I thanked him for sending a top-notch major league pitcher to face us in my managerial debut. He got a chuckle out of that.

That was a big hit. I don't ever think we're out of the game, but that put us just one shot away, especially with the way the wind was blowing out there tonight.

He was impressive. Even when Blanco got that hit, he still managed to keep us in check. I don't know much about him, but from the looks of it, he has a good future ahead of him.

Our pitchers have pitched well from our starters to our bullpen. We have a tight pitch-count program here and every one of the pitchers has pitched well. I am proud of them.

There was definitely a sense of minor relief in the dugout tonight. They've been pressing a little bit. ... We had the one big inning (a four-run sixth), and it's contagious. Guys started hitting.

He has had some good at-bats and has had a flair for the big hit here recently. We saw that from him in spring training. Anyone who has seen him play realizes he has a lot of energy. He's working on focusing that energy into the important aspects of his game. He has an ability that you don't see every day.