NCAA Super Regional Press Conference
6/5/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
June 5, 2009
TCU Quotes
Head Coach Jim Schlossnagle
Opening Statement:
We're certainly excited to be here. It's obviously going to be a great weekend for college baseball and a historic weekend for TCU baseball in terms of where it is and where we're trying to get to. Certainly we're excited to be in Austin.
On playing on FieldTurf:
Any turf that I've been on is nothing like this. This is the slowest stuff and Coach Garrido talked to me about it the last time we were down here and the difference it has made in the style of play. In 2004 we came down here for the regional with the old turf and there's no question that that was an advantage for the Longhorns. But we pretty much play in a graveyard anyways in terms of the way the ball carries and the size of our field in terms of getting a home run. I think the biggest difference is the hitters standing on the turf and hitting and then sliding on it, but when we came down here in April I think it helped us get a feel for it.
On their offensive strategy:
Our game is more similar to Texas' style of play. We haven't bunted as much as them, nor has any other team in the country, but we're more likely to play for a run or two like Texas than we are to sit around and wait.
On playing the national number one seed:
If we win this thing, it will certainly be an upset. Anyone Texas plays would be the underdog because Texas is the number one national seed. We spent a lot of time on the mental game, blocking out distractions and I would much rather play here in front of 7,000 Longhorn fans than I would at Ole Miss where it was 30 degrees and sleeting. I'll take my chances here, it's a lot easier to block out the crowd than it is when you're trying to field a ball and it's freezing outside.
On not being satisfied with their season yet:
We haven't accomplished anything. We won a NCAA Regional, but our saying this season has been, "So what?" Going into this year, we've won five consecutive conference championships and we've been to six consecutive regionals or more. So what? We haven't been to Omaha and none of that means anything until we get to go there. I told this team throughout the season I expect this team to play in the College World Series and if they don't, I'm not telling you it's a bad season, but it'll be a disappointment. We start five seniors every day and we have two others that play big roles. I trust those guys, we've played a great schedule for two years and if there's ever a club that is prepared for this moment it's this team.
On the team's best qualities:
Our best quality is that we have a veteran club that is not fazed much. We play the game well. We normally don't screw the game up very much. We play really, really hard. I know Texas will play hard and will be incredibly well coached. But no one will play harder than TCU, I promise you, in the entire 64-team field. That overcomes a lot of things when you're trying to advance in the postseason.
On the recent success of Preston Clark:
I love seeing kids rewarded for being good people and being really hard workers and that's what I have on my team. Matt Carpenter has been here for five years and had to go through Tommy John surgery in 2007 and that completely changed his life. He lost 40 pounds, became a completely different person, and became a better student. And I'm a firm believer saying that the game knows. The game knows when you do things poorly or when you cheat yourself. The game will penalize you for that, and when you do things right and you play really hard and you're a good guy, the game will eventually reward you for that and that's what happened to Preston Clark and that's what has happened to our team.
On their pitching rotation:
Our starting pitching has definitely fluctuated this season. Kyle Winkler is going to start for us tomorrow and Paul Gerrish will throw on Saturday. Last weekend we had three starters and I really believe our best baseball is happening right now and that is what has to happen to get to Omaha. It's not the best team but the team that plays the best. Coach Garrido, I'm sure, will back that up and all you got to do is ask Fresno State. That is where we are right now and that's to get the hot hand on the mound.
Freshman P Kyle Winkler
On starting Saturday's game:
I was definitely a little nervous last week more because it was a big game for us and I wanted to get it done especially for the seniors. I don't think I'll be nervous this Saturday. I'll have had experience with a regional and one of our big goals for this season was to get to a regional. Now that we're in a super regional, a lot of pressure is off us. I think I'm going to go out there and do what I need to do.
On playing Texas:
I don't think we're intimidated. We've played them before and we're a different team now than we were when we played them earlier this season.
On whether Texas is a team of destiny:
I think we are team of destiny too. We won on a walk-off single in the ninth with a freshman up to bat against an Oregon State team that had every right to be a higher seed in the regional. They played well the entire regional. The entire year, I personally think that this is a team we have to easily make it to the College World Series as long as we play our game. If we have a couple of things go right for us this weekend, we can be up there with anybody.
On his pitching style:
I go right after people. I use my fastball a lot. I'm definitely more about getting ahead of the hitter, throwing my breaking ball all over the plate and really trying to get a lot of ground balls. I think with the turf here that's really going to help me out.
Senior RF Chris Ellington
On having a solid fan following:
The whole time we hosted the regional, we've had really good fan support. It was nice to go out today and be dismissed with all our fans supporting us. It's a good feeling.
On playing in front of a sold out crowd:
The biggest crowd we've played in front of is probably our regional at home. We're going to rise to the challenge, we've played in 30 degree weather where it was sleeting and snowing and I think that is just as hard a circumstance as a lot of fans. It's just about taking it one pitch at a time and blocking out the atmosphere.
Senior 3B Matt Carpenter
On playing on a different field:
The biggest difference is the artificial turf. We're used to playing on regular grass, but we have an indoor facility at TCU and we take ground balls in there all the time. So the turf is not really an issue. As for the way the ball plays here, this isn't a real big hitters' park and neither is our place so we're used to that kind of situation. It's tough to get a bad hop on turf, so from an infielder's stand point, it's a lot of fun to play on.
On facing any pressure:
I don't think the pressure is on us because we're playing with a lot of confidence right now. We're definitely not satisfied just being in the super regional. We want to go to the College World Series and that's the ultimate goal. We're really confident right now, we're excited. Our team is pretty tight knit and we're looking forward to coming in here and letting everybody know what kind of team we are. We look at this as a challenge and we want to rise to the occasion. We're looking forward to it, I'm excited and I'm anxious to get out here tomorrow night.
On knowing many of the Texas Longhorns:
I played with Preston Clark in high school and I know a lot of the guys from their team. It's cool to have two teams from Texas in a super regional. You'll get a lot of guys that you played with in the high school level and at the summer leagues. We know a lot of their guys and they know a lot of our guys. It's a pretty neat deal.
Texas Quotes
Head Coach Augie Garrido
Opening Statement:
We played TCU earlier in the year and you can toss that one out the window. It was a Tuesday game. Both teams had played in conference over the weekends so we were in different parts of our pitching staff, different parts of the rotation, the game just kind of moved along with a flow but really has no bearing on what's going to happen this weekend. Both teams have changed dramatically from then to now. Both teams are much better. As a result of the success in the regionals, both teams will be coming in with more confidence than they had in the past. We would expect this to be another weekend of exciting and competitive Division I Baseball.
On playing TCU:
They do a lot of little things. They're well coached. They're very positive about their approach to the game. They play the college game, meaning a heavy emphasis on pitching and defense and trying to manufacture runs which most of us do. It will be about the little things that go into the game, the momentum shifts of the game are going to separate the two teams and I think it'll be a big battle.
On Austin Wood's role as the closer:
He wanted to do that because he provides a lot of leadership for this team, not only on the pitching staff. We have a lot of different personalities but they are a very tight unit on this team. Even though their personalities are different, they're all unselfish and they're all willing to do whatever it takes to help the team win. That's the common denominator on the pitching staff and that's why they've been so successful. Austin took himself and put himself aside at the beginning of the year because we did not have a closer. His commitment to the team went beyond his own aspirations in professional baseball where starting is where you have the best chance to show your talents. He took on the toughest job there is on a pitching staff, short relief and closer because the team needed him. That attitude, along with his talent, is why he's been exceptionally successful.
On how what happened in the regionals can affect the team:
It can go either way. It's like everything else. If it's used right by everyone involved, it can enrich your confidence. If you think you've got it made and you think you're going to win because of what happened and you can do that at any time and you make assumptions, it will go the wrong way. In this game, it can go either way. Nothing produces an outcome that's predictable. That's the excitement of it all. It's about the unpredictable. We'll see. I think we've enjoyed practice. I think we've had a good focus at practice. I think the players are looking forward to the game but I don't think they take things for granted. If they take things for granted, if they don't stick to the fundamentals of the game and stay focused on the game, bases will slip away from them on offense and outs will slip from them on defense. When that happens, you become less confident and the momentum shifts.
On the team picking each other up:
I think it's about attitude. I think it's about any unselfish spirit that they have about getting the job done. Being able to over come the adversities and maintain their confidence so when it's time to perform, they become challenged in a positive way because they're doing things right all along the way and I think that's where that success comes from. They don't panic on whether they're going to win or whether they're going to lose. If they don't get it done, they trust their teammate to get it done.
Senior 3B Michael Torres
On the emotions of getting out of regionals:
On Saturday, I think we were all so exhausted that we kind of all just went home, ate and went to bed to get ready for Sunday. Sunday, we were excited. I think we were more excited to move on than the actual game and how it ended. We were just excited that we came together, we pulled out and the offense scored runs. We were excited, then we had Monday off, came and worked out on Tuesday and then it was getting ready for this weekend. It's in the past now. We've moved on and we're ready for this weekend.
On getting the offense going early:
It's just as important as it is in any of the other games. You want to get out there, you want to get on base, you want to score runs and it gets the offense in a rhythm. To give the starting pitchers like Chance [Ruffin] and Cole [Green] some runs early on, it helps them get comfortable. It's something we always try to do. It's not just this weekend. It's a plan that we've had all year so hopefully we're able to do it this weekend.
Junior 1B Brandon Belt
On how he's recovered from the injury:
I feel fine. I'm getting these stitches out today so I'll feel a little bit better once they come out. I actually went to a balance specialist today and everything is good to go. When I got hit, I knew I was going to have to come out because I couldn't really walk on my own and I wanted to play. But I did. It's a credit to the training staff here with how much they helped me because I was able to come back the next day. When you have stitches in your ear and a mild concussion that usually doesn't happen very often. They helped me a lot. They did everything they needed to do to get me back out there the next day.
Sophomore RHP Chance Ruffin
On the scouting report on TCU:
I haven't seen too much about them, kind of just what we've seen last time we played them. I haven't seen much more than I've seen on any other team.
On his performance during the regionals:
I wasn't very satisfied with it. It was something that gave us an opportunity to win, something I expect to do consistently, but I'm hoping to go out and do a little better this round, maybe get a little further in the game with a couple more innings.
On his pitching success:
I reflect on that kind of thing a lot. Coming into college, hardly any body knew of me. If they did, it was probably more because of my dad than anything. To go from just a middle relief in the bullpen to starting, being a Friday starter has been a huge deal, it has been really exciting for me.
On his pitches and his best pitch:
My fastball has a little natural cut on it and usually I throw a slider. The best pitch is a strike for sure.
