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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss Baseball Media Day Press Conference Transcript
1/31/2001 | Baseball
Jan. 31, 2001
OPENING COMMENTS BY HEAD COACH MIKE BIANCO
"To start off, we had a terrific fall. We were very excited about it. The kids were very receptive to a new system, a new philosophy on baseball. I think they caught on to all of the enthusiasm out in the community and we had a terrific five weeks. We got a lot accomplished, most importantly, we implemented most of our system and got to see and get to know our players, and see our strengths and weaknesses. We thought it was a very productive fall.
"We've been out (in the spring) since January 22, so only a little over a week. However, we've been able to intra-squad (scrimmage) four times since we've been out. One of the reasons why, and it's a benefit that we've been able to do this, is that our school starts the spring semester early on January 8, so we're able to start individual work where our pitchers can throw bullpens and our hitters can hit in small groups, and we can get a lot accomplished in a short period of time. So, we've been able to intra-squad four times since we've been out, and as usual this early in the spring, the pitchers are ahead of the hitters. We're really excited about the pitchers because that was an area heading into January that we needed answers to some questions because some of the kids weren't able to pitch this fall because of some tender arms. So, we're really excited about what's happening with our pitching staff.
"Of course, we've had some good hitting days. Of the four intra-squads, I believe (Assistant) Coach (Clint) Carver told me that in three of those, we've hit at least three home runs, with one day we've hit four. So in just four games we've hit 10 home runs and that's not bad. We're coming around offensively and I think we're going to be ready February 9th.
"What I would like to do now, is go through our rotation, mention some names, and then I'll go through position-by-position and mention some of our position players. Then I'll leave it open to you for some questions.
"Starting on February 9th against Arkansas-Little Rock will be Pete Montrenes. Pete's a transfer from Southern California that we got in late summer after getting over here (from McNeese State). He'll be our Friday night starter. Our Saturday starter will be Dan McShea. As many of you know, Dan was a dominant pitcher here two years ago, but sat out last year because of arm surgery. He's now back and at full strength. On Sunday, it will be Mike Gray. Mike is new to Ole Miss, a junior college transfer and is actually from Canada. He's been very impressive not only in the fall but during the spring. Those will be our top three pitchers going into the weekend. After that it's tough. The next question I know you're going to ask is who is your closer. That's probably the most asked question. It's amazing, nobody wants to know who your No. 1 starter is going to be, but they want to know who your closer is going to be. We don't have a closer. We're going to see how it comes about. Right now, our two top relievers are Ronnie Goodwin and Michael Posey. Both I think could start. They're quality pitchers and could end up in the rotation, but for this first weekend, we're going to leave them in the bullpen. Both will be first-up guys, meaning they could come into the game in the fifth inning and finish it because they're that type of pitcher, or come in the during the ninth inning and close the game out. We'll work the first month to see who will fill what role. The rotation could fluxuate, and who comes out of the bullpen could change. Adam Yates, a freshman from Tennessee, had a terrific fall and has pitched well this spring and is likely to pitch a lot this year. He is likely to start one of those SE Louisiana games.
"Position wise, going around the infield. Lance Jones will start at third base. The starting shortstop will be Evan Conley. The starting second baseman will be Matthew Tolbert. At first base, we're not quite about right now. It is likely to be Josh Christian or Banks Robinson, with the other probably being the designated hitter. Behind the plate will be our senior captain Carl Lafferty. How we select the captains, is the team does it. He was almost an unanimous decision and a great choice by his teammates. In the outfield, Kris Cox moves from left field to center field this year. Burney Hutchinson will start in right field. In left field, we have a lot of options. Right now we don't know who will be the starter in left field but we'll play a lot of people. One of those being Clint Farrar, who played second last year. Clint will play a little outfield for us, as well as second base and third base. A.J. Cochet is probably likely to start one of those games the first weekend. Craig Nugen, a senior outfielder, and Jon Reeder, a junior college transfer, are likely to get some playing time there. And those guys, depending on righty, lefty match-ups, could also be the designated hitter.
"That's the way we see it. We're going to play a lot of people early. We got kids like Brent Walker, from Itawamba C.C., who's done very well. It just happens we have a senior third baseman returning. I think Brent's going to play a lot this year, play some third and some second base. Chad Sterbens, who played a lot of the season last year at shortstop, will play a lot this year at shortstop and second base.
Q: Talk a little bit more about Montrenes.
A: Pete was one of the guys I mentioned earlier that we didn't get to see a lot this fall. We're very fortunate that Pete pitched last year at USC and actually pitched in the World Series. We came to know about him when he was pitching this summer in the Cape Cod League and was a teammate of Kris Cox, and found out he was looking for another opportunity. When he got his release, we recruited him and brought him down here for a visit. He's the type of guy we were looking for. Your always looking for another outstanding pitcher. (Assistant Coach) Dan McDonnell went up there (to the Cape Cod League) to watch him pitch and thought very highly of him, and he's a guy that we think can be a quality pitcher in the Southeastern Conference. We didn't get to see him pitch much this fall, but has been very dominant in his two outings this spring.
Q: You had some early injuries in the fall, how healthy are you now?
A: We're probably as healthy now as we have since we've been here, or at least since we started the fall. We have some guys with some tender arms, but nothing serious. Even the surgery guys, like Nathan Lyons and Glen Morris, and others, are rehabing. As a matter of fact, Nathan Lyons has already pitched twice in intra-squad scrimmages. I don't want to say that he's a 100-percent but he's doing what the other pitchers are doing. I don't think he's at a 100-percent of his ability, but we're not limiting him because of the surgery. Glen is still on a pitch count and a percentage workout every couple of days.
Q: Is it Carl Lafferty that broke his hand during the fall?
A: Carl broke his foot, actually, in the first week of fall drills. Actually the first day of drills in a run down drill. I've never seen that before. But Carl with his blazing speed sometimes get his feet caught up in moving too fast and that's probably what happened. But he's fine and at 100-percent.
Q: What about Glen Morris playing a position?
A: Glen's really been impressive offensively. We're still waiting and hoping that he'll be able to pitch this year and he probably will. I don't think he'll be ready until late February, early March. Right now it's too hard to put a date on a return. It's one of those things you have to let come, you don't want to rush. But offensively, he's been very impressive. He's another one that is in the mix to play some as the designated hitter.
Q: How many players did you report to the first day of spring practice?
A: 40.
Q: What about your speed and power?
A: I think we do a lot of things. One of the questions that is asked a lot is what kind of brand of baseball are you going to play? We want to bring a style that we do a lot of things well. Maybe we don't do anything spectacular, but we want to do a lot of things well. Of course most importantly, we want to pitch well. Especially at our park where it is not very inducive to home runs. I don't know if it's the largest park, but it plays as the largest park in the conference. So we want to pitch well and play good defense, especially in the outfield. That's one of the main things we want to do well. But I like to be offensive. We want to be physical. We want to be able to hit home runs, but we also want to steal bases, bunt and do the little things that win you the game. The guys have been told that we want to have more bullets in the gun and not rely on just one facet of the game. We want to rely on many so we can have more opportunities to win.
Q: Where is the power coming from that you talked about with the 10 home runs during the spring?
A: It's been through everybody. Kris Cox hit a home run on the first pitch of the intra-squad game yesterday (Tuesday), and it was over the center field fence. Matt Tolbert has hit one, Brent Walker, Lance Jones, Josh Christian, Burney Hutchinson, Glen Morris, so as you can see Gregg, it's spread out.
Q: Talk about your recruiting and going head-to-head against some of the SEC schools your first time around?
A: Hats off to our coaches, they did a spectacular job. We signed 11 players during the fall signing period. Everybody asks what's the biggest adjustment? I think recruiting is the biggest adjustment. When we came here, we were trying to finish up recruiting for 2000-2001, and we signed some kids late like Tolbert, Christian, Montrenes and Yates. But we're also recruiting for 2002. We're probably further along than I expected. I have high expectations and big goals, and I think the coaches did a spectacular job. I think we made our mark. We lost kids and that's always going to happen, but hopefully, in years to come, we'll lose less and less. I know the big thing is always how did you do against Mississippi State and the other SEC schools and I thought we did well. We probably lost more kids to Alabama this year than anyone else, and that happens because it's not like football where everybody is recruiting the same kid. We're recruiting based on need and maybe we're recruiting pitchers, while school "X' is recruiting position players, so we're not going head-to-head as much.
Q: How have the Mississippi high school and junior college coaches responded to you and your staff?
A: They've been great. Sure we lost some kids, but we also signed some quality kids and in-state. More importantly, I think we made our mark, kind of ruffled the water a little bit. People know that Ole Miss is out there and beating the recruiting trail. Yeah, maybe we lost a few this year, but maybe we made it harder on others.
Q: Talk about Matthew Tolbert.
A: Matt's a kid that when we signed him, we knew he could compete in the SEC. He's really played terrific in the fall and in the spring. Offensively, he's a switch hitter that runs real well, but is also physical even though he's not real big. He's 6-0, 181 pounds. He maybe the first player ever to be named the MVP in the state all-star game in both football and baseball, so that will show you what kind of athlete he is. Defensively, he's getting better everyday and is someone that may play shortstop here someday. Right now, he'll be playing second.
Q: Talk about your high expectations and goals.
A: As far as our team goals and it'll probably be this every year, and we talked about it Monday in our meeting, is our first goal is to win the Southeastern Conference. Secondly and not in any particular order because they kind of inter-twine, is to win 40-plus games. That's the benchmark of a very good club in Division I baseball is to win 40-plus games. We want to host a regional here, of course win that regional, host a super-regional, win that, go to Omaha and win a national championship. That's what the goals should be every year, and we're anxious to start on those goals Feb. 9.
Q: Why should the fans be encouraged about you reaching these goals?
A: That's a tough one. I would think, when you see us, you'll see the way we compete and play. We want to be very competitive. The kids have been told that there's probably going to be teams that are more talented than us. And I'm not trying to down play our kids and make people feel sorry for us. We compete in the toughest baseball conference in the country, and in the toughest division of the toughest conference in the country, so there's no weekends off, no gimmies. You have to be ready to play. One of the things I like about this team is how competitive they are. That means a lot in our sport. I think in football and basketball you can be out-manned a lot times. In baseball you can be out-manned, but if you compete and do the little things, the size doesn't matter as much. In basketball, you may not have a big-man, or in football their offensive line or defensive line is too dominant, in baseball that doesn't happen as much. At LSU, I can remember winning championships that we didn't feel we had as talented as a team, but for some reason we played well together and played better than anyone else. So that's what we try and teach our team, to have a belief system. We play in the SEC and if you play in the SEC, you and the fans should expect to compete for championships.
Q: Can you size up the divisions. Starting with the West and then the East?
A: It's tough to say and not being in the conference the last couple of years it's probably not fair for me to say. In the pre-season polls, we're picked last in the West but that doesn't fool anybody, does it? LSU is usually picked first in the West and Florida is usually picked first in the East. Those are the teams that usually do well. I don't think people really know who LSU has returning or who transferred in at semester break, but people usually pick them. Pre-season polls are not as logical as football or men's basketball because there isn't the media coverage in baseball as in the other sports. To tell you the truth, I don't know how teams are going to finish, but I imagine it will be as strong as it usually is. I would think LSU would be strong just because they always are, Alabama would be strong just because they always are, and I understand Auburn returns a lot of players so they should be strong. Mississippi State I would expect because (head coach) Pat (McMahon) has done a great job there since Coach (Ron) Polk left. And Arkansas, who knows? Two years ago they won the SEC and last year didn't do as well, so maybe they have a championship team this year. Again, it's the toughest league in the country and we have to play well.
Q: Is being picked sixth motivation for the team?
A: I don't know. Maybe. I think it's a long season and people forget about pre-season predictions. It's gives people something to write about now because there's nothing to write about now. You can put in that you're picked first and you can live off that until March when conference play starts, and then you're going to be writing about the team that swept the first weekend or the team that got swept.
Q: Can you talk a little bit about Burney Hutchinson?
A: Burney had a terrific fall, especially at the end. He's one of the top returning hitters, a guy that hits .300 and is the top returning home run hitter, and he has done that so far in the intra-squad scrimmages. He's shown power and can hit for average. A good outfielder that runs well, throws well. All-around good baseball player.
Q: Talk a little bit more about Carl Lafferty and what you expect from him.
A: Carl, it was disappointing because we wanted to see Carl in the fall. We were very anxious to see him so it was very disappointing, but probably more disappointing for Carl. He was so excited about the season having talked to him this summer. Sometimes change is good and it's exciting, and you could tell he was excited. So it was more disappointing for him because of his expectations and he wanted to play well this fall. He's a tremendous leader, which is obvious, to miss the entire fall and be selected team captain at the end of the fall I think is pretty impressive and says a lot about him, his character and what he did everyday. Not practicing but being in the weight room and doing everything he can. He's a guy that defensively is very good, a good thrower and will throw a lot of people out this year. He's also a good offensive player. He's going to be one of the best offensive catchers in the conference. He's another guy that is very well-rounded, can do it with the glove and with the bat.
Q: How has this team taken to your system and where are you at right now?
A: Very receptive. Everybody when we started you could see the bright eyes, excited, ready to learn what we're trying to do. We have a long ways to go, and yes we have high expectations, but we must get better and must improve or we're not going to be able to compete for the Southeastern Conference championship. There's room for that improvement, and we are getting better everyday and that's part of the system. As far as the actual nuts and bolts, we've gotten just about most of it in. I'm excited about it, but we have to get better.
Q: Talk about the differences in the SEC between when you left LSU for McNeese State and now.
A: Probably the biggest difference is that the conference is more competitive, there's more parody now. I've always thought that one of the reasons why the SEC was always considered so strong, was not because of its No. 1 and No. 2 teams, but 1-through-12 it is stronger than most conferences are from top-to-bottom. The No. 8 and No. 9 teams are very good teams. When you look at the RPI, Ole Miss last year was the No. 9 team but its RPI was in the 30s or 40s. Not too many conferences can say that their No. 9 team has a 30 RPI. I think that is probably the biggest difference from four years ago.
Q: How do you feel the strength of your non-conference schedule will help you prepare for the SEC?
A: I don't know. A lot of people don't know that Arkansas-Little Rock is a very good team, that plays hard and its very competitive. We have to be ready to play. To me, every game counts, especially at the beginning because everybody is learning. We're learning everyday and trying to get better, so to me it's a work in progress. Thankfully, a lot of our first games our at home and that should help us out. We do go on one road trip and that's good because it will get everybody use to traveling, from the players, the managers and the trainers, to riding on the bus, eating on the road and sleeping in hotels. I don't think it's the toughest non-conference schedule, but I think it's very competitive. It's not about one game with Arkansas-Little Rock or one game against Louisiana Tech, it's about getting better and having a chance to win.
