**FREDI GONZALEZ
On Mike Minor’s performance
“Mikey did a nice job – six innings, three runs in this ballpark. He really did a nice job. The run that they got, a couple of runs, came after a couple of borderline pitches didn’t go his way, on the inner part of the plate. But I think he did a terrific job pounding the strike zone, fighting the elements. We scored some runs early and were able to get another one late in the game after they came back and tied it, and our bullpen did a terrific job.”
On Reed Johnson’s 4-for-4
“If Jason doesn’t have surgery, you still want to get Reed Johnson some at-bats. He can do that, and then he can be sharp later on in the week as a pinch-hitter. But now he’s going to have to play. Him and Schafer kind of platooning out there, both of those guys will get some opportunities.”
Surprised by how ball came off bat early on in the cold?
“First two at-bats, Simmons’ at-bat and B.J.’s at-bat, the ball sounded real heavy, sounded like it was hard. But it traveled. It traveled. Upton, and Uggla to straightaway center, too.
“And even B.J. I know Danny got a home run and three strikeouts, and B.J. got three strikeouts. But I thought his (B.J.’s) second at-bat was real good. Line drive to right field. You’ve got to just keep running him out there and you see the at-bats are getting there. My job and Greg’s job is, we don’t want them to get frustrated. If they start getting frustrated and doubt themselves, then that’s when we’ll give them a breather here or there. But you see some signs of guys swinging the bats.”
On Gattis throwing out Rosario to end game
“That was a nice job by both of those guys, Gattis and Kimbrel, too, holding that runner. Rosario’s a catcher but he’s got three stolen bases this year. Kind of surprised that they ran, but we knew they had the possibility of doing it. They did it last year in September against Kimbrel — I think it was first and third in the eighth, and they were successful stealing a bag. One of those four-out saves, and Kimbrel got out of it.
“It was a nice exchange on Gattis’ part.”
On Freeman’s first game back
“He hit a couple of balls that we thought had a chance to go out, and they didn’t. But he’s swinging it. Glad that he picked up where he left off two weeks ago when we put him on the DL.”
On second-game lineup, Uggla and Freeman in?
“No, Danny I’m not going to play. Saturday he came out with tightness in his calf. I think it would be not very smart on my part to play him 18 innings first time back, in 20-degree weather. So I’ll play Pena out there.”
On coldest game in Coors Field history (23 at first pitch)
“Was it? Well, I think the next game is going to break the record. I think that’s going to be short-lived, I really do.”
Have some heaters in dugout?
“Yeah, as comfortable as you could be.”
On the three homers in first four innings
“That’s what we do.”
On the cold
“It’s not like it was 60 degrees when they came up to the plate. It was the same temperature. We got the game in.”
**JUSTIN UPTON
On importance of giving Minor early lead in extreme conditions
“Absolutely. You always want to get out ahead, but to let Mike settle in and know that he didn’t have to be too perfect – he could settle in and do what he was trying to do in his game plan. That helps him a ton and it helps us.”
On playing with temps in low-20s
“It’s more your hands; you use your hands a lot. That’s the worst part, your hands get a little cold. But if you can try to keep your hands warm and keep your feel on the bat and the ball, you’ll be fine.”
“When you go back to the dugout you try to warm up as much as you can, put a jacket on and try to keep warm.”
Ever play in anything like this?
“I’ve played in the 40s, maybe getting down in the high 30s, but when it’s down in the 20s it’s just different. A different type of cold.”
On winning first game of doubleheader, after losing last three games at Pittsburgh
“Anytime you lose three in a row you want to jump on the next team that you play. I think we jumped out to an early lead and we kept pressing. We didn’t push runs across later in the game but we still had opportunities, so that’s always good.”
On Reed Johnson’s 4-for-4, three-double game
“We know Reed can play. It’s good to have a guy like that who can step in and play multiple games in a row, which he’s going to have to do. It’s good to have him swinging the bat well.”
**EVAN GATTIS
Motivated by your three high-school friends from Texas at the game in the bear costumes?
“Yeah, a little bit. It’s exciting. It’s fun. Glad they got to come out. The suits are funny.”
“I hung out with them last night. My family’s in town, too.”
Ever play in weather like this?
“Probably not. Maybe early last year with Lychburg, like in Frederick, Maryland and all those places. But not quite this cold.”
How was it?
“It wasn’t bad. I don’t know what they’ve got under the field, the heater or whatever, but it was dry. I was surprised it was so dry. It really wasn’t that bad. I couldn’t believe it was 25 (degrees).”
You realize you’ve homered in every major league park you’ve played in?
“Yeah, some guy just told me. I didn’t even know. That’s nice.”
On Minor
“He battled well. Couple of pitches were the difference between a shutout.”
On winning the first game of the doubleheader
“I think it’s big. Tough conditions.”
How were the bare hands in the cold?
“They were good. The cutter I hit for the line drive to third, that kind of hurt a little bit. Felt it.”
**MIKE MINOR
On pitching in the cold
“The ball was cold and dry, but other than that it was pretty good. I had Bubba (trainer Jeff Porter) rub some Red Hot on me to warm me up. My skin was burning. I really just stayed by the heaters and stuff.”
“I never used that. Bubba put it on my whole back, my arm, legs.”
On not wearing sleeves under jersey in this cold
“I just feel weird pitching in sleeves, so…. I figured the sleeves couldn’t do much more than no sleeves.”
On settling in after couple of long innings in second and third
“I pretty much just battled through it. I didn’t really have a whole lot of good stuff today. I threw a lot of off-speed, then I’d mix in a fastball-in just to throw them off. Mixed in a lot of changeups, curveballs – whatever I could do just to get some outs today.”
Every pitched in this level of cold?
“The closest thing, I would say, would be fall ball at college (Vanderbilt). We had our fall series kind of thing. In Tennessee it was pretty cold, sometimes (snow) flurries. But nothing like having six inches of snow and having to clear it off, and being 20 degrees out (like Tuesday). It was never like that.”
On effect of altitude
“The breaking stuff was there. There was movement there, where guys usually say it’s hard to get movement because the air’s so dry, so thin.”
On some balls carrying, surprised by that in this weather?
“When guys squared it up, you could tell. When Gattis hit the ball, it kind of went really far.”
