Matt Thornton Quotations

I have a good fastball and I'm sure he is looking for that. I got beat on my second best pitch, something I shouldn't have done.

We talked a lot about mechanics. Being tall, when something mechanical can go wrong, it goes wrong in a hurry. We talked about what he watches out for and the things he does in his bullpen sessions. It was good stuff.

He wanted to make sure he knew I can compete, for me to pitch like he knows I can, like I know I can.

It came as a surprise to me. I didn't hear anything about this being a possibility. I don't know how to react. I've never been in this situation before. I've got to go there and show them what I can do.

I respect what he's done in this game. He's a great guy. You see him as being so fierce and intense, but when you talk to him one-on-one, you see what a great guy he is. He said this is his way to give back to the game, his way to give back to other players. It was something that superstars in his day, who he watched and admired, did for him.

It felt like you were throwing in a tunnel. Even though there were nets between the cages, every so often a ball would sail right at you from the cage next to you. You knew it wasn't going to hit you, but you still saw it out of the corner of your eye.

We're both tall guys and we both throw hard, and I wanted to get a little idea how he does it.

We are really starting to come together. You can see guys getting comfortable with their roles.

After my last outing, I was up in the zone, and it was something that Chaves and I just started working on, my drive to the plate. So I know exactly what we'll be working on here.

It's a great situation to come into. I have to keep making my adjustments in order to compete and help them win. That's what it's all about. I'm open to any advice and different input.

It's going to be tough on me to have her in Michigan, but it will probably be tougher on Bella. But in the season, I'm at the park for a long time every day and on road trips, she'd have to go in a kennel, which wouldn't be very enjoyable.

I'm having a great time; I like it here. It's a good bunch of guys.

In the end, we got to the slow and easy takeoff, and when my foot hits the ground and my arm starts forward, then I explode. My fastball has gone from 87-93 to 95-96.

I just need to be in the strike zone. Walks have been my nemesis for the last year and a half. I have to go out there and throw strikes and attack hitters and prove to them I can get guys out.