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WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: 2ND ROUND POOL F

March 16, 2017

Omar Vizquel

San Diego, California

Q. I wanted to know your impressions of Chacin's first start for you, and what do you expect out of him today?
OMAR VIZQUEL: Well, he threw the ball well last time. He just failed in a five-run lead in the third inning, and I had to pull him out of the game to give a chance for the bullpen to kind of hold on to the score a little bit. He made some mistakes up in the strike zone, and hopefully he can control the sinker a lot better today. Keep the ball down.

One of the things we talk to the hitters all the time, to the pitchers all the time is like against these kind of lineups that we're facing right now with Dominican and the American team, and the Puerto Ricans, if we make a mistake up in the strike zone, we're going to pay. So we have to make sure that we execute the plan as close as we can, and then have the opportunity for our team to score some runs.

Q. Omar, outside of Cabrera and Martinez, everyone else is hitting in a different spot today than they were yesterday. Can you just take us through the thought process and why you made all the changes and the shakeup, if you will?
OMAR VIZQUEL: Well, I have a couple of injured players. Martin Prado obviously is not going to be with us anymore. He's got a pretty bad hamstring injury. He's not going to be in the lineup. So with the kind of players that we have, I have the flexibility to move them in the lineup, up and down.

In the case of Solarte, he can be a leadoff guy, but he can also give you a punch if he's in the bottom of the order. The same way with Odor who is going to be playing second base today, and I moved Altuve to third base. Altuve is going to be hitting sixth, so it gives him a little more patience at the plate, hitting behind Carlos Gonzalez.

I'm glad that I got to make changes like that without sacrificing the power of Miguel, Victor and Carlos, who is going to be hitting third, fourth, and fifth. I think that's the strength of our lineup. You know, those are players that you cannot move. They're there because their back records, and obviously we can't move those guys out of those positions.

Q. Is the move of Odor to second base, an alternative to third base, based on the play yesterday, or is it a combination of other factors?
OMAR VIZQUEL: I think it's a combination of factors. I want to switch him to give Odor more peace of mind at second. That's a position he plays, and then try Altuve at third. Talking to Altuve, he says he takes some ground balls there, too, and he feels better playing third base, so let's see how that goes.

Q. Andy Green at Padres camp has expressed some frustration with Yangervis Solarte's usage. Have you heard that? Can you talk us through the thinking of using him as a pinch-runner?
OMAR VIZQUEL: Yeah, I heard about it. There's nothing we can do about it. We are trying to put the players there that got the opportunity to get some runs for us. I understand that Solarte also has the opportunity, but at the same case with Hernan Perez and sometimes Herrera.

So it's hard for one guy to get in the lineup sometimes. I can't really bench Altuve and Odor or Escobar who is playing really good. So I've been trying to keep him sharp mentally, getting ready to play some defense at the end of the game and maybe pinch-runner. But that's the way it goes. Sometimes some other players are not going to have a shot.

Q. When you accepted the responsibility to be the manager for Venezuela, a great responsibility as you had mentioned before, did you imagine that things were going to have this kind of outcome?
OMAR VIZQUEL: I think these things were going to be easier, but it has obviously been complicated because we've been coming from behind. But I've been surprised how we've been playing, especially in the first round. We have whatever advantage for them, we've had scouting reports. We have motivational meetings. Coaching staff has been working at its best, and we've been working as a team.

I think that part is okay. Now it's about giving them the opportunity to play ball. In these situations, especially when you're talking about World Series, Playoffs and All-Star Games, they're not children so that we have to repeat things all the time. But, obviously, outcomes haven't been that great. Yesterday we had the game in our hands, but because of some pitches and the direction in which those pitches went, obviously the game turned. We understand what this means, and this is life or death at this point.

Q. Prado's hamstring injury is pretty serious. Is it a tear or pull? Is he out for the whole tournament?
OMAR VIZQUEL: I think he's out for the tournament. The Marlins already called and they want him back in camp to make sure they take care of the injury and to study and have the X-rays done to see what the final answer is for his injury.

But, obviously, he can't really move that well, and we're not going to sacrifice him for any other game. So we're really going to miss him because he has been one of our best hitters in the lineup, and that's the reason why we have to kind of play around with the position of the lineup right now.

Q. How do you value Jose Castillo in this Classic?
OMAR VIZQUEL: Incredible, because he's been so calm and tranquil. He's been super effective not only with the right-handers, left-handers, especially when crucial elements where I gave him the opportunity to take people out, he's been pitching incredibly well. What he has demonstrated with his looks, his calmness to move on the mound, that has given me trust to use him in that manner. I see him very effective. I think he's going to be a key element.

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