FREDI GONZALEZ
On the game
"You go into today's game with Freddie (Freeman) on the 'DL' and Simmons getting banged up in the thumb and you still put a good team in the field. Our bench is so deep you can put (Ramiro) Pena in there and not lose a beat and run Chris Johnson to first base. That's a sign of a good baseball team, well-rounded.
Did you sense something clicked for (Tim) Hudson after the first inning?
"I thought the first inning was OK. He gave up the ground ball (RBI) with the infield back. He gave us a great opportunity to win today's game and then he comes up with a big single (in the sixth inning). We wish we would have got him a clean seventh. That didn't happen but Luis (Avilan) came in and did a terrific job to bridge the gap to (Jordan) Walden, who did a great job."
On B.J. Upton batting leadoff
"Sometimes it takes a little different part of the lineup to give you a mental break. He's done it before so he feels comfortable up there, obviously. I don't know if that's just coincidence because his at-bats were getting pretty good in the fifth hole. We will see tomorrow if Simmons is OK, which he should be. You guys tune in and see where he hits tomorrow."
Do you think your guys for better results when patient against (Jeff) Samardzija when they were patient?
Well, I don't know, he was pretty darn good. I'm afraid to ask--was it 13 that he struck out? Maybe it was just a little matter of fatigue or maybe we just put some good at-bats in that (sixth) inning when we scored some runs because we really had no chance against him early.
What did you learn about your team during the homestand?
"That they are good. They are a good club. That's something that we knew coming out of spring training. You thought they had a good club. They are resilient. We find a way to win ball games. I think the constant, which is a good thing, is going to be our pitching and our defense."
TIM HUDSON
On his pitching
"For the most part I was able to zero in and throw some good pitches. (Evan) Gattis did a great job for me out there mixing it up. For the first time we've ever thrown to each other, things flowed pretty well. He caught a good game, he was great back there defensively."
On Samardzija
Samardzija was great out there. We had some breaks go our way. He had the wild pitch to tie things up. We had a little luck go our way that inning where he gave up a couple runs. It was a tough game and we feel fortunate to come out on top.
Did you think Samardzija was frustrated after the hit by pitch against Chris Johnson?
"It's one of those things where his pitch count was getting up there and he knew he probably was getting close to being out of the game. For a starting pitcher. you want to eliminate opportunities that late in the game and that opened the door for us a little bit. It was a close pitch; whether it hit him or not I haven't seen any replays. It was an opportunity for us and we were able take advantage of it."
DAN UGGLA
On Samardzija
"Samardzija, he's really learned how to pitch. I feel like he's always known how to pitch every time I face him. He's got great stuff and and he's a great athlete and one heck of a competitor, everybody knows that. He kept us off balance. You've got to respect his 97 (mph fastball)."
On the strikeouts
"We don't worry about the strikeouts. That's everybody else around that looks at the batting average and the strikeouts. When it comes down to it, it's about run production. You can strike out 20 times and as long as you get a good outing from the pitcher and a three-run bomb, you won the game. I think we are going to get better as the year goes on grinding out at-bats. . . . People are going to accept that we don't have a lot ODF Placido Palancos that can really, really put together good 'ABs' one after another throughout the full season. We've got guys that are going to swing hard and we are going to connect with some."
B.J. UPTON
On getting on track
"It's a long season. It was just a matter of time before it happened. Being the competitor that I am, I would have liked for it to happen a bit sooner. I've got things in a good spot now and the main thing is to try to keep them where they are at and be as consistent as possible."
On if he's more comfortable batting leadoff
"It has nothing to do with the lead-off spot. I think more important is feeling comfortable in the box."
RAMIRO PENA
On his two-RBI single in the sixth
"I just tired to concentrate. I missed one pitch earlier (in the at-bat) and I tried to get back and concentrate. Thank God I got a good pitch to hit and I don't miss."
On Samardzija
"He was pitching really good. Good command. He had a couple troubles and we got an opportunity.
About the Author
