times, his arm was where it was supposed to be ... but his inconsistency with his arm slot is what leads him to throwing pitches that no major-league hitter would swing at.

I didn't see a dead arm. I saw some pitches with a lot of life and a lot of movement. The problem was that Oliver didn't do that consistently. Until he gets a consistent arm slot, he's going to continue to struggle to throw strikes.

He threw way too many pitches last night, with 100-plus still trying to get through five innings, ... But he's getting plenty of seasoning this year. He has exceeded expectations for a Rule 5 Draft pick. Is he a stone-cold lock to make the starting rotation in 2006? No. Is he a candidate? Sure he is.

The kid has the pitches to be very good. This was definitely a game for him to build on.