**TIM HUDSON
On his outing
“I felt pretty good. It’s always nice when you get some runs early and are able to be a lot more aggressive in the zone. Guys came out swinging and had some really good at-bats. I was able to wiggle out of a couple of jams and limit them to one run. It’s usually not that easy against these guys. These guys can be really tough at times. But like I said, it makes my job a little easier when we’re able to put up some crooked numbers.”
On the heat
“It was hot. I was ready to bow out after about 5-1/3, but unfortunately I got some quick outs, had to stay in there for a little longer.” (joking)
“But it was hot, man. It was just humid. I can see why (Cliff) Lee was sucking wind last night. It’s just really like a sauna out there.”
On having two extra days of rest between starts
“Honestly, I don’t think it really mattered. Extra days, I don’t know if they help me or not. I’m old. For me to feel a difference, it might need to be, like, two weeks.”
On ending his winless drought
“A (10) game stretch is a long time to not get a win, for anybody. Granted, there’s been times when I’ve crapped down my leg in these (10) games and didn’t deserve a win. And there’s been some times where I just came across some tough luck. Tonight’s a night where everything came together. It was nice to finally get on the board in the right column.”
**FREDI GONZALEZ
On Hudson
“He pitched great. Gave us seven innings of good baseball on a tough night to pitch, with the humidity up where it was. And we swung the bats, gave him a nice lead. It was a good night. Lot of guys swung the bats really well.
“With men in scoring position, we left some runners on base in the first and second innings, and I’m thinking, it’s going to be one of those nights. But then we turned it around.”
“We gave him a lead, and every time we added runs he went back out there and shut the (Phillies) down. That’s a good sign.”
On the offense
“The good thing I’ve seen, last year there was a spot of about two months without a sac fly, or something like that. It was a crazy number. And this year, it’s a situation where those productive outs are coming now. Danny having a big night, two-run homer and a sac fly. B.J. hit the ball hard three times, got two hits. Jason. So it was a good night up and down the lineup. Even some of the guys who came in late to pinch-hit.”
On Heyward
“Thing that goes unnoticed is his defense in the outfield. That’s why he’s a guy who won a Gold Glove last year, and for me, he’s setting a tone this year to repeat it.”
On Kimbrel third straight All-Star game
“He’s one of the elite closers in the game. Good for us that he’s going to represent us, and if you get a lead in the All-Star game, you’ve got some pretty good arms in the back end to win that game. It’s too bad Justin didn’t get in there. Harper just snuck in the last couple of days with the votes; that’s a shame that he doesn’t get a chance to go.
“Hopefully Freeman gets an opportunity to go with the five, the Final Vote. I know some of the guys put a sign out there in the dugout and are really pulling for him. Hey, why not? Make it fun. I hope our people, our fans in Atlanta get an opportunity to vote and vote often, and get him in there. Because he’s had a hell of a first two or three months of the season.”
On Uggla, after batting under .200 most of first half, leading team with 16 homers
“His production, the power numbers, have always been there. We talk about it all the time, every stadium’s got these giant scoreboards, so you’re going to see the .200s (average), or the .180s. But don’t worry about that. Let’s take it month-by-month, have productive months or productive two or three weeks, and worry about those numbers.”
**CRAIG KIMBREL
On third straight All-Star selection
“It’s obviously an honor to get that opportunity, and to be able to do it for a third straight year is pretty cool.”
Ever get old finding out you made it?
“I hope not. If it ever gets old, I’m not playing the same game anymore.
“It’s an honor. Making the All-Star team says you’ve had a good start to the year. But it’s not the end of it. We still have a lot of work to do. Just because you make the All-Star team, doesn’t mean you’ve had a successful season. It means you’ve had a successful first half.”
**FREDDIE FREEMAN
On needing to beat out the rookie sensation Yasiel Puig to win Final Vote spot on All-Star team
“Yeah, good luck with that, huh?” (laughter) “He’s already on the lead ESPN ticker.”
“No, but it’s just cool to be mentioned. I never thought anything like this would ever happen. I just go out there and try to play the game. Just to even be mentioned in the Final Vote is something cool.”
On possibly being added as an injury replacement
“Yeah, there’s always that chance. But the one thing that I care about today, we actually won a game on the road.” (Deadpan tone) “I never thought we’d do that again.”
“But on the All-Star thing, it’s just pretty humbling. You don’t play this game to go for All-Star (selections), you do it to win games. Just to be even (mentioned). The season I’ve had so far, even though I was injured for those 15 days, to come back and be strong and go out there and help the team win, is pretty cool.”
On being told by Fredi during batting practice that was in the Final Vote field of five
“It’s pretty cool. I’ve already got tons of text messages. Hopefully people are voting who are texting me. But it’s pretty cool just to be mentioned in that.”
**JASON HEYWARD
On the early lead and run support for Hudson
“Of course that’s good for your starter if he can go out there and attack the zone and has a lot of breathing room there. It kind of clicked for us in one game right there. That’s the result with this lineup if it happens that way. That can definitely happen – put up some runs, lot of hits, good ABs, some timely hits. Big win.”
On the offense having a few games recently with a lot of hits
“It’s coming, man. We get some big hits from Dan lately. Again, Simba (Simmons) started us off there with the leadoff homer, which is good, of course, for Huddy. Everybody going up there tonight and getting a knock, that’s huge. Regardless of how many runs they drove in. To go up there and get a knock, have good ABs, have baserunners, make their bullpen come in and throw, and we got some good pitches to hit from their bullpen. We were really selective there. If we made outs, we just missed them. Kind of what you get, the finished product of good ABs and timely hitting.”
**BRIAN McCANN
On the offense
“Uggs got us started tonight with that homer. Any time you get Huddy a lead like that, statistics show we’re going to win that game. We got on them early, were able to make Kendrick get his pitches up, and we had a great night all the way around.”
On his own performance, matching career-high with four hits, average up to .293
“I feel good. I’ve felt really good basically all year. I mean, I had a two-week period where I didn’t feel good, but when I first got here (off the DL) I felt great. I had a two-week period where things weren’t good, and the last week or so I’ve been feeling really good at the dish.”
Do you think about how your numbers might be All-Star worthy if you hadn’t missed five weeks?
“I don’t. I came back from a major injury, and to feel as good as I do after having the surgery I had, I’m very happy where I’m at.”
On Kimbrel’s third consecutive All-Star selection
“I think he’s the best reliever in baseball. I think he’s been that since he put on a Braves uniform. He deserves to be there. I think there should be more guys going from this team, being in first place in the NL East. I think Freddie Freeman deserves to go. He’s carried this team offensively all season long. He deserves to be there.”
