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MLB WINTER MEETINGSDecember 5, 2006Sam PerlozzoORLANDO, FLORIDA Q. Seen your third baseman? SAM PERLOZZO: I have not. I have not, but I understand he's here. Hopefully, I will get a chance to run into him. Q. You look at your offseason so far. I mean, you're pretty happy the bullpen revamped. Is that what you wanted going into the offseason? SAM PERLOZZO: I think that was one of our needs. That was an obvious glaring need. We didn't pitch very well out of the pen. We were a little inexperienced, and we made a lot of auditioning-type things and some guys that we thought were going to produce a little better didn't, and so we needed to upgrade it. There was no question about it. That is just one area that I think that is glaring, and we did that, I think, pretty successfully. Q. What's left that's still going on? SAM PERLOZZO: You know, I think we need another. You know, we're trying to get, you know, still looking to upgrade, you know, the ball club in general. Left field, some kind of bat for left field. Q. Do you still get the sense that Gonzalez is interested? SAM PERLOZZO: I would think he is. I don't -- I'm not sure. I haven't. You know, I don't know him very well. And just from listening to our people that I know, he has some kind of partial -- he is a little partial to the west coast. Q. How do you feel going into this year compared to last year? What's going to be different about you? What's going to be different about how you deal with things, coach things? SAM PERLOZZO: Well, I think, you know, just like anybody, any of us, you learn a little bit. Probably you know a little more sure of what I want to do and how I want to go about some things and start that out. I think we will just about -- just try to get done the things that need to be done and not fool around with it and try to make everybody happy. Things don't make us all happy. That's more wins and that's what we will try to do. Q. I know you are obviously not going to give details, but when you're in that room, you're hearing other teams, you're hearing talks. Are you optimistic about that thing? Is there much left, as far as outfielders and -- SAM PERLOZZO: I think there's people out there that can help us, you know, maybe not necessarily long-term, but something to bridge the gap until we can get the -- you know, find the right piece and either during the season, or, you know, in the future, but there's some people out there. There's some people out there that can help us, and I think the good thing about that I've been hearing is every meeting that we go into, the teams rave about our young pitching. You know, everybody wants them. So, it's like, "Got some good ones." Q. How much better can they be with a good bullpen backing them up? Is that a big difference? SAM PERLOZZO: You know, we were erratic in a little bit all the way around. You know, Chris Benson and Erik Bedard were pretty steady giving us, you know, later-in-the-game innings. And you know, we think Daniel's hopefully turning a corner, can go deep into the game for us. And Adam Loewen, and I said this before, wasn't even on the radar screen for this year, and he has turned into one of our young kids that everybody loves. So, just the fact that we have some depth going later in the game, where maybe I don't have to stretch somebody out, you know, an inning longer than he should, the fact that we would have some more depth depends on, I think, giving the starters a little more comfort zone and me too. Q. Why is that important? To bring Kevin Millar back? SAM PERLOZZO: Well, we obviously need a -- need a first baseman, and we thought Kevin did a pretty darn good job for us. I mean, he hit like .299 in the second half and was a good guy on the ball club, gave us some personality and played pretty well for us. So, you know, he's certainly someone that we appreciated his work for us and was good with our young kids too and good in the clubhouse. Q. Did you say getting a left-hander to platoon with him is still on the -- kind of the agenda or, do you think that's where Jay Gibbons fits in or decides what Jay's role is going to be? SAM PERLOZZO: We haven't decided that necessarily. I doubt that that's really going to come to play till we see what Jay's condition is doing, just spring training, but at the same time, Gibby's got some good value for us. I mean, if we can get him to the plate 550 to 600 times and that's -- that's what his biggest value comes from. Means DH'ing all that time in order to get him to the plate, you know? That's what we will try to do, but we don't know what his health is until we get to the spring training and we will see. I think we are always -- we are still looking to upgrade the club. We really don't have a, you know, "set bench" yet. And last year, we were short on the bench for, you know, darn near the whole season. We come down there and looked for a pinch hitter and stuff. We didn't have a whole lot of experience. So, you know if you can add another platoon player to spell Millar and come off the bench or another outfielder, that's a little better bet to some experience. You can spell one of the other guys, get a nice right hander to go out there and play. So, I think all those things, we are open to anything that we can fit in to make this better than we were last year and make our pitchers, obviously, want to get better too. Q. Gibbons, the days in the outfield over with? SAM PERLOZZO: I think Gibby is going to need to go into the field. Q. Can he play left field? SAM PERLOZZO: I think he will have to learn. Q. Do you see that as an option, a potential option, to put him into left field? SAM PERLOZZO: As a regular? At this point, I would say, today, I'd say no, you know? But I think -- but there's that potential that he could be out in left field a little more than you you'd expect. His thing is just staying -- I want him to stay healthy and walk to the batter's box enough times. And there will be places to play him in the field, you know, whether it be first base, right field, left field, there's places to put him. So, we'll expect him to be able to go out there and play somewhere. A situation that we get into at the end of spring training, we will decide how much we are going to have to use him how much. Q. What is your sense of Rodrigo's status now? He comes back and on your team for spring training. Does he compete for a rotation slot or relief? SAM PERLOZZO: I think he's in a rotation spot. Yeah. I know that's what he wants to do. And I think you'd be foolish to say that you're going to be -- you walk into spring training and nobody gets hurt. I mean, it's the one thing that we've been looking to be able to do, is the depth of this organization can walk in there and pitch lights-out and Adam Loewen can fall on his face and Danny Cabrera can fall on his face and get a sore arm or -- he's still in the mix. Q. Stem's ready from last year, ready to make a leap? SAM PERLOZZO: I hope so. I mean, he turned it around after three months of struggling and played pretty well. I'd like to see him just -- you know, I think he's ready to play well on a consistent basis. Yeah. Q. For the past three years, you guys have come into the meetings and you have said how much teams value your young pitching. And yet, you guys still don't make a move. Do you think at some point, you guys just have to take the plunge and take the risk and trade one of them to get a need? SAM PERLOZZO: I think there will be a point in time where you do something like that, and I think it -- you know, I don't think you do that unless you think, you know, it is going to be something that puts you over the hump to get you where, you know, really where you want to go, you know, and something that you're going to keep for several years. But you know, in the short time that I've been here, we've gone almost from an offensive organization to, you know, a little more concentration and pitching. Like to see our defense and pitching, it is going to keep you in a lot of ballgames. Q. As you're at these meetings and hear the rumors swirling around about other teams, not particularly yours, what are your thoughts if the Red Sox do trade away Manny Ramirez? How does that not just change the Red Sox, but your team as well in facing them and face the AL East? SAM PERLOZZO: Well, Manny's a -- I think how it would change us is that I'd probably walk David Ortiz to get to J.D. Drew, where before, I wouldn't know what I wanted to do. That's my immediate thought. But you know, they'll -- Boston's gonna -- they are going to get some good players, you know? Looks like they are going to get J.D. Drew and get him a player. They added some more pitching. I'm sure they're not done. So, you know, it is a tough division. Boston is not going to be an easy target, no matter what. Q. Have you talked to a lot of the players by now or are you still -- SAM PERLOZZO: Actually, I didn't, and I had maybe planned to wait until after the meetings were over, see where we stood and go chat with a couple of them a day to say hi, wish them a Merry Christmas and make sure that they're on track and ready to go. Have you heard anything about Tejeda at all? SAM PERLOZZO: I have. I heard that -- I met with the strength and conditioning coach about three hours one night, been in contact with him. Ask him to, you know, keep me updated on his players he's seeing. And he has gone over to see Miguel, and Miguel has a trainer and has been working out regular and he was -- he was pleased. So, that's good news. Q. Do you sense an urgency? Do you feel that there's an urgency for you to win next year in terms of, you know -- or do you feel that you guys will let you look at your three-year plan, which was when they hired you for three years, and that they will allow you to do that three-year plan without having to, you know, dividends in the second year? SAM PERLOZZO: I would hope so. I would hope so. I think we're -- I think Peter and Jim and Mike are smart enough to know that we're, you know, we're up to this point. We've made some moves to get better than we were last year, and I think we need to get better than we were last year, and the bullpen's a start. Now, we got to upgrade the offense a little bit more, and do I think you need to win the division or anything like that? I don't think so, but I think we need to play better baseball than that. Q. Fair indicator of what your team was last year, do you think it was skewed because of injuries and stuff like that? SAM PERLOZZO: I thought we had a lot of things go against us. You know, I really do. We had some injuries. We were short. We were short. And unless some talent happens, we didn't have as much depth. You know, we had some -- you know, started this season without a real lefty, per se. And I thought we did a lot of looking at a lot of our talent, you know, sooner than it should have been, and I think that showed up in the win/loss column. Q. For a bunch of years, it was Boston and the Yankees and then the three other teams it was going to be. That was going to be the division. Do you think now it's come down to almost Toronto's in there and now it's just the -- SAM PERLOZZO: I don't think there's any question Toronto's in there. Yeah. And like I said, if our starting pitching pitches the way we hope it does, I think our pen's going to be much better, no matter what. We just need to add a couple more parts to get us going on offense and keep us right in the thick of that. You know, the better -- the more Toronto gets better, the more the division's going to even out a little bit and try to keep the teams in check and keep anyone from running away from it. Q. Do you worry at all about being too left-handed oriented in the outfield? Let's say Gonzalez takes your running. I mean, you guys will have three lefties and four outfielders, probably Stem at this one and he's a lefty. I mean, are you worried about that, the construction of the roster that way? SAM PERLOZZO: Yeah. I think about it. Yeah. I mean, I wouldn't say I worry about it, but first thing we need to do is get the best players we can and then -- then we can make adjustments. So, it's easier to find the, you know, platoon guy to go along with the guy that is a good player and your starter than it is to go the other way. You know? So, we just want to continue to find the best guys we can and then we'll worry about piecing the other parts in to make that work for us. Q. In that vein, you talk about last year, Tejeda's name was mentioned in trades that year. Roberts apparently has been that guy that has been some interest in. Are you a proponent of maybe getting rid of one or two of your best players for a couple other parts or is that something -- what's your philosophy on that? SAM PERLOZZO: I don't think we really should -- we weren't really shopping anybody. We've had teams come in and ask us about our guy and usually, you know, up to this point in time, we're the ones that have been making proposals, you know? And now things are becoming messy. You do the drill. You listen. But my philosophy is we trade then and, you know, anybody on your team, and it makes you better than -- you got to listen to them, no matter who it is. Q. How difficult would it to be trade a Roberts, a guy who is kind of the face of the organization? SAM PERLOZZO: It's hard. I mean, he's -- especially with me, you know? I was his infield coach, you know? Put a lot of time in it. It's the game of baseball, and if it makes us better, then you do what's best for the organization and the ball club. It happens every day in the game. People get traded. You get somebody that is good and helps your team, then, you know, things move on. Q. Do you get a sense you'll leave here with a couple more players to -- SAM PERLOZZO: I don't know. I don't think I'm alone in the fact that all the meetings that we've been into, it seems like -- it really seemed like they -- the first half they were -- there was going to be a lot of action and just went into a stalemate, kind of like everyone waiting to see what happens with the free agents that are out here, and how much you can get? And it has kind of slowed down the other processes for us. So, I don't know that necessarily. I thought so originally, and now I'm not so sure. Just have to see. Q. You want to win immediately, turn this thing around. It gets frustrating to hear all this talk and you necessarily don't see, you know, other than the bullpen, you haven't seen any of the other moves? SAM PERLOZZO: But there's time. The season doesn't start until about April 1st. April 1st comes around and we haven't added anything in our offense or something, then we will talk about it. I really see good things out of the office, and Peter making a real good effort to try to ask the people. Q. How difficult is it to keep selling the future? I mean, this year, you're saying we're not going to win the pennant, but -- SAM PERLOZZO: I didn't say we weren't going to win the pennant this year. I mean, I won't go into day one of spring training thinking that we weren't going to do that. If I thought that, I shouldn't be right here talking to you. As much as I thought we were going to be a little bit better last year in our starters, I feel even more so this year that -- and I think, if anything, you have good pitching, anything in the game could happen, and I think we are on the verge of that. And so in that respect, I think we've made tremendous strides. As long as keep doing that, I don't have a problem. Q. What do your new coaches bring to the staff? How is next year's staff going to be any different than last year's staff? Will it be different? SAM PERLOZZO: Yeah, it will be a little different, without a doubt. I think that, assuming they're here for years out in Seattle, very good outfield, good demeanor with the players. Great personality will -- you know, not afraid to put people in line and the good with all -- all players, just like Juan Samuel I thought we had quite a bit of, you know, Latin players on the team, that I felt needed some -- some presence on their staff, and not just a presence, because I think he has a good presence and coach goods. We did research on one. Samuel get it from the people in Detroit, I couldn't find anybody to say anything bad about the guy. So, I'm looking for these two guys to help us out being good coaches. Juan Samuel is a major league hire that is not too removed from the game. He should command some respect from all our guys. Q. Who is your infield coach? SAM PERLOZZO: Samuel. Used to be outfield. Yeah. Q. Have you guys had any commitments yet for Camp Leo for any of your pitchers? SAM PERLOZZO: We have not yet really contacted pitchers yet. We came in here trying to find out when exactly the report date was and go over some of the names that we were -- we considered. Again, that's a voluntary situation. Leo's just going to make himself available. And so if you guys want to come down to take advantage of it and get a little early throwing in, probably happen about a week to ten days prior to report date. Q. It is also voluntary, but -- SAM PERLOZZO: Well, it is certainly not -- I think the one thing you got to be very careful about is if you don't show up, it is not going to affect your chances of playing. That is an absolute thing all they -- I will straighten out. There are certain things that people have responsibilities and certain different things in their life that maybe can't make it. So -- (inaudible.) What will show is how well you do. Q. Are you chomping at the bit after last year, ready to get going? SAM PERLOZZO: Leo's always been a guy. Me, you know, we're built -- we're built the same, but different, you know? When my season was over, I'm like, okay, a couple months, go home, relax, enjoy your time off. Leo's always been a guy, two days after the season, he's ready to go back, you know? This one took him a little longer. This season took him a little longer to get to that point, but I think he is pretty close to being there now. Q. Have you talked to any of your new relievers? SAM PERLOZZO: I talked to Baez, and I'll probably come out of camp with the names and numbers of all the young people. Yeah. That will be shortly after the meetings are over. I will give the other guys a call and I will call everyone, but Baez was one of those where I got called up to talk to Jim and he had him in the office. Q. What did you think of Baez when he was a closer for the Rays and can you see him in that role at all? SAM PERLOZZO: Kind of intrigued about him, you know? I watched him on the other side and always liked him when he pitched. Then we talked to some of the teams that had him and got nothing but great things to say about the kid, about how hard he works, his work ethic. He's smart. He has a lot of guts, you know? All good things. So, certainly someone can handle that, whenever Chris needs to go. Hopefully, we have given Chris the kind of work, and when we need to give him up, we will still have somebody to help us. I think that's a big thing for us. Q. Could you see a situation where you can bring back Chris Gomez? SAM PERLOZZO: Yeah. I would think he is still active. We haven't really -- we haven't addressed all the -- like I said, I think all the people are waiting to see some of the free agents go down before they start feeling in. I think everyone has their sights on the highest targets we can get right now and that starts fall and the other people start filtering in. I liked him, you know? Q. Have said left field right now is available. They only want to do maybe a one-year deal, maybe one year for op, at most. Do you agree with that strategy? Do you think that is important? Maybe Gold or Floyd that might require a one or two-year deal? SAM PERLOZZO: I think they're probably -- in a case like Cliff Floyd, I'm sure we're structuring -- you were structuring a contract based on the outfield, I would think. I don't think we want to be stuck in a situation anybody that -- for too long a period of time, but there is a risk of injury to some people. You know, you can get -- there's some guys out there. There are some guys out there that are -- that I think are good enough players that you can give them a multiyear contract, so that if you ever had an even better plan that they would be versatile enough and really great bench guys who are platoon guys two years down the road. So, you got to max out of them for two and now you still got really good player, you know, a platoon situation on your really good teams. So, there's two guys out there. So, I don't think you back off if we found that guy. End of FastScripts |
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