Johnny Almaraz Quotations

We're going to formulate individual plans for every player. We'll pull back when a player's fatigued.

We're going to individualize every single program for every guy in the system. That'll be the big positive. And of course, the take-a-strike, we've modified that, that's no longer going to exist. Pitch counts will exist, but it's not one blanket program. If it needs to exist for a certain individual, it will. If it doesn't for another, it won't.

We're going to challenge Homer. Homer's going to dictate where we send him.

We're going to challenge him. We're going to put him at a level where he can compete at, and excel and be pushed.

One morning, all his stuff was gone. He's home in New York dealing with personal problems which have impacted a lot of decisions he's made here. We're empathetic and sympathetic towards that, but it's pretty tough to try to help somebody when there's no communication.

Richie is about two weeks from throwing off the mound. Pauly is a little behind him, probably a month away.

I'm a more traditional baseball person. We're going to give the kids free rein to play the traditional style of baseball.

He did a good job. But he had an opportunity he couldn't pass up.

He's got one of the best arms in the system. He throws 93 to 97.

He seems to be doing OK. He needs to work on things and develop more consistency. We want him to throw a two-seam fastball more.

We made sure he understood what the organization wants and that there will be zero tolerance with regards to rule-breaking. I think he understands where we're coming from, and he knows that this may be his last opportunity. I'm hoping to see him become a real professional and be a part of our major league club at some point.

He spent about a week there just enjoying his family.

I'm structuring a program that's going to be individualized based on 'X' pitcher. We're going to create an inning threshold, a pitch count based on that certain pitcher. There may be some guys that have a 100 pitch count or he may have an 80 or 75 pitch count. It all depends on the person's strength, arm action and mechanics. All of that will play a role in our decision making.

We'll add and subtract, depending on the individual.

We're waiting to hear from him, see where he's at in his personal life, see if he has some type of resolution to his problems. We'll always welcome him with open arms, if and when he is ready to make a commitment.

Everybody is different. Everybody deserves to be given an individual plan that's best suited for them.

I'm going to gamble on him. I've been very direct to him in spelling out what I want and what the organization wants. If he doesn't comply with the way the Cincinnati Reds do business, he'll be out of here. It's zero tolerance.

He's relentless. He goes 100 percent every single day, every single practice session. He's evolved into a major league player because of it.

He's a player who's got a major league arm, but lacks discipline.

Along with really protecting a lot of the young kids because they've been abused (in terms of usage) in high school and college, we're also going to be really aggressive with the guys that are in the system already. If they show us that they're strong enough, they're going to go out there, and if they can go 90-100 pitches, they're going to do that.