Tim Purpura Quotations

When you've been teammates that long, you're going to go through some ups and downs. They've gone through some down times.

We've got another goal in mind for next year and the year's after ? but we could not have done this without (the fans). You stayed with us in April and May when we struggled. You stayed with us in June, July and August. And, now you are here to celebrate with us today. You're a big part of why we have been successful,

We've turned our focus toward the outfield and adding a run producer from the outfield. We're edging closer to that.

There are no issues at all that we're aware of. Our hope is to get the roof open by tomorrow to hopefully get some sun on the field -- if there's any sun to be had.

We have zero plans to go anywhere else.

We have a personal services contract with him. If he wanted to do that, that's something we'd have to run by the commissioner's office. Other clubs could have an issue with it.

Scouting and player development are the R&D of baseball,

One caller said that when he called in May, he said I was a moron, ... He said I'm no longer a moron. So, I feel pretty good about that.

Phil and I talked about it for a little bit and decided nothing,

But it's not the arm. He's not having any problem with his arm. I really want to hear what he has to say about how he feels, and does he want to crank it up one more year.

We take it game by game, day by day. We try to do our best job today, and hopefully that is good enough, and then we go on to tomorrow. I think that's the attitude right now.

He can play all three (outfield) positions, and he runs exceptionally well and has a plus arm, ... He's more of a speed-and-defense type of guy.

I think it gives everybody a chance to just decompress from the night before. We're in the middle of October and physically, I think things begin to take a toll on guys. We had a somewhat leisurely day here ... it gives guys a little bit more of an opportunity to relax, go out to dinner and take a break from it.

It could be two weeks, three weeks or four weeks. This is one of the most difficult injuries to predict. The problem is if you restrain it, it takes a lot to get back out there.

I think that gives us a lot of confidence,

I think you'd have to chain him down to keep him from starting.

I think that's kind of the mode you get into in this kind of a role, ... You deal in the present, but you also have to plan for the future. You have to be ready, and you have to be willing to make quick decisions when those are necessary.

Last year, obviously we had two bites at the apple. This year we've got three, and we've got two more to go. We've got one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball going, and we've got another dominant pitcher going the night after that. So we feel, certainly, very well set up for it.

I saw him earlier today, and he gave me a little wink. He said, 'I got a few in me,' ... I didn't think it would be that many. He's mythic, in my mind.

Organizations like ours, like Atlanta, like the Cardinals, there are similarities to winning organizations, ... You have that focus that it's about winning, only winning. You have to have higher expectations than other people. And sometimes, you have to flush guys out of your system that might not buy into it, that might put their stats first, rather than winning. In those types of organizations, guys like that don't last, and they kind of self-select themselves out, and you end up being able to win on a consistent basis because you keep the guys who buy into that.

I think he'll come right back and do what he's done his whole career.

We had more questions than answers. But even through the bad days in April and May, we were developing. We were seeing some good things in every game.

We haven't even thought about it or talked about it, ... After the 18-inning game, he might have said, 'See you later guys.'

When you sign a player, you hope he gets to the big leagues with you, but if not, you hope he gets to the big leagues with someone else.

To me, situation hitting is our biggest nemesis. We have to evaluate whether that's the current cast.

You fans have been so important to us and everything we've done this year, ... We love you, fans.

Either one of them could be a good option for us,

The thing we have to determine is whether we're going to take 10 or 11 pitchers. We'll sit down with the staff the next several days and talk through the what-ifs.

Roy, I think in some ways, this is THE game for him. He's doesn't get the media attention that Andy and Roger do.

That's why Bagwell went through what he did. It's important to them. They're cornerstones of the franchise.

That's what makes the decision a little more difficult; he feels good about both of them and either one of them could help.

They're on different plains right now. Biggio is playing every day, Bagwell is not. In some ways, I think Biggio is carrying on for Jeff. He's carrying the mantle a little bit.

It's important to them. They are the cornerstones of this franchise.

It's in recognition of a tremendous performance by him and our team. It shows we have a great confidence in Phil.

Nothing was wrong with the elbow, but it just didn't feel right, ... There were times when it just didn't feel right.

In baseball, we talk about a player having five tools. But the way we look at it is that there's a sixth tool and it's makeup and character.

I mean, players have lives outside of the game, and what they do with those lives, that's really their decision. They bear some risks, is the way I look at it. The way Lance has handled this is absolutely first-class, and what you'd expect from Lance Berkman.

I have no idea what our chances are. Everybody talks about four teams. I think the fifth team, the home team (Clemens' family), may have that strongest say. That's something none of us can compete with.

I'm as proud to see Freddy Garcia pitching in the World Series as I am to see Raul Chavez playing in the World Series,

I know he's a free swinger, but at least half his strikeouts this spring have been looking. That leads me to believe that he's trying to be more aware of the strike zone. He's still going to strike out a high percentage of the time. But he's more cognizant of it, and is trying to get better pitches to hit.

I'd have to speculate that a lot had to do with the fact that Grady Little is over there as a manager, and there's a close relationship with him.

I don't think this is a bad thing for anybody, ... We had a chance to get it out of our system. It gave everybody a chance to decompress.

He always had to have competition that was challenging him,

Got quite a few. I've still got a few balls at home.

The hardest thing for him, he has such a ritual, the way he prepares for a game. It got him out of sync.

We put forth a very strong number. It's always hard to know, it's impossible to know what numbers are out there.

It gives us a lot of versatility and flexibility. Looking ahead, we've got a lot of good young players coming through the system. As they make their way, we'll have some tough decisions down the road. I'm just glad to have this one bat in our lineup that can drive in 100 runs, hit 25 to 30 home runs at least, and in our ballpark, maybe more.

What we're going to do is use spring training as sort of a feeling-out process for Phil and Preston and our other outfielders. It gives us a lot of comfort to know that you've got a pure center fielder like Preston. But he's also so athletic, he can come in and play either corner and we'll feel very comfortable with it.

We have to go about our business. Certainly, we'd love to have Roger aboard. There's no doubt about it. We also understand his thought process, what he's going through to try to make this decision.