Joe Blanton Quotations

I'm definitely a big step closer to being ready.

It's a loose atmosphere here. I think that's good for a lot of the young guys here, we mix in pretty well and do our thing. It keeps us relaxed and confident.

He trusts my stuff. He taught me a lot. He calls the pitch that you expect to throw.

It's real nice, especially coming this late in the spring. You always want to have that one good outing right before you leave Spring Training, and this is my last start down here, so it was a good time for it.

It was laid-back, but you don't want to give up a run, and you don't want anyone to get a hit off you. You still want to have that bit of intensity, but not quite as much as a regular game.

I'm just getting more comfortable all the time. I'm trying to find the strike zone more with my offspeed pitches and my fastballs.

It's one of those where the other pitcher is getting a lot of attention, but I'm not facing him. I'm pitching against their lineup. He doesn't have anything to do with the way I approach the game.

We're going out and giving it all we have. It's just a matter of a couple breaks here and there.

That's the way it goes sometimes. Maybe in the Seattle series the ball was going right to the infielders. Maybe in the next series they'll hit line drives right at people. That's the way baseball works.

You never want to get into a jam but it was nice because it's something I'll need to face once the season rolls around.