This season has been very gratifying and extremely satisfying as well. The player development system validates itself when players come to the big leagues and not only just get there, but perform well.
We felt that because of our own catching situation and this was a left-hand hitting catcher, that if he was healthy, it's a very small price to pay to get a player who could potentially be a big leaguer some day.
They've endured the call-ups, the injuries, and the players who have come up from Double-A to Indianapolis have done a nice job,
Not right now. I don't think anybody's going to know who's the best player or players in the country until next year. Everybody has his own favorites, of course, but it might take until April until there's some kind of consensus.
If you push a player to a level above his ability, he goes into survival mode and he doesn't get better. All he does is try to play to survive regardless of how talented he is.
He is very mature in terms of his poise, his composure and the way he goes about his business. Any time a young player can get this kind of experience to kind of expedite his development, it's a great spot for him.
We've been extremely honest and straight with players in terms of development and why they're staying at certain levels. Players need to perform. They just don't get promoted based on potential. It's performance-based, same as in the big leagues.
I like the fact that the players are here mentally prepared to work hard and make the team. This is the most focused camp I've seen in four years.