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WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: 1ST ROUND POOL AMarch 5, 2017Cody DeckerJason MarquisJerry WeinsteinSeoul, Korea Q. Have you watched the Korean team exhibition games, and what are your impressions so far? JERRY WEINSTEIN: I've watched the Koreans play the Australians and I watched them play the Cubans, and then we've had our scouts seeing all the games here. We're pretty impressed with what we've seen. It's a very well‑rounded team. They catch the ball well and they pitch well, and they have got some power. It's a formidable team. Q. Are you ready to face Korea? JERRY WEINSTEIN: Are we ready? Well, I'll let you know after the game tomorrow. We're as ready as we can be. We've done everything we can possibly do within our control, and we thought that the two practice games we played went well. We got all our pitchers work, and we got our position players at‑bats, and we'll get used to the playing surface and the environment here. I know it will change a lot tomorrow night when there are 40,000 screaming Koreans in this facility. But I think we're as ready as we can be for this tournament. Q. Do you have any concerns with your preparation? JERRY WEINSTEIN: You know, we really don't have any concerns. We've done everything we can do. We're prepared to play and when you're not prepared, then you should have some concerns. When you're prepared, there shouldn't be any concerns, and you just play the game and take care of the game one pitch at a time. Q. Cody, can you please explain what the Mensch to your right is? CODY DECKER: That's Jerry Weinstein, my manager. Oh, this? He's a mascot; he's a friend; he's a teammate; he's a borderline ‑‑ he brings a lot to the table. Q. Where did he come from? How did he start? CODY DECKER: Initially he started as like our JoBu in our locker room in Brooklyn, and he's put on quite a substantial amount of weight since then. He's grown. He both physically and mentally has grown. He's ready for the tournament just like we are. Q. And Jason, could you just describe your emotions going into the start tomorrow and what it means for you to pitch for Team Israel? JASON MARQUIS: Well, obviously this is an exciting opportunity. When Jerry gave me the call back in July or August of last year; and to be able to bring some experience to a team, we have a lot of really young, inexperienced, but talented guys. So just excited to put on the uniform, compete at this highest level once again, and hopefully bring the win for us. It means a lot to be around guys with similar backgrounds and similar upbringings. I think we've bonded real well. Started in Brooklyn, got to know each other at the mini‑camp, and I think we are all excited to get this thing underway. Q. In this tournament, what is the meaning to play for an Israeli team, and what is your expectation for the influence to Israeli baseball? JASON MARQUIS: That's a good question. I think this tournament was put together to grow the game of baseball throughout the world, just like the Koreans and Chinese Taipei team. Israel, we're trying to represent our upbringing and bring it to where we're from. And the game that has treated me so well throughout my life; just to give other kids opportunities to try to succeed in something that maybe they otherwise wouldn't be able to. But it means a lot to be a part of something that, like I said before, has played a big role in my upbringing. Two Jewish parents, growing up in New York, it's definitely an exciting time. It's going to be fun. We're ready to go. CODY DECKER: Getting a chance to travel to Israel this off‑season and seeing what we were playing for, and how much baseball has grown, especially for the kids there, how excited they were about them. You know, this could be, no pun intended, but a game‑changer as far as sports goes in Israel. It's exciting to be a part of that. Q. Jason, as the starting pitcher, you will match with Korea, who will be your biggest opponent and what is your commitment for tomorrow's game? JASON MARQUIS: Well, at the end of the day, we know what Korea is about. We had a real good scouting report that helped us put together a game plan, and it's really my job to go out there and execute. But at the end of the day, I've got to go back to what I do, what my strengths are; pitch my game more than anything. I try to approach every game, the hitters have blank faces and I try not to worry too much‑‑ worrying about them. I've got to really control me, control my emotions, and go pitch to pitch, and I think things will take care of itself. Q. I have a question to Jerry. This is the first time managing the Israeli team for you. What kind of impression do you want to leave around the world for the Israeli team? JERRY WEINSTEIN: Well, I think that when we leave here, we want to feel like, a, we've played as well as we could possibly play: We played hard; we played smart; we played with passion. Just the same type of impression that any team that comes to a tournament like this is going to want; the same type of impression that team is going to want to leave with the people; that we like what we're doing; we have a passion for the game; we play hard, we play smart and we do the best we can. Q. Cody, can you just talk about the way the ballpark has played so far in the exhibition games? Is the infield fast? Does the ball carry at all? Can you give a little insight into the ballpark? CODY DECKER: The ball doesn't carry as wellas ‑‑ I mean, our first day batting practices were impressive and it seemed like the ball was going to carry. But we noticed if you put a ball anywhere, it's going to go. But if you keep the ball a little lower, as far as line drives go, it travels a lot better. It kind of dies the higher it gets. As for the playing surface, it's very fast. So it's just, I wouldn't say an adjustment, but just preparation. Just make ground balls as you can; live ground balls, as well. Those two games really helped to see how it plays. But no, it's still the same game. It's baseball, you know. They have got to play on the same surface as we do and they have to deal with the same elements or non‑elements that we do. Q. Have any of the three of you had a chance to explore Seoul at all and gotten to take a look around, either at sites or restaurants, or any impressions so far of any meetings that you've had, that sort of thing? CODY DECKER: I've tried to go out a little bit. A beautiful city; I'm taken aback of how many skyscrapers there are. The food is fantastic. I fell in love with this one restaurant; I think I've gone every night since I've been here, and I will probably go again tonight. JASON MARQUIS: Like Cody said, we've had a lot of free time on our hands, so we've been able to explore a little bit, try to take in the culture of Seoul, getting on train rides, checking out the fish market. It's pretty interesting to see how people on the other side of the world live. It's similar yet different. I'm enjoying every moment. Like Cody said, had some great food. The people have been very, very nice and helpful, because sometimes the communication barrier can get a little tough. Being on the train and asking somebody for help, where to go, everybody's been pretty friendly and gracious to help us out when we needed. Overall, I'm having a great time, but it will be a lot better if we could come out here and advance to the next round. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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