I don't remember how I got from the bullpen to the mound.

I threw the ball real well warming up in the bullpen. And then I go to the mound, I lost all feel [for the ball]. It was terrible. I don't know what that was. It was bad.

I remember my first bullpen session with him. He was throwing the ball all over, and afterward he asks me, 'So, what did you think of that?' And I told him, 'To be honest with you, I didn't think it was very good.' So he says, 'Hmmm,' and the next day he hits every target he threw at. Every one. The son of a gun was testing me.

I slept the whole day and didn't budge.

The guy who has stood out as being special is Howard. You don't walk in and just replace Jim Thome, but you can't possibly do any better than he has.

I am not the missing piece. I am not the savior. I can do my job, but that doesn't mean we're going to win. It has to take everybody — not just one person.