Ron Gardenhire People Quotations

We know what Stew can do, what kind of player he is. We don't have to worry about that. ... We've got people we've got to get a look at, too. He's given us the best he can.

We're 17 games in. I'd say that's too early (to be concerned). We still haven't found a groove yet. If we do that, we can compete. If we're 7-10 here and we've got people injured and some people who aren't here, I think we're battling pretty good.

Maybe we can put some fear in them, They have a single-digit lead (over Cleveland) now, so you know they're starting to feel the effects. And that's half the battle, to see how people handle things.

Means something to me, but you ought to ask some of those people out there,

People will say we're actually alive and that's not bad.

If Buck sees him throwing 84 mph on March 6, he's going to have a heart attack. It's an issue, but people have to deal with it. There are going to be pitchers who are notorious for not getting going until right at the end of spring training. Guys aren't going to be locked and loaded; that's almost a guarantee.

He's done OK. But the expectations were really high after the second half and what he did last year. He hasn't lived up to that. Scouts are up there and people see things. He hasn't been able to make the adjustments as quickly as a couple of guys. That's something he'll have to do to get better.

He didn't separate people. Everybody had a chance to be his friend. He always made you feel welcomed. Not too many people like that.

J.D., we're looking for a little more consistency from him. People talk about him being passed by, but he has the chance to be a good pitcher in this organization. He can't wait to get the ball. We like guys like that. He doesn't come in with a chip on his shoulder.

You know we have a good clubhouse. We just had some people who were frustrated. It wasn't about guys hating each other. You know, winning really heals things.

We haven't made contact with him, so we don't really know why (he hasn't reported). We are sending people to his house.

We'll have different people in there tomorrow. We're going to give everybody a chance to look bad.

We're trying to survive. We've got injuries. We've got people out. I think we're battling pretty good.

We think we have some pretty talented people that can help us do the things we need to do, and they've been good out in the clubhouse up to this point. We'll wait and see. It's going to be a long year, but up to this point, it seems like there's a nice flow going.

To me, starting the season with people less than 100 percent is very, very scary. I'm not talking about a little bit of a sore shoulder or something you play through, but I'm talking about muscle pulls and those types of things. Those come back and all of a sudden you're out.

We tried to tell people in the off-season that this division had gotten better and would be very tough.

The story has always been with him that he's a sloppy practice guy, but a good game guy. He's gotten better at his practice now, and a lot of people talked to him about that, working on some drills. He's grown up a little bit and made his presence known this year in camp.

That's why getting some people up here is going to help. Maybe a couple power arms like a (Travis) Bowyer and maybe a (Francisco) Liriano will help take the pressure off as we go here into September, where we don't have to kill those guys.

That's just the way it is. You just have to do what you've got to do when you've got people gone.

This is serious, very serious, and a lot of people are going to learn from this. We're going to help him get through this thing and make him understand how serious this is. He wants to face the penalty, and that's the right thing to do.

A lot of people thought we were going to the World Series last year. They just didn't realize how young our lineup was. And when we got a few guys hurt, it really hurt us.

I took it personal, and it wasn't really personal. So I learned from it. And I think Kyle did, too. I always have liked Kyle. ... Anytime you get guys with a fire inside of them, that want to win, that want to be out there on the mound, people are going to butt heads.

It's always nice to get out and talk to the people who help support us all year long.

It's not going to be a very good day. We've had people who have played very well who we're going to have to send down. Sometimes, you can have a great spring, and it's just not going to work out roster-wise.

It's wall-to-wall people here now. On the flip side, it's Florida. It's gorgeous.

They brought some people in here that have good numbers against Johan. I was looking at it before the game. I knew Molina had done well.

I'm not sitting around thinking about it as much as I used to. I used to booby trap everything. You start worrying about that stuff coming back at you. I'm a little calmer because there are different people here.

I'm sure there'll be a lot of people talking throughout the year about Puck. You can bet that we won't ever forget him.

I'm sure he'll get votes. If he doesn't get votes, then the wrong people are voting.

Honestly, the hardest part of the decision was taking him out. I think he needs to get in there and keep swinging, but you also know you need to use other people here and there, too.

He's one of our leaders. We lost a lot of people this year. Our outfield has been beaten up pretty bad. And Jacque is the one guy who needs to step up, and he's been doing that.

How much baseball he has left in him, that's what we'll determine in spring training. As far as going to Plan B, that's not something I've looked at yet. But we've got people here who've played over there before.

All you can see is how he does. I don't want to punish a kid for something like that. It's quite an honor. He might be pitching great for the world games, but I might have a guy here that's blowing people away every time he gets the ball. What are you going to do? That makes it tough on all parties.

It's always an honor to work with the Twins Community Fund and be a part of all the good that they do. They help people in so many ways. To be part of not only a baseball team, but being a part of something where you're helping people who need help, that's what life is all about really.