Allard Baird Quotes (60 Quotes)

I will tell you that right now, it is not drugs. He didn't get kicked out of camp or anything like that. ... To me, it is a personal matter.

When you look at him on the field, his defensive ability goes without saying. I don't think any second baseman stays in on the double play like he does -- recklessly, sometimes.

I think, this year, his concentration skills have gone to another level. He's taking strikes. There are very few people who can take strikes and wait for the strike they really want. Carlos can. That's a tribute to his work ethic and natural ability,

There's nothing new since the last time we talked.

Makeup-wise he's a tough kid, a competitor, no excuses, holds himself accountable. Pitching consistent and down with his stuff are going to be big for him in spring training.

We've got to stick with our plan. We have no other alternative. We feel like we have some good, young players.

If something presents itself, we'll surely take a look at it. But as of right now, we think we've addressed our needs as we head into the off-season.

Very few times do you see a player who you can say he can be as good as he wants to be. Literally. I saw Alex Rodriguez in high school, and you could say it about him. That's what I think about Carlos.

Coming back with the same ball club was not going to cut it.

If he left March 15, that would be a different story. We haven't played a game yet. No pitcher has pitched a pitch yet in a game, so to me that does not factor in. The most important thing for us right now really is for him to take care of the personal matter. Everything else is secondary.

The alternative is to change direction. And that would be easy at this point, but it would be a mistake, so you stick with it ... Believe me, I understand that people are upset. I understand why they're upset. But you can't change the direction.

Emil has put himself in a situation, offensively, to be an everyday player. But where he is defensively is still in the discussion stages.

David is one of our key core players. He fits perfectly into our plan and direction. This shows the continued support of the Glass family to build a winning club in Kansas City.

Hey, I'd love to keep him. I scouted him when he was 18 in Puerto Rico. We were fortunate enough to draft, sign and develop him. I hope we're in this race all year, but if not I have to look to the future.

But he improved his release time last year.

His next outing will be a big indicator where his knee is at in relationship to where his arm is. His arm is ahead of his knee right now in terms of strength and stamina.

He wanted to get an idea about American Spring Training and techniques.

I like that. That says a lot about him. Most people would kind of rest on what they did. That's a good attitude. This guy has had to prove so much in his life, I don't think this is anything different. If he keeps that attitude, I think good things are going to happen for him.

Andre understands our organizational hitting philosophy. He has worked with a number of our young players, as well as some veteran players that came up through the organization.

Having a good camp is one thing, a lot of people have good camps. But his maturity level, his presence, his professionalism and respect for the game ... those are things that really stand out.

This is a process. It's gonna take some time. No one knows how much time. He's taking steps to move forward.

He's still tending to his business.

We definitely have an interest and we are pursuing it. I do not get the feeling that anything is imminent.

I'd still like to find a starter and improve the outfield situation as well.

The concern is from a conditioning standpoint.

He's low in the strike zone with his fastball and has an out pitch with his change up. He's worked hard on the command of his fastball. I think he's made improvement.

We've had a lot of guys here for a while. They're anxious to get going. And let's not forget, there's a lot of competition here.

We're better. If you want to gauge it, you gauge it at the end of the season. As long as we stay healthy, we're a better club.

It was just a comfort level with the manager. He inherited those guys. Both of them are good baseball people and they're going to be offered other positions in the organization.

We had a lot of discussion on our young core group and guys that will need more time in the Minors and guys that we have an interest in pursuing as free agents.

He had a good breaking ball.

If it was a pitch count, a baseball issue, I could tell you.

You don't aim for it, but you can build an organization that way. I think we've done a good job as far as the players we've drafted except for the first year that I was here as general manager,

They knew we had some productive arms out there and there was interest in our bullpen across the board.

For us, it's a necessity.

Play solid defense, show the ability to steal bases and just perform well. Offensively, he's got some power and runs some deep counts. When we acquired him we knew he could be a solid fourth outfielder.

Perception is reality until you know what reality is. When I met with them and asked if they had any questions, they had questions. The big thing with them was, 'If I sign, is it going to stop there' They wanted a whole, detailed plan, and I was glad to be able to give them that.

It is a factor because of what it is going to take to sign a draft pick, and obviously the track record of his clients being willing to sit out.

We've got 10 game dates left in Arizona, so we have to start extending our players. With the other guys, we need to extend their play in the Minor Leagues so they are ready for the season.

Mike would still get time in the field. We are not thinking of doing anything else.

Justin probably shortened the time to really establish ourselves by two years because of his contacts and notoriety.

Redman is ready to go. And I'm hoping for him to get ahead in the count. If he keeps the ball down, we'll give good support behind him and hopefully score some runs.

I feel confident about all our other drafts and this gives us a chance, obviously, to get an outstanding player two years in a row. And that adds depth to your system and we're finally at a point where we do have some depth.

I'll let Buddy (Bell) make that call but he sure fits nicely as the No. 2 guy.

He'll be reevaluated as far as the timetable when Dr. Joyce arrives in camp next week. I won't know until the doc comes in and the swelling goes down.

Is there complete parity No. But quite frankly, I think it's a copout to use financial disparity as an excuse. It's like I tell people If you don't like the cold weather, move down south.

He has solid, above-average receiving skills and is above-average in handling a pitching staff. He'll be able to aid us in the development of Buck.

That's when we start looking for more results. We had this year to go full steam ahead. Next year we're in that next phase where we're looking for more results.

I think he would be a pretty good addition to our club. But until everything is set, I just don't want to speculate.

It's tough to say. We'll send him to the Instructional League and see where he is in relationship to where he should be, game-wise,