DALLAS — After an epic September collapse kept the Braves from the postseason, manager Fredi Gonzalez said he rarely left his suburban Atlanta home for a month because he felt as if he had let everyone down.
Two months after the slide, which included 20 losses in 30 games, Gonzalez was back in his characteristically upbeat demeanor Wednesday for a question-and-answer session with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution at baseball’s winter meetings.
Gonzalez addressed a variety of topics ranging from trade rumors, the health of the starting rotation, and Jason Heyward’s twice-weekly workout schedule starting next week with the team’s new hitting coach.
Here were highlights of the interview, the full text of which can be found at ajc.com.
Q: When you look at the way your roster shapes up, what would you like to see happen before the start of spring training?
A: I think if the season starts right now, you feel pretty good about your roster. You really do. I'm sure in a perfect world, in a fantasy world, you'd like another right-handed bat someplace. But right now you feel pretty good.
Q: It’s a tough way to end the season. Is there anything you look back on and say, this is what went wrong for us? Or is it just a bunch of things?
A: You look back and kind of reflect for about a month and there's a lot of that stuff — could've, should've done this differently. The great thing is that spring training starts again in a couple of months. Going through that month of September, I wouldn't wish it on anybody in any sport, but it's going to help us going forward.
Q: Can you get that big bat you want without trading Jair Jurrjens or Martin Prado?
A: I'm not looking to trade any of them. I'm just saying another bat would be nice. Somehow.
Q: What about the health of the three guys at the top of the starting rotation?
A: I think coming out of spring training we're going to be fine. Jurrjens [knee], if we had gone forward into the playoffs, he was on schedule to start one of those games. The day after the season ended he threw five or six innings [in Gulf Coast League], so he's fine. Tommy Hanson went down to instructional league and started doing some strengthening exercises on his shoulder and scapula, so I think he's going to be fine. [Tim Hudson] had surgery a week ago, and talking to him he said he feels like he [will be] three weeks ahead of last year to start his throwing program.
Q: Do you guys think Kris Medlen is a better fit for long relief out of the bullpen than starting right now?
A: He's a wild card. He can do both and do both extremely well. We haven't made a decision on whether he's going to be a starter or in the bullpen. I think we'll work him as a starter, kind of keep stretching him out, because you could always back him off to go to the bullpen.
Q: Chipper [Jones] is the only old guy in the lineup. Does his situation add to the importance of Prado, given his role as Chipper’s backup at third base, in addition to playing left field?
A: Yeah, Chipper's going to play at what, 40 years old? And last year he played 125, 130 games. We'll probably cut back on him a little more, having Prado you have that luxury you can move him to third. If we need to give a rest to Chipper, it's a big plus for us. Prado is a big piece for us.
Q: How confident are you that Heyward will bounce back from last year and be more like the player he was as a rookie, and be the everyday guy in right field from Day 1?
A: Well, we're hoping that happens. We really do. We saw a stretch in September, we saw games of him being really good. I think it's just a matter of him getting some confidence and working with Greg [Walker, hitting coach], being the same guy [he was]. I think maybe some of those nagging injuries played a factor in the lack of production offensively, and maybe a little sophomore slump, all of the above. But he's a big piece for us. I mean, that's a big bat in the lineup.
Q: You plan to go into the season with him as your right fielder, playing every day?
A: Yeah, I think so. Obviously we'll see how spring training works out and all that kind of stuff, but I'm always the guy [who says] you've got to give people an opportunity. As long as he works and he shows improvement and we see consistency, sure. ...
Q: How much did you learn in the second half from the way you used your relievers? Because you made an adjustment at the All-Star break.
A: I think going into the season we'll probably end up using them the way we did the second half. Kimbrel and Venters and O'Flaherty, use them only when we were ahead or tied — which we were a lot; a lot of ties. I think we had 26 extra-inning games, so there's a bulk of games that they pitched in for that reason. And if Medlen is in the bullpen you can use him a little bit more in those situations.
Q: The moves the Marlins have made, how do you feel about that and the division.
A: Tough division, and they [Marlins] are making some good moves, making that team even better with [Jose] Reyes and Heath Bell, along with Hanley Ramirez and [Emilio] Bonifacio and [Mike] Stanton and you name it, all those guys. I'm a big fan of St. Louis Cardinals right now [laughs], to keep the other animal over there in St. Louis and don't bring him to Florida. [Gonzalez referred to free-agent slugger Albert Pujols, who was weighing offers from the Cardinals and Marlins.]
But everybody is getting better in the division. The Phillies are the Phillies. The Marlins are getting better. Washington is getting dangerous; they’re getting close.
Q: Are you still confident in your own team?
A: I like our team because I like the pitching, and I think that guys are going to have better offensive years this year and that it's going to take some of the pressure off that pitching. I think our lack of offense last year kind of killed our pitching by playing a lot of extra-inning games, one-run games.
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