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WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC POOL B: MEXICO CITYMarch 11, 2009Jorge CampilloJorge CantuVinny CastillaEdgar GonzalezMEXICO CITY, MEXICO THE MODERATOR: We're going to start with some comments about this game. How do you feel? VINNY CASTILLA: It was a fantastic game for Mexico after starting out on the wrong foot. But my guys never let their spirits get down, and what I told them, and I told you guys, after the first game, we haven't lost anything. We're still in this tournament, and sure enough, here we are, and they gave everything they had. JORGE CAMPILLO: I'm very happy. People supported us entirely. The game was very different. If we match this against last game. And we want to thank Mexico for what the country has given us and thank the fans. JORGE CANTU: The same words as Vinny and my friend. This is a strong team. We definitely have it in us. We can go on. This is a fantastic group. The ballclub is great, and everyone knows this game isn't over until the last out. Q. Vinny, when you lost against Australia on Sunday, I asked you, are you going to go on to the next round? And you said, "Our goal hasn't changed." So why are you playing now? VINNY CASTILLA: Well, we're here to win. O ur idea is to continue fighting game by game, day by day. These guys are very happy with the unconditional support they've received from fans. Jorge played fantastically well. He was quite a jewel, and we're all absolutely thrilled with what we delivered. After we got off on the wrong foot on Sunday, here we are. Q. Vinny, you know the key goal is to go on to the next round, and now you can practically choose your opponent. Have you thought about it? VINNY CASTILLA: Well, hey, we're here to play baseball. We're going to give it all we have. We're going to play every day. Tomorrow against Cuba, that's going to be a tough game. But like I say, our goal hasn't changed. We'll continue fighting. Korea or Japan? Korea and a Japan as a ballclub, they know how to play. Japan is king. They're the ones that won the last tournament. They definitely know how to play. Q. There's a motto that says a team isn't as good as when it wins nor as bad as when it loses. Analyzing your experience with Australia, you're going to win by knock-outs or lose by knock-outs. What do you think about that second round? VINNY CASTILLA: Well, today's win, that was absolutely real, and today's game was definitely a giveaway. In the small series you face everything. These guys have played very well. As soon as they walk out, what you feel in the clubhouse, what you feel on the field, I think we're one of the strongest teams, and there's a lot of talent, a lot of talent to go on. Q. For you which team do you prefer to match up in San Diego, Japan or Korea? JORGE CANTU: Well, I mean, Korea and Japan are pretty much both the same teams; they play the little game. They play the bunt, they play the moving-the-runners-over. They sacrifice themselves. They hit the ball the other way with authority. That's their strength. We're just going to try to match them, try to match them and be on the right position on the field, playing defense, and man, like Vinny said, we have a great squad, and this is not going to be over until we come back to Mexico from San Diego or LA. Best of luck to all the teams, and may the best win it all. Q. Jorge, you had a hard time the first inning and then you sat down. What kind of an explanation is there? And Vinicio, today's score, was that a surprise? JORGE CAMPILLO: Well, like you said, sure enough, the first couple of innings I was feeling lots of angst because my pitching was a bit high, and I can't miss it high, and I've got to recognize Miguel's knowledge about the park, and he pulled me until we were able to find the right balance with my pitching. And that, I think, was absolutely the key after the sixth inning because we started scoring after that. Q. What I asked you is were you surprised with today's score? VINNY CASTILLA: Honestly, I didn't even expect anything close to that, especially after seeing Australia play against Cuba yesterday. I definitely was expecting a much closer game, but that's what baseball is. We received very comfortable pitches, and we used them all. We really killed them. Q. So we can start asking about second round. About tomorrow's game, would you like to be in the first place or second place just so we can have an idea? VINNY CASTILLA: Obviously we want to make it to the first place. We never play baseball to lose. You always walk out onto the field to play and to win because if you do that, if you choose that you want first or second, boy, baseball is going to come right back and bite you. Q. Jorge, everyone cheered you on and cheered you on. They were shouting "Cantu! Cantu!" And you really stepped up when you had all your runners on base there was a bit of a relief because although Australia really upset you on Sunday, what happened? JORGE CANTU: I'm really grateful to the fan base. What's better than just playing for your own country? I really hope our fans understand that what we're living is not easy. I mean, you're playing this day in and day out, being able to hit a 90-miles-per-hour ball is no easy feat. It's huge support we've received from the fan base. We can't be any happier than what we are right now. Q. For Vinny and Jorge: Vinny, do you already have the people that will be substituting Alfredo Amezaga? VINNY CASTILLA: Might be Christian Presichi, and we're going to hold a meeting because we still don't know what the other names are going to be. We'll let you guys know. Q. Jorge, after the first game Mexican pitching has changed. Were you told anything by Fernando Valenzuela? JORGE CAMPILLO: After the first match we really missed many of the pitches and they noticed it and they told us you really can't make these kind of mistakes in these tournaments. They said, hey, guys, you know what to do. You're playing because you know how to pitch, so we just started doing what we know how to do and stopped making mistakes, and it's thanks to this that we pulled through. Q. I've got a question for all three: Can you speak about the importance of this tournament and the success of the Mexican team to promote the game in this country? VINNY CASTILLA: This is a very important tournament. It's probably the top tournament available in baseball. Baseball has been highly promoted, especially countries where baseball isn't played as much. In Mexico people have -- they've become curious. Look at the amount of people that showed up here, countries like Australia and South Africa, where baseball wasn't as popular, either. Well, the fan base is waking up. They're warming up to the game, and I'm sure baseball shall continue to grow. THE MODERATOR: Thank you very much. Q. Who is pitching tomorrow? VINNY CASTILLA: Pablo Ortega I believe opens tomorrow. JORGE CANTU: I have to say something that we were very uncomfortable. I need to say what I'm going to say, this is out of the clubhouse. This comes from the Australian manager, and he says, "You don't get 22 hits out of nowhere." They were convinced they were going to beat Mexico, and they wanted to get back at the Cubans tomorrow. So there's no coincidence in knocking them out. That's all what I wanted to say. THE MODERATOR: Edgar, talk to us about the game. EDGAR GONZALEZ: We showed up to this game full of energy thinking about the other team's comments, well, we kept on mulling over these, and it really gave us the energy that we needed. No team here is a weak team, and we can all fight equally. Q. What do you think about your three RBIs and your brother's runs? It's really not easy to have a couple of brothers. EDGAR GONZALEZ: You're right. The first game things didn't work out too well, but baseball, you know, things change from one game to another. I relaxed more today. I knew baseball was going to give back to me if I kept at it, kept at it, and thank God, I was able to get a hit at the right time with men on base. Q. Edgar, it looked like you guys finally found what this park is like. EDGAR GONZALEZ: We were just talking about that. First we weren't hitting the balls, and here we're flying all the balls. Of course the kind of games that you play over there, you've got to be more fundamental. You've got to use as many runs as possible. We all play over there and we can tell the guys what this is about. Q. You're going to be facing Cuba tomorrow. Can you imagine what this place is going to look like? What's the difference between the Major League games, and now you're playing for your country? EDGAR GONZALEZ: I guess this just feels nicer. Once you play in the playoffs, that's wonderful. But to be here representing your country, representing Mexico, is even nicer than playing for the Major Leagues. Q. Now that you guys are going on to the next round, Japan, Cuba, Korea and you guys -- EDGAR GONZALEZ: We were talking about that. We were saying, man, these are three very strong teams, and us, that's the fourth one, and the guy that bats properly, that plays the right way, well, that's the team that's going to make it. Q. How much have you played these days? How much have you worked out just to be more relaxed? EDGAR GONZALEZ: I work out every day. What happens on the baseball field is not something I can control because sometimes you really hit them hard and they don't go anywhere. Sometimes you barely tap them and they go a long way. I have fun, because if you don't have fun playing, you shouldn't be here. Things went well this time. Last time they sucked, but this is the way the game is. Q. Do you feel more comfortable batting second? And what can we expect against Cuba tomorrow? EDGAR GONZALEZ: Well, with San Diego I've batted second often, and here with this team I know we have many great players. We've got stars. Vinny is the manager; I'll respect what he says. Now, about Cuba, we know they're a great challenge. We saw part of the game yesterday. We picked up a few tips, and we're here to win. We don't want to just make it to second place. Q. The second phase starts for Mexico because Cuba is already in, so this is an important game, and people think, Mexico is going to let their guard down, but maybe you're not. You're going to meet Cuba one more time in San Diego. EDGAR GONZALEZ: Well, absolutely. If we beat them, we can definitely send a message, let them know. We've got a tough team, too, and if we're going to face you guys again, well, this is who we are. Q. One of your rivals, Korea, Japan, they were playing against the San Diego Padres. Are you going to call them up? EDGAR GONZALEZ: Of course, I'm going to call these guys up. I think they played today. Sure I'll call them up. I want to find out about the batters and the pitchers. Q. You know Pablo Ortega. Do you know him well? EDGAR GONZALEZ: Yeah, I definitely know him. We were together in Mazatlan. He has a great sinker. I don't want to tell Cuba too much (laughter). You know, he's a guy, when he's facing tough times, difficult times, he's pitched a lot for the Mazatlan team, and he's always ready. THE MODERATOR: Thank you. End of FastScripts |
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