March 10, 2013
Head Coach Chad Holbrook
Opening Statement…
That was a great college baseball game I am proud of our team. We could have easily lost that game but [Noland] Belcher and [Tyler] Webb kept us in it. We made some great defensive plays as well. I thought Max Schrock was terrific at second base. We gave up 11 hits and didn’t give up a run so we made pitches when we had to and we played defense when we had to. Some days you aren’t going to swing the bat in this game but that is baseball. We didn’t necessarily swing it great today, but we found a way to win so I am proud of my team.
On Joey’s hitting performance…
He has gotten stronger, he is more physical and has worked really hard in the weight room. He is one of our strongest players in terms of throwing up weights. He is very diligent in what he does in there and he really takes pride in his work. He is much stronger than he was a year ago and I think that is the main reason that the ball jumps off of his bat a little more. But I am more proud of his defensive play to be honest.
On Nolan Belcher’s performance…
He just throws strikes, he has a presence out there that he is not going to beat himself and he can throw any pitch in any count. When you are a college pitcher and you can throw a 2-0 and 3-1 change-ups in there that is tough. That is what he can do, though he feels comfortable throwing any pitch in any count no matter what the situation. On top of that being left-handed helps.
On his power hitting in recent games…
I would like to attribute it to skill but some of it is a little bit of luck. Some people ask me where I keep the horseshoe but I just try to shorten up and hit the ball with the barrel a little more.
On todays defense…
They [Rider] were a tough out with two strikes. They were putting the ball in play and Max Schrock played great defense at second base, he made some nice plays and really helped us out today.
On today’s performance…
They [Rider] had more than a few hits but I just try to go out there and throw strikes and let the defense work for me. They made it difficult for me today at times, it felt like I was throwing from the stretch the whole inning and they made it very tough. You have to give them a lot of credit because even though they lost the series yesterday they came out today and tried to get one before they left.
On feeling pressure in the later innings with men on base…
I try not to think about it really, I just want to make quality pitches. If there are runners on second and third or if there is no one on base, I want to make quality pitches to make the inning as quick as possible.
