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WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC POOL C: TORONTOMarch 9, 2009Jason BayJustin MorneauErnie WhittTORONTO, ONTARIO THE MODERATOR: Questions for any of our three guests up here. Q. Guys, can you talk about the obvious disappointment of being at home, two, and out? ERNIE WHITT: Needless to say, I think everyone in that locker room's very disappointed. I think this is one of the toughest losses that I've been associated with, with Team Canada. In retrospect, you have to tip your hat to team Italy. They shut down a very powerful offensive team. And, you know, we definitely expected to score more than two runs. Q. Is there anything positive you can take from this loss? ERNIE WHITT: I don't see one. No. I don't see one. If there's any positive at all, you know, some of the kids threw well out of the pen, you know. Let's look at a bright future there for them hopefully. But, again, got to tip your hat to Italy. Q. Maybe just from the player's mind, guys, where did you see it going wrong? I mean, everyone thought this was a game you guys were going to have, but now that it's over how do you view it, and why do you think you guys were bounced in the first two games? JASON BAY: Obviously, I think offensively, we expected to do a lot better. And, you know, like Ernie said, those guys weren't running out, you know, a bunch of guys that never played baseball before. They had some guys that knew what they were doing. We're a pretty good offensive team, I think given the fact that, you know, both games, our pitchers threw pretty well given a lot of the circumstances. And, you know, the U.S. is a tough staff. And I think we probably should have scored some more runs, but ultimately we didn't. Whether that's our fault, a little bit, and a little bit of them, too, their pitching, but I think was definitely our downfall. Q. Justin, any thoughts on that? JUSTIN BAY: We came in expecting to win this game. You know, on paper we're suppose to win it. But you don't play the game on paper. They came out and they made some great plays, defensively. They hit the ball all over the place. They did a good job of taking advantage of, you know, the mistake at the beginning of game, then they kind of got some momentum going from that. And, you know, we didn't get any big hits when we needed them. We had runners out there. I don't know how many guys we left on base, but we definitely left a lot out there. All we needed was that one big hit to get the momentum back on our side, and we never got it. Give them credit, they played well. But, at the same time, it's very tough loss. Q. Ernie, what went into the decision to start Perkins instead of Richmond in this game? ERNIE WHITT: Well, again, it was my decision. I'll take the heat for that. I felt very comfortable that the pitchers that we had lined up, that they could hold Italy in check and we could score a lot of runs. Again, in this type of format, we knew our back was against the wall. Our mindset was we wanted to go on. And, you know, obviously we didn't, and if anyone's going to take any blame, I'll take the blame for that. Q. Ernie, I don't know if you were expecting to use Diamond or Jesse Crain in today's game, but when was it during the game that you decided that it was time for them to come in? ERNIE WHITT: Well, I guess, you know, we -- I guess what really hurt was the seventh inning when they scored the two extra add-on runs. It kind of took the wind out of our sail a little bit. I think at that point in time -- but again we were just trying to keep the ball game close so that we could have that opportunity to come back and win. Obviously, you know, it didn't happen. Who is to say, if Scotty Richmond was to start the game, you know, I mean, he can only throw seventy pitches anyway. So, you know, it's damned if you do, damned if you don't. That's the beauty of this game, you know. You think you make the right decisions and it comes back and hits you in the face. But, you know, like I said, I'll accept that. Q. Jason and Justin, you guys are looking a little shell-shocked right now. What are you feeling? JASON BAY: Disappointed, obviously. I mean, you know, that was a game, especially being here in Toronto, that, you know -- not that that made it any more relevant to win, but, I mean, something with the hometown and kind of the whole nature of this tournament, and coming here and, you know, I think that we thought we had a legitimate shot to move on. And to kind of have that ended abruptly, you know, I think is -- you know, it's kind of a grim reality. JUSTIN MORNEAU: I don't know. There's a lot of frustration. We came in expecting to take a step forward, and I feel like we took a little step back. But it wasn't for lack of effort, that's for sure. You know, we -- in '06, we played the U.S. tough, and we ended up winning that game. We played them tough again, and came up a little short. We felt like we had a team good enough to go to Miami for the second round, and instead, we lose two straight at home, in our own backyard. And, you know, you never want to come out in form like that, and doesn't matter where it is, but especially hurts more being home in front of our own fans. It's a tough day. But we'll have to move on. Right now, guys have to find a way to get past it. But, you know, it's one of those things that will probably stick with us for awhile. Q. What is more surprising or disappointing, the way your team pitched today or the way it hit? ERNIE WHITT: Probably a combination of both. Again, we expected to score a lot of runs. I think our team was built around offense. And, again, everyone -- you know, on paper, it looked like it should be a cake walk. But as I said earlier, that's why you play the game. Anything can happen at any time. You know, I mean, we didn't play well today. That's the bottom line. We just didn't play well. It started right from the first hitter. But, you know, we're disappointed. Whether we can take something out of this, I don't know. But, again, sometimes you have to tip your hat to the other team. You know, I'm sure they had some tough questions when we beat the United States in '06, that they had to answer. And we're here facing the music now. Q. What do you think about the game of Italian players, Mazzanti? ERNIE WHITT: I don't quite understand, other than the fact that Italy played very well. You know they made some real nice plays out on the field, some good defensive plays. They pitched very well. You know, you have to tip your hat to team Italy. Q. All three of you have been involved in playoff series. This is such a unique tournament. How does a loss like this compare to the heat of a pennant race, or I guess in a playoff situation, that loss, that feeling? JUSTIN MORNEAU: Well, you know, I played in the post-season in series, you usually get more than one shot at the same team. Other than last year, we had to play a 163rd game. You get a one-shot deal, and we end up losing that game, which was tough. You know, but usually, you get to see the same team three times or five times, whatever. It's a little different format. But, at the same time, it hurts just as much when you get knocked out. Whether you are playing for your own team or playing for your country, you always want to go on. You always want to do well. And when you feel like you should win it, that's what makes it tough. You know, if you get beat, you get beat. But when you feel like you should win, you know, that's what hurts. And, you know, at the same time, they played well, and give them credit. But, you know, we feel like, you know, it wouldn't be so disappointing if we didn't come here expecting to move on. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, guys. End of FastScripts |
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