Buck Martinez Quotations

He's had a lot of success pitching in international competition, and that gives him an edge. I met him in Baltimore during their first series, and sitting on the bench with him before the game, I was impressed with his composure.

It's a very quiet locker room right now. I think everybody is feeling like they got kicked in the stomach.

He has been through this before and he understands the importance of representing your country. I think Jason is one of the best players who's ever strapped on the catching mask. He understands the game, he loves to represent his team, whether it's the Red Sox or Team USA. I'll be very anxious to work with a guy like that.

There were times last year when people looked at the scoreboard and thought my batting average was the temperature.

I think Barry Bonds was in a unique situation given his injuries from a year ago, the fact that he played in just 14 games. Even though I spoke to Barry in December and he was enthusiastic and excited about the possibility, I think the closer he got to the reality of spring training, and as he got himself in shape for the regular season and the San Francisco Giants, he felt like it may be too much of a challenge to try to push his body at this point in his career.

This is big stuff for our team. There's no doubt about it. I have no hesitations to say that our team is really enthusiastic and that we know what the expectations are. We can't wait to get going.

The players have been aware that they were going to be involved with this for a while now. But we're taking three catchers for a reason. You can't expect to catch this much this early without getting sore. Fourteen pitchers is another obvious thing. As for the players, we'll take things on an individual basis. For example, Ken Griffey told me he'd be ready to go.

When they got a good pitch to hit, they didn't miss it. They pitched very effectively to the heart of our order. We hit some balls hard. They made quality pitches when they had to.

I think the spirit of the Mexican team will be dramatic. We saw a little bit of it in Tucson the other day.

That's one of the things I'm most proud of is the character of the guys on this roster. They're anxious to step up and play for their country.