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THE YANKEES WILL BE HOLDING A BOOK-BURNING PROMOTION SHORTLY


“I don’t want this Alex thing to be a target. I have some issues with it. It’s interesting how the book [publication] date got moved up now. I get tired of answering these questions. I don’t understand why someone would write a book like this anyway. You know what, some people may not care to hear that, but I don’t understand it.”

Yankees manager Joe Girardi


“I think like any child, you never want to be abandoned again. In order to sort of keep people near him, people close, please people, I think he always felt that he had to be better than good.”

Selena Roberts, author of A-Rod: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez.


“Just going into someone’s life. I have three small kids, and there are things in my life that I probably wish I could have a re-do on. I wouldn’t want those dragged through the mud, and I’m sure you wouldn’t, either. I think sometimes things are written about that none of us are proud of. There are things in my life I’m not proud of that I’ve done. I wouldn’t want my kids to have to deal with that. I tell my kids that daddy makes mistakes, I do. And I apologize for them. I say, ‘Daddy’s not perfect.'”

Girardi


“I think in some ways he felt he had to be, you know, not just a great story, but a tall tale, something that was too good to be true in so many ways.”

Roberts


“In general terms, I don’t have much interest in any book that dwells on the negative on somebody, whether it’s an athlete or anybody else. But when you do what we do for a living, that scrutiny is there. Speaking only for myself, I try and do the right thing. If you do that, you don’t have to worry about it.”

-Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira, on A-Rod.


“From the excerpts that I have read, there are negative things about his lifestyle. I’m a firm believer that what we do off the field is our personal life. Some people aren’t going to agree with my faith. Some people aren’t going to agree with all the things I do with my life. But I don’t necessarily know why it has to be in a book. It’s something I’ve never understood, whether it’s a book about Alex or other people. Whether it’s a book about a president or a book about whoever. I just don’t understand it. Maybe that’s a short-sighting on my part, but I don’t understand.”

Girardi


“My parents always taught me that talk about the good. Be positive. That might be, you know, that might be me being somewhat short-sighted. But my Mom and Dad always taught me, and I love them to death.”


Girardi (Peter Abraham, The LoHud Yankees Blog)


MAYBE HE SHOULD HAVE HIBERNATED FOR LONGER BEFORE THE SEASON


“Well, I’m not happy. Why should I be? But let me tell you what. I’m the kind of guy that, 100 at-bats in two weeks, I can wipe my ass with. You know what I’m saying? I’m just going to keep it cool, keep playing the game, not worry about too many things.”

Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz, on not homering in a regular-season game since September 22, 2008.


“I’m not going to worry about all the negativity, all the bullshit. Because it seems like it’s never enough. People, all they like to see is people fail, so they have a reason to talk [expletive]. So that’s why I’m trying to stay away from talking. Because I don’t need to talk. I need to do things right now. You know what I’m saying? I will do things. Believe me. Regardless. I will.”

Ortiz


“It’s going to come slowly, and it will. I’m just not trying to do… what I can do in a week, I’m not trying to do in one day anymore. I was, I’m not going to be lying to you; I was trying to get five hits in one at-bat. So right now, I’m just taking it slowly. If they want to walk me, they don’t want to give me shit to hit, I won’t swing. If you give me something, I’m going to try to hit. If I don’t hit a home run today, I’m going to hit a home run tomorrow.”

Ortiz


“It gets in your head for a minute. It does. You’ve always been a home-run kind of guy, an RBI kind of guy. You’ve got 100 at-bats and you haven’t hit one one out, you be like, ‘What the [expletive] am I doing?’ But at the same time, you’ve got to see it this way: It’s not like you’re just stepping to the plate and not trying. Hitting a homer looks easy, but it ain’t.”

Ortiz (Adam Kilgore, Boston Globe)


MEET THE METS


“There was no intent to affect the integrity of the game. I think if it were to happen to me, I probably would have been a little bit upset just like the Marlins were, but that wasn’t the intent. That wasn’t the direction that we were headed. We had made that call [to bring in Santos] a lot earlier. It just so happened it took him a while to get down there.”

Mets manager Jerry Manuel, on holding up a game against the Marlins this week to get pinch-hitter Omir Santos from the bullpen.


“Let’s be clear-we have an edge. Our edge is different from maybe other teams. There’s different definitions of edge or leadership. We play the game different from other guys. Some guys are serious. Some guys are happy. Some guys are blue collar.”

-Mets general manager Omar Minaya


“I don’t think there is one guy who quits. I think our anxiety takes over and gets in the way of our performing. We have to control that a little bit more.”

Manuel, on the team’s struggles. (Tim Smith, New York Daily News)


THE REST


“I consider him a friend. When I came up to the team, he took me under his wing. I lived with him in his apartment in Manhattan for a couple of months, and in the offseason I was with him down in Miami. At the time, his wife and his baby were living there, and everything seemed great. The whole Rodriguez family was so kind to me.”

-Red Sox shortstop Nick Green, on his time with the Yankees and being friends with Alex Rodriguez. (Nick Cafardo, Boston Globe)


“That’s the best pitcher we’ll probably face in our lives.”

-Santa Clara outfielder Kevin Madden, on San Diego State right-hander Stephen Strasburg. (Damon Esper, San Diego Union-Tribune)


“I don’t think we’re in the market to do that at this point. We like our team next year with Halladay. If we ever did get to that point, we’d want a boatload. And I don’t know whether anyone would offer a boatload. But obviously, we’re not at that point.”


Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi, on ever trading Roy Halladay. (Jon Heyman, SI.com)


“Our big horses have got to hit. If they don’t hit, the wagon don’t move! We’ve got Clydesdales. Our Clydesdales have got to pull the wagon.”

Astros manager Cecil Cooper (Charles Odom, Yahoo! Sports)


“I’m really more worried about how I’m doing than how McCarthy is doing. I know he’s had some health problems, so I wish him the best, and hopefully, he can stay healthy.”


White Sox lefty John Danks, on the pitcher he was traded for, Brandon McCarthy of the Texas Rangers. (Drew Davison, Fort-Worth Star Telegram)


“It sounds like Blue Oyster Cult out here. Need more cowbell.”

-New TBS broadcaster David Wells, on the acoustics in Tropicana Field.


Alex Carnevale is a contributor to Baseball Prospectus.

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Oleoay
5/04
Papi sure seems less happier without Manny around...
llewdor
5/04
I can't believe someone gave Boomer a broadcasting job.

I love that someone did - I'm just surprised.
Richie
5/04
Why the worthless quotes from Girardi? Did he say one thing in there different from what all managers always say in all such situations about any and/or all of their players? What, next week are you going quote players returning from injury saying "I'm good to go!"?
eighteen
5/04
Cecil Cooper's a hoot.
AndrewP
5/04
Mr. Ortiz is in a mood, isn't he?