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MLB WINTER MEETINGSDecember 8, 2010Ron GardenhireLAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA Q. What do you know about Nishioka at this point? RON GARDENHIRE: Not really a lot, other than we won the bid, and now we're negotiating with him and trying to work out a deal. That's about as far as it is. He's a good player. He's a speed guy. He can run a little bit. He's won some good gloves over there. But we don't really know a lot about him and won't know until we get him in spring training if we're fortunate enough to sign him. Q. Do you have an opinion at this point at all whether he'd be better suited at second or short? RON GARDENHIRE: No, because I haven't seen him play. I like to get a guy out there. And I think if we can get him in spring training and start working around the infield, talk to him, I know he's comfortable at shortstop. Talk to him about second base, see if he's been there. Those are the things that you need to make sure you're on the same page with when you talk to the player and go through all of those introductions and all that stuff. Make sure he understands what you're talking about and where you're coming from. Then we'll get him out on the field and see what happens. Q. Are you ready for the barrage of Japanese reporters that are going to follow him? RON GARDENHIRE: I understand you. I think I can understand them (laughing). Q. Baseball has its own international universal language, but have you thought about just getting into these situations where you'll probably have to have an interpreter go between you and Nishioka and trying to get across -- you have a certain approach to managing and relating to players and using humor sometimes. Have you thought about all of that as far as being able to relate to this guy? RON GARDENHIRE: Well, those are all the things that I obviously I haven't dealt with a Japanese player yet. I think it's exciting. Over the course of time I've learned a little Spanish where I can communicate with some of our Latin players, and that's always entertaining. I can do the same thing, you know, if we sign a Japanese player. I think that would be fun. It gives me something else that I get to do this winter, and that is brush up on a little Japanese, and make sure I can get a few things across to him. I'm sure we're going to need some help with an interpreter and all of those things, but it will be entertaining. That's what the game's all about. Once you get on the field a lot of things you can show him what you're talking about and maybe you'll have somebody out there to explain. But baseball's baseball. You can show a guy a lot of things and we can go from there. Q. The feeling that Casilla is going to be given this chance this year to see if he can make or break a situation for him. Was that something that you brought to Bill that he brought to you that you guys discussed together? RON GARDENHIRE: We talked about it. He's had one really good season a couple years ago, then scuffled off and on since then. But I think he's matured. He's a speed guy that can make a lot of things happen. I don't think it's a make-or-break situation. I just think it's time for a guy to go back out there, get it done again and figure it out. Now if that's the starting role, which I hope the guy can take over and do. I'd love to be able to see him get out there and get back to what he did a couple years ago, that would be wonderful. But spring training's going to dictate everything we do. We'll see how they do in spring training, who we have in spring training and then go from there. We won't know anything until we get to spring and see who is on our roster. We'll have a lot of good battles in spring training. He's going to be in one of those bats. Q. Historically, based on his history, do you like him better at second or short? RON GARDENHIRE: Well, second base I always thought was his position that he kind of profiled a little bit better at. But I've always said, you know for me I think he moves really well at shortstop. I think he's acrobatic, I think he's athletic, and he can come and get the ball. He can go from all kinds of angles, and I think he's more comfortable coming and getting the ball rather than waiting on it. I like him at shortstop probably better just because he's more athletic, and he can come and get the ball. He has a canon and all of those things. But he was pretty good at second base for us too. He's athletic enough to go either way. I've always said this young man can play some shortstop. And I think we saw that a little bit last year when he was out there. He covers a lot of ground with the canon. Q. If Alexi does play every day, do you feel he's probably your number two hitter? RON GARDENHIRE: Well, you know what, that all goes to spring training. I would hate to sit there and say it depends on who is on our roster. I'm not going to sit and say this guy's this and this. We have to see how it breaks down. Who our infielders are, where we're going to play then we go from there and see who fits in. I haven't seen the Japanese kid play and what kind of swing he's got. I know he's hit really well over there, but I haven't seen him. So I think we just kind of ad lib a little bit and see. J.J. Hardy, we've got him in the fold. We'll see where he's at. See how J.J. comes into spring training. The big thing we want to have is options. We're going to have some options if we can get this Japanese kid signed. We'll have some speed options, and some veteran options and that's a good thing. Q. You have some question marks in the bullpen. Not only could you lose a number of free agents, but you don't know what you're going to get from Nathan. Would you be comfortable stocking your bullpen with guys that you have in the system or do you feel it's important to go get somebody that is more established to kind of take the place of maybe, if it is bringing back somebody you've already had or getting somebody more established? RON GARDENHIRE: I think, again, we have to wait to see how everything ticks down. To see who is and who isn't here. The one thing I know we've been pretty resilient with is being able to find the pieces that we need. No matter which way we go, we'll have a few good pitchers out there in the bullpen. If you have to fill some holes, you have to fill some holes. If we look at it and don't think some of our guys are ready to do those things, there will be options after. We'll wait all winter long to kind of figure it out and see where guys go and see what happens and that's what we're doing. When we get to spring, I bet we'll have plenty of good arms out there to fill some holes if some guys leave. I'm just betting we'll have some people that might be able to step in and get it done. That's been the norm. They're working their tails off right now, talking to all of our free agents and talking with Billy and them. And you know what, I have total confidence they'll get something done and we'll figure it out. That is the great thing about the winter. We still have a lot of time here. Q. How much can you count on Neshek or Perkins next year. Do you think they can shake off what happened last year. Neshek getting farther removed from Tommy John surgery, or is that a little bit of a concern for you? RON GARDENHIRE: That's going to definitely probably be a factor. We always know after that first year guys get a little more strength. He's definitely going to have to gain arm strength. What we saw at the end of the year was arm strength. He wasn't throwing the ball very hard when he got up here, but he also just had a full season in the minor leagues and probably wore him down a little bit. So I think spring training will be huge for health. See if he can come back, and we know he can get big league hitters out. He's just got to get his velocity back. It takes time. We'll have to wait with him. As far as Perkins goes, I'm impressed with Perkins. I think he bounced back. I think he took the ball. The ball was coming out of his hands pretty good that he could come out of the bullpen and actually throw some hitters away when he got it going. He's got a lot of options with him too. He started relief. He's a valuable arm, you can't find lefties that can throw the ball like that. So that is another guy that we're going to count on him one way or another. They'll have to figure out how to get it done, and we'll go from there. Q. You guys are making a pretty strong effort to resign Carl Pavano. That would give you a surplus of starters. How would you feel about putting one of those guys in the bullpen as far as stemming the tide in case a free agent can't be signed? RON GARDENHIRE: Well, that's a problem that you'd love to have. You'd love to have to figure out who is going to be your starter and somebody that is pretty good having to go to the bullpen or whatever. Those are great problems that you have. You hope you can sign Pavano. We want him back, but it's just a matter of time with him too and a lot of conversations. We're talking with agents with a lot of people, and Carl's is one. I think he'd love to pitch for us, and hopefully we'll get him back and we'll have some tough decisions to make. That's a good thing. Got to remember when the season ended last year, we had some guys that you never know how that is going to be. When we get back to spring, hopefully everybody will be fine and we'll have a healthy group with a lot of competition in spring training. Q. Do you go into spring training with the assumption that Nathan is your closer or do you have to just wait and see? RON GARDENHIRE: Oh, that's just a wait and see. There is no guarantee where Nathan's going to be and how he feels. Coming off this thing, I guarantee Nathan's going to say I'm ready to go and all those things. There is more to it than that. He's got to get out and let it fly and everything else. He comes out there. If Nathan's got his pitch, then that's fantastic. That means that we're going to have some pretty good arms out there. And Capp-man, we've seen what he can do. He's a bulldog, and probably one of the most quality people that we've had a chance to bring into this organization. On a scale of 2 to 8, he's an 8. And that is a good person to have in your organization and your bullpen too. So your closer's solid. If you get Nathan and Capps back in the back end whichever way it works out. That is going to be a good situation to work with. Q. Do you think Nathan's the type of guy that if he were to be eased in in the 7 or 8th inning, he wouldn't have a problem with sitting behind Matt Capps for a while? RON GARDENHIRE: We'll just have to see how it all works out in spring training. I can't speak for somebody. I know that we're going to do what we think is best for everybody involved. And Nathan's been a great closer, not just a good one, a great closer. I'm sure he's going to go in spring training wanting to be a closer, And that is the way he has to attack it. He has to go on like that. We expect that. And he's a hell of a closer, too, so that will be a good problem to have. Having guys want to be the closer and all those things. You know what, we'll figure it out. We'll figure out what's going to work best and make sure that we take care of Nathan. Hopefully not let him go. Get him in there in spring training. I'm sure he'll be anxious to get going and prove to everybody that he's healthy. We'll have to guard against those things and that's just the way it is when a guy comes back after something like this. Q. On your own list of off-season priorities, where does resigning Jim Thome fall? RON GARDENHIRE: Well, I told Billy right away I'd love to have this guy back. I don't prioritize all these different things. We'd love to have all of our free agents back. To say this guy's more important than that guy, that's not the way a manager works, that's not the way I'm going to work. I want Jim Thome back. I want all of these guys back. I think that would be fantastic. I know it's probably impossible to be able to sign every one of them, and you just have to live with it. But Thome's one of the guys that I said, yeah, he's valuable this year. Plays fantastic, a quality person. He fits. He's a great fit for our ballclub, and hopefully it works out. Q. Have you had a chance to talk much with Morneau? RON GARDENHIRE: No, not really. He text me back and forth, and text me congratulations on the manager of the year thing. Not a lot of conversations, one or two with him, and he says he's doing fine. Not a whole lot of conversations, just letting him -- I know everybody in the world has been asking how he's doing, and I've tried to stay away from it, honestly. I know he's going to be when it comes time for him to get after it, he'll get after it. We'll have conversations after the first of the year, we'll see where he's at and how he's doing. End of FastScripts |
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