Quotes from manager Fredi Gonzalez, infielder Dan Uggla and pitcher Julio Teheran following Friday's loss to the Brewers.
FREDI GONZALEZ
On Teheran pitching out of trouble:
“First inning, he minimized the damage there. Bases loaded, got a sac fly he was able to get the next couple guys out and he another inning similar. That’s good to see, you see a young pitcher do that and not panic. Hell he only gave up two runs and one of those was a solo home run to the shortstop. We got two hits, got some baserunners, six walks, we didn’t get any runs. That’s the column you want is that first column. Everything else was good. Woody did a nice job coming in, Gearrin coming in got those two right-handers out and keep it right there. We haven’t been scoring runs and we tried a little safety squeeze there, first and third, and almost had it. We had the right guy at third base who could read it and with his speed, just didn’t quite get it far enough down the first baseline. Who knows, you make that play there and that may open up a big inning.”
On if hard to read from his position because of depth:
“Yeah it’s hard to read but I tell you what, from my position in the dugout I thought he did a nice read. You’ve got to give a little credit to Peralta coming off the mound. He’s a big boy coming off the mound and he made a nice play. It’s one of those plays that we executed it maybe another foot towards first base it would have worked, or at the very least you make them execute and they did.”
On encouraging signs from Uggla:
“The one to center field, that corner might be the deepest part of this ballpark, I think he got it to that corner. I saw good at-bats. B.J. had some good at-bats, Danny had some good at-bats, we walked six times and we need to get that first column, get some runs in that first column.”
On Peralta:
“He was pretty good. He spiked some fastballs but I thought we had good at-bats, just couldn’t get that bloop single or that ball to go through the infield. Their shortstop made two, three good plays with people on base. Ball never went through the infield. And then he hits a solo home run. But he was good.”
On sensing frustration:
“No we’re OK. Obviously nobody likes to lose. I don’t like to lose. But you still see good heads up baseball, you still see guys swinging the bats. Now we just need to get going in the winning ways again.”
On Aoki’s catch on Simmons thought it was going to fall:
“I thought a lot of them were going to fall. First one to Justin, hit one all the way to the wall to right field in his first at-bat, but they made some good plays defensively. Segura made two, three good plays to his backhand, saved a chance for the ball to go through and us to take extra bases.”
DAN UGGLA
On coming one big hit short:
“There were a couple times tonight we could have used that one bit hit. I don’t know. They did a good job. What else can you say?…We had a couple opportunities here and there but we need to start taking advantage of those. We didn’t tonight.”
On adjusting to first game with contact lenses:
“I felt great. The way I saw the ball tonight was night-and-day different than what it’s been. To get adjusted this quick to the contacts is really encouraging.”
On draw walks before, but timing things better:
“Being able to put swings on some of those balls. I wasn’t having to think about anything. I wasn’t having to oh gosh, be in a rush, or anything like that. It was easier to be on time.”
JULIO TEHERAN
On working out of bases loaded jams:
“I had my best command today, they just found the holes.”
On if felt like they hit some pretty good pitches:
“They were jumping at me. They know I throw a lot of strikes. I knew I had to make better pitches.”
On 11-pitch battle with Francisco:
“I was excited. I was trying to strike him out. And then I don’t have to complain that he got a base hit. I was trying to fight the whole game, battle the whole game.”
On taking confidence from getting out of jams:
“When I got in difficult situations, that’s when I tried to make better pitches and tried to do my best.”
BRIAN MCCANN
On offensive woes:
“We really haven’t been swinging the bats that great. We’ll have a game or two these last couple weeks. We’re grinding. It’s going to come.”
On job Teheran did with runners on base:
“He did great. For facing a lot of those guys for the first time, I thought he did an amazing job. He kept them off-balance, worked both sides of the plate, elevated when he needed to. You couldn’t ask for any more than what he did tonight.”
On top two hitters in their order:
“Leadoff guy, he slaps the ball around, fouled off a lot of good pitches, too that two-seamer to left. Stayed on a curveball nice, and then Segura he’s one of the hottest hitters in baseball right now. He’s covering both sides of the plate and he really put some really good swings on the ball tonight.”
On what made Peralta tough:
“For me, he’s effectively wild. He’s got a good arm, but I think he uses it to his advantage. Sometimes you’ll get a fastball where he’s trying to throw it and sometimes he’ll elevate on accident. Tonight he was effective.”
On if feel like he’s grinding too:
“Yeah, I feel like I’m seeing the ball really well and the results aren’t where I want them but as far as seeing the baseball, I’m seeing it and my results aren’t there.”
On Uggla being encouraged by being able to see the ball, speaking of:
“It’s the No. 1 thing is this game. You’ve got to be able to see and for him to get contacts and notice a difference that’s a big deal.”
BJ UPTON
On frustration with way things are going offensively:
“Yeah it’s frustrating. There’s not much you can do about it. We’re playing hard, just part of the game, and you play long enough you’re going to hit stretches like this. Just got to find a way. We’re a good enough ball club, we’ll be fine.”
On Fredi saying with safety squeeze, good read, right guy:
“I just thought it was a little bit farther up the line and it was a little bit closer to him than I thought. It’s definitely an aggressive play and a good try. He made a good play on it. At that point, he makes that play, anything can happen.”
On what made Peralta tough:
“You can’t really put a finger on it. He threw a lot of sliders, a lot more than we expected him to just from watching the video. He was a lot more in the zone than we thought he would be. You’ve got to tip your cap to him. He pitched well.”
On Teheran’s damage control:
“He’s been pitching well and to get out of those type situations early with minimal damage is very good. In his last three or four starts they’ve been great for us. It’s just unfortunate we can’t score enough runs for him.”
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