Michael Barrett
Michael Barrett
Catcher who played for four MLB teams from 1998 to 2009; won a Silver Slugger Award while playing with the Chicago Cubs in 2005.
ProfessionBaseball Player
Date of Birth22 October 1976
CityAtlanta, GA
guys league level major minor playing talking together watch whether
I like the way that they've come together as a team. You watch them, and it's like they're all playing on the same level ? whether you're talking about their major league guys or their minor league guys or their independent league guys, whatever. They look like a team.
balance ball couple early guys keeping last late locate mixing starts today trying vintage
It was vintage Maddux. He's been able to locate the ball really well early in the count. He's getting the ball down and away. Late in the count, he's keeping guys off balance by mixing his pitches. You can't say much more than vintage Maddux. He did today what he's been doing the last couple starts -- not trying to do too much.
believe coming guys maintain position pressure pushing
I believe that when the guys come back, they will come back to maintain our position and not have the pressure of pushing for your position. That's a lot of pressure for guys coming off (injuries).
add couple everybody explain good guys help last saw starts stuff wants
Last year, we saw him have a couple starts like that, and I don't know how to explain it. I know he has good stuff and that he's a competitor, and he's one of those guys who, when he's pitching, everybody wants to help play and win. Sometimes things don't add up.
confused conviction faster figure giving good guys learn pitches process push versus
I really push having conviction in pitches that you throw, versus the selection. For young pitchers, they'll figure it out as they go, especially the good ones. Over years of learning, I can't keep giving them information. They have to learn to process it themselves. Some guys learn faster than others, and some guys don't learn at all. Things can get confused if I try to do too much.
balls breaking early few good guys kept uses using
He may be one of those guys who we have to see a few times before we get used to him. A lot of guys, you don't see them using their breaking balls this early and he uses more breaking balls than anything else, and they're good breaking balls. It kept us off balance.
dispute either gets guy pitches talked throw
That is surprising. He's all about efficiency. But he's talked about how he's had to throw more pitches as he gets older, and that's part of it, too. Either way, the guy is 5-0, and you can't dispute that.
ball base job maybe partly running second setup stop success
It was a frustrating day for me personally. I didn't get the ball to second base like I wanted to. It was partly my job to stop the running game, and I didn't have any success doing that. Maybe there's something I'm tipping off in my setup to keep him from running all over the place.
career guaranteed imagine point
I imagine it's frustrating when you get to this point in your career and you can't get a guaranteed contract. I can't imagine what that would be like for him and I feel for him, I really do.
baseball clear event math runs
I'm just a baseball player; I'm not a math major. I'm still not real clear on it. In the event of a three-way tie, it comes down to runs scored, I believe.
chance dreamed games olympic opportunity turned usa
In 1994, I had an opportunity to play in the Olympic Games and I turned that down to play professional. I never dreamed I'd have a chance to put on a USA jersey, and now I get a chance to do that. I can't think of a better opportunity to play for your country. I think this is the real deal.
change focus heart hoping sees uniforms usa
I'm hoping for us, once we don the USA uniforms and everyone sees us on the big screens, they'll have a change of heart and focus on us.
home matter playing
It wasn't a matter of us playing at home or away. We just didn't do the job, period.
faith plays
It'll be interesting to see how everything plays out. It's not going to be easy, but we'll see what happens. It's going to be a fight. I have faith in my team.