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WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC POOL C: TORONTOMarch 10, 2009Enrique GonzalezRamon HernandezLuis SojoTORONTO, ONTARIO (Through Spanish Translation) THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. (In English) Luis, you talked before the game about how you thought Miguel Cabrera was ready to break out at any time, and he certainly showed that he was. LUIS SOJO: Yeah. Well, we're talk about for the last two days about that. This guy's a professional hitter. And yesterday I got the option of BP, he was the first one to show up. And he come through today. I mean, that's one of the guys we need to have ready for the second round, and he come through today, along with Magglio. I mean, those two guys, they don't have any hits, but tonight was a very important game for us, and they did the job. Q. (In English) Luis, while the starting pitcher was still in the game, no score, were you starting to think, Oh, no, not again? LUIS SOJO: Yes, I did. But we know sooner or later, the way we've been swing the bat lately, I knew sooner or later we were going to come through. But there's no doubt that come to my mind, this cannot happen again. I mean, like I was saying, they not going to lose. They played the best teams, -- you know, the best player in the world, and they want to make history. But, you know, we came through today. Q. At what point in time did you say, That's it, we're on the right track? LUIS SOJO: Well, we were trying to score first, that was the basics. And on such an important game as this one, when you score first, you always put a lot of pressure on the other team. And the Italian team is a team that doesn't have as much experience. And we had that, a lot of experience, a lot of major league players that have been tried, tested and proven. And we're relaxed, because we thought we were going to break the ice offensively, just like we did in the first game. Q. Before the game, you said that Victor Zambrano, tomorrow's opening pitcher, there might be a problem with him. Are you going to let Victor complete the fifty pitches, because there is a possibility that you could use him maybe on Saturday? But if he gets to fifty, you won't be able to use him later? LUIS SOJO: Well, all that, we're going to have to analyze, right. We're hoping he'll do a good job. Tomorrow, we're going to see a lot of things. We're going to see a lot of positives things tomorrow. And we gave that inning to Victor Moreno. He's thrown a lot of strikes, and he's had problems with his control. But tomorrow or later on, I'm going to sit with Victor Espinoza and see at what point we can take him and maybe use the bullpen to get the guys working again. Obviously tomorrow is a very important game for us because we need to show the United States, this team is here to win, as well. So independently of what the score is, we're obviously going forward to Miami. But it's an important game for us and we're going to go out there with all our best. Q. Enrico, what was the key in this game? With all the work that you did, you did basically everything that was asked of you and everything that you could possibly do? ENRIQUE GONZALEZ: At the beginning, when batting practice finished, I talked to Hernandez, and I said what kind of throws he did, and I tried to basically get in front of the count on all the pitchers. Obviously, I was able to do good work. There was an inning where there was a little bit of problem, but, thank God, I was able to get out of it, and I was able to throw very well in every inning. Q. (In English) As you think of the fan support while you were here in Toronto, and did it feel like home-field advantage on a day like today? LUIS SOJO: Well, the fans is not ours, they're very important. We play out of our country, out of Venezuela, but to be able to see a lot of Venezuela people here, that's -- you know, that's nice. I mean, they're very noisy. You know, they always are into the game, and that's very important for us. Q. (In English) Ramon, that fifth inning the four home runs, what was that inning like? Was it surreal? Magical? I mean, you guys were just hitting the ball, just crushing it. RAMON HERNANDEZ: I think that's one big point for us. The last WBC, we don't hit well. So now, at least, all the hitters, it's good sign, they all would come very more prepared. And now that we know when we go to Miami we're going to face a pretty good team, or pretty good pitching, so that's a good sign, that everybody is trying to get the best baseball. We can get out of these rounds, for be ready for Miami. Q. This is more or less the same question, but if you could answer in Spanish for the Spanish media. If you talk about what adjustments you had offensively, and today, you saw the results of that. But not only when we're talk about the Venezuelan team in terms of their batting throughout the tournament, but the problem is still a little bit with relief pitching. But who got the ball the furthest? Seem liked you were all connecting. RAMON HERNANDEZ: First of all, the basics were to get more runs, because it was an important game. We can't trust any team. And yesterday, Italy showed that it's a team that goes and plays baseball and can out perform others. And they beat a really competitive team in Canada. And we had to do a good job. So we had to get on our game. Because we beat Italy on the first game, we can't have that much trust. So we came out with the same amount of trust against the other team as we did when we faced the United States. Q. Have you ever been involved in an inning like that before where there's been back-to-back home runs twice? RAMON HERNANDEZ: In the WBC? Q. Little league or anything? RAMON HERNANDEZ: A lot of times. I mean, when I am playing the season, there's a lot of games. I've been playing quite a bit, a long time, and I went through that a few times. LUIS SOJO: You ask me, I say never, not me (laughter). Never did it. Q. I understand this is the first time that you've been catching for Ramon Ramirez. How was it for you, the work that you guys did together with those pitchers? RAMON HERNANDEZ: I think they took most of the credit in this game. I think without pitching you can't win a baseball game. It doesn't matter how many runs you score. They came out, they pitched, and I've never caught for him. But we came out to play, and I basically got to learn how he threw and what he liked. So we did things his way. And we tried to do it his way to get as many innings without scoring any runs. Q. (In English) what are you looking to get from your starter Zambrano tomorrow? LUIS SOJO: Well, his location. I mean, Victor's been around. He's got experience in the big leagues. But he's probably been location wise. So we look forward to see that tomorrow. I mean, this guy's got good pitches. He's got a sinker, slider, and a change-up, but if you don't locate your pitches the way you want, you are going to have problems. And I think that was the key for the United States in the past game. So I think it's going to be a big game for him, and we look forward to seeing that. Q. In terms of Ramon, the pitcher, what kind of evaluation do you have in terms of what you saw today? The same thing for Ramon Hernandez? LUIS SOJO: Well, Ramon what do they call you Strawberry, something like that? Anyways, the key was to throw strikes. That was the key. Ramon said it. He has so much experience in the major leagues, and Ramon, I think that that change is something that he wouldn't -- he wouldn't give for anything. He always had the batters off balance. Maybe in the last inning he was a little out of control, but we were able to get what we wanted. We want him to get us to the seventh inning, and he did it. And that's the most important part. Because that guy is showing that with time, he could become a major league pitcher. And with good health and hard work, he's going to make it. Q. Luis, you mentioned the support here from the Venezuela fans. What do you think it will be like in Miami? If the Dominican Republic wins tonight, who is going to have home-field advantage between the U.S., Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and the Dominican Republic? LUIS SOJO: First of all, it's going to be crazy. But I think we're going to have the edge. We have a lot of Venezuela people in Venezuela. And the only thing I can say, I hope they get sold out. It's no doubt in my mind it's going be like that every game. But when you have the fan support, I think it's going to motivate the team, they're going to motivate everybody, and hopefully, we come out with the wins. Q. Luis, we saw a bunch of criticism in the media, but it's good thing this kind of media can be erased with wins. Now, no one is talking about criticizing you guys, just qualifying for the next round. How can you respond to that now that everything is cleared up, and you can use the pitchers from Seattle without any problem. How would you manage this, say, in Round 2? LUIS SOJO: Well, that's from tomorrow on. And Thursday, everything's in the clear. We're going to go on a charter up to Miami, and then we'll see what's going to happen. And we'll practice on Friday. And those two days are going to make me get to sit with Roberto. In terms of the controversy that happened, and there's some days where Carlos Silva is going to be in the bullpen, and Felix Hernandez is going be in the bullpen, which is what we already had planned for Round 2, they weren't going to throw in both games. It was one and one. And we're going to put Felix on Sunday, and Armando. And I think we're going to have more depth with -- what's your name? Enrique. I call him Strawberry because everybody calls him Strawberry on the team. So I call him that (laughter). So we have a lot of depth with Enrique, with Ramon, and Victor Zambrano. So that's going to make me be more at ease with how I am going to use the bullpen. First of all, pitches are going to go from 75 to 85, if I'm not mistaken. So that's going to ensure that the pitchers will go maybe, five, six innings instead. Q. After the third scoreless inning at the start of the game, could you sense any nerves on the bench playing a team that had nothing to lose and was coming off a big upset win over Canada? LUIS SOJO: I was nervous. But the players, no, they were right. I mean, they knew -- you know, you start talking to each other and they say, Listen, we're going to come true at any moment. Don't panic. Just be focused. And they did. I mean, these guys are professional hitters. They've been in the big leagues for a long time. And we come through, so I started feeling better. Q. What made you nervous? LUIS SOJO: Well, you know, this is a big game. I mean, you lose today, there's no tomorrow for you. And, you know, I always say, when you play, you can do anything you want. You can make an error, you can hit a homer, you can, you know, make an outstanding play. But when you manage, you are another fan. You just got to hope that the guys come through any situation. And they did. Q. Enrique, yesterday you said this was going to be the most important game of your career. Do you feel this was the case? And now, Luis didn't really even remember your name, but do you think that now, not only him, but all of Venezuela will remember the name of Enrique Gonzalez? ENRIQUE GONZALEZ: I think so, because everybody's been watching this game. With us, Italy, there's a lot of people watching this. They were waiting for us to qualify. And, thank God, we were able to play good ball, and we came out winning. And I gave 100 percent, like I've always did in my professional career. And I thank God the team helped us out, and we were able to score a lot. And thank God I was able to do all four innings. I wanted five innings, but what can you do? Q. You've never seen a four-homer game before? I take it it's not your job to teach the players to do that? Is that Gallarraga's job? LUIS SOJO: That's why we bring him (laughter.) No, just Kidding. He's been great. He's been talking to all these guys. It's important when you have guys like him around because he was so successful in his big league career. And being able to talk to him about success, I think is very important. These guys are excited, you know. He is an idol in Venezuela and all over the world, and it's been great. You know, he's been a big factor, I won't lie to you, because he's been very helpful for me. And we're always talking about the game, what we're going to do. And that's what you want from your bench coach. Q. (In English) What was your reaction when you saw back-to-back home runs twice? Watching those balls go out, how did you react? LUIS SOJO: I always say these guys are ready. In '06, I don't remember how many homers we hit, because we wasn't ready. Now, these guys are dangerous. We just want Miguel and Mario to come through at any particular time, and they did tonight. I think in the second round, it's going be dangerous for the pitchers. You know, they're ready. And that's why, when you have that talent that these guys have, a lot of things can happen. Q. (In English) Did the extra preparation before the tournament -- LUIS SOJO: No doubt. I talked to a lot of guys in December and January, What you doing, you know. I never seen them personal, but I don't believe they don't lie when they tell me, I'm working out. I'll be ready for the tournament. Don't worry about it. And, hey, they showed that right now. Q. (In English) Ramon, were you working out in December? RAMON HERNANDEZ: I was working out in October (laughter.) You know, after this, we got a long season to go, also. So you got to workout before that. I think a lot of guys' mentality, number one, we was trying to put ourselves as quick as we can possible, especially on the offensive side. If we're not going to hit, we're going be in trouble. And not just me, every guy on the team. Every spring training game that we play, everybody was trying to take good swing every at-bat. We were trying to get a very, very good at-bat every time we go up. Just trying to get ourselves for this competition more than we did before. I think right now, everybody's mind is set and we know that we can hit, and that's why we are trying to show everybody now that we come here ready. If they're going to beat us, they're going beat us playing 27 outs. THE MODERATOR: Thank you very much. End of FastScripts |
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