NOTEBOOK: Skip Talk
9/28/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Entering his 20th season at the helm of the University of Pittsburgh baseball team, head coach Joe Jordano is the winningest coach in program history. Hear the skipper chat about what he sees from his team on the field, as well as the passing of Jose Fernandez and Arnold Palmer.
On the team’s progress made through the halfway point of the fall season…
“I think we’re in pretty good shape. As I said in our last session, we’ve introduced a lot to the new players on the team and we’re trying to add as much as we can, but make sure that we have a good feel for what our responsibilities are and then have a plan to execute those responsibilities. The fall is all about teaching. It’s about making sure that our guys have knowledge, have a good understanding in that when they do walk out onto the field and the umpire says ‘play ball,’ there’s a sense that the game slows down because they know what to expect. There’s also mental and physical reps that we can take in the fall that will certainly help us get closer to our goals in the spring.”
On the process that goes into setting rosters for the blue vs. gold squads…
“Mostly what we’re trying to do is put combinations of players together and we’re also moving players, in particular our infield, we’re bringing some of the guys that are playing short to second, second to short, third base to first base, just trying to see exactly what we have and what our options would be potentially moving forward. I really like the talent we have on the infield and it’s a very important part of our plan. We have to be efficient defensively. We’re just trying to match up and what we’re trying to accomplish on that particular day with who we have in certain positions, they get their reps, they get their at bats and then we move forward.”
On what group of players impressed him the most over the last weekend of scrimmages…
“I think the pitching staff this past weekend did a great job. They were throwing mostly fastballs and changeups and I really liked where they were at. In particular, some of our very young arms. Once again, that’s going to be a very important part of the plan and we’re going to need every one of those guys to be able to contribute this spring.”
On the deaths of baseball rising star Jose Fernandez and golf legend Arnold Palmer…
“Obviously Jose Fernandez was on the front end of what could have been a Hall of Fame career, probably would have been a Hall of Fame career if he had stayed healthy. Electric arm. Dynamic stuff. One of my players, John Schultz, played in the minors with Jose, said he was just an absolutely wonderful guy. To have something so tragic so sudden happen, it really brings things into perspective with what we do every day. Of course I talked to the team about it, made sure that they understand how blessed we are. There was a great quote by Vin Scully, who has been in the news and he was describing the injury report for the Montreal Expos and he said ‘Andre Dawson is listed as day-to-day’ and he followed that with ‘aren’t we all.’ So you think about it, you really have to take advantage of today because you’re not guaranteed tomorrow. Heartbreaking.”
“With Arnold Palmer, I had the incredible honor of meeting him. I played his golf courses at Bay Hill and Latrobe and also Laurel Valley. When you look back on a career that impacted so many people and he’s one of those men that you never hear anyone say anything ill about him. To me, when you’ve lived such a full life of 87 years and accomplished so much and to maintain that sense of humility in being humble, regardless of how huge a personality he was, it’s incredible. To me that is testament to an incredible man and somebody who lived his life the right way. Great role model for professionals in any sport and I am just so grateful that I was here to witness the legacy of Arnold Palmer."
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