Cubs Week In Quotations

Male Bonding...
"We can bond a little bit on this road trip. And you've got a chance to catch up a little on rest with [mostly] night games."
Lou Piniella on the road trip

That's What She Said..
"For me, it's been better when it happens quick, because I don't have time to sit and think about it."
Kerry Wood on closing

Steady, Non-Essential, Low-Leverage Work
"We'll use him behind in the score if we have to. We'll find spots for him to work. We'll get him steady work. That's the important thing, steady work."
- Lou Piniella on Bob Howry's new role

No Such Thing as Taking Too Many Pitches
"I'm not taking too many pitches. If I see a ball I like, I'm going to swing at it, so I really can't tell the difference. But he's doing great in the fifth hole. I don't know if they're going to move him now."
- Aramis Ramirez

Quick or skillful or adept in action or thought
"Good player. Good instincts. Knows how to play baseball. He gives you a good, professional at-bat. Very adroit in the outfield."
- Lou Piniella on Kosuke Fukudome to the Japanese press

"It's not everything yet. I've still got a few more things I'm working on. It'll be a secret until the end of the season."
- Kosuke Fukudome

"Next."
- Lou Piniella after an 11-second pause to the question - "Do you wish American ballplayers were as fundamentally sound?"

Solving the South-Paws
"We put 10 runs on the board. You've got to stay with it."
- Lou Piniella on keeping the same lineup versus lefties

"We're looking for offense, obviously. You need to score runs, and the guys who are hitting the ball are the guys who are going to play. What can I say?"
- Lou's justification for playing Reed Johnson over Felix Pie

He Said Balls...
"Like I said, home runs are just a byproduct of hitting the ball well and getting some air. This year, the ball's going in the air. I didn't change one thing. I don't have an explanation for it.
- Derrek Lee on his hot start

"I've gotten some balls in the air, and they've gone out of the ballpark. Last year it didn't seem like I got balls in the air."
- Derrek Lee

Pitching and Defense Wins; Does That Mean We're in Trouble?
"That's something we've got to correct, and correct quickly. We let them get back into the ballgame on walks and errors."
- Lou Piniella on the early defensive struggles

"I don't think it's anybody doing anything wrong. It's just a matter of us bearing down. Like I said, this game challenges you every day in different ways. I haven't figured it out yet."
- Mark DeRosa

"He'll get through this.He's too good a pitcher notto. You can't go out there and try to reach for velocity. It's going to come when he feels stronger."
- Larry Rothschild on Ted Lilly

Carlos Zambrano Sponsored by Starbucks
"Anybody who drinks a cup of coffee in the morning knows the effect it has on you. That's something we need to figure out a little bit, too, to get him a quick start coming out of the bullpen and everything."

"I'm ready to put it back in his locker, to tell you the truth."
- Larry Rothschild on Zambrano

Not Small Enough
"This is a smaller outfield. I tried [ Daryle] Ward out there [Friday]. I think the biggest thing is probably the run to the dugout. It's along run."
- Lou Piniella

Michael Barrett Disagrees
"There's nothing wrong with that. He flipped the bubble gum thing over a little bit."
- Lou Piniella on Zambrano's tirade

"I was a water cooler guy. I enjoyed that more than the gum basket. But, no, I like people that show their emotion. I really do. You either care or you don't care. He shows he cares."
-Lou Piniella's on his weapon of choice