May 17, 2014
2014 Kentucky Baseball
Post-Game Notes
Kentucky at Georgia
May 16, 2014 — Athens, Ga.
Foley Field
Head Coach Gary Henderson
On clinching the series victory tonight…
“It’s a big win. We talked about two weeks ago that our goal was to finish the season with two straight wins. We had a stretch there that was hard for us, so two weekends in a row to win a series, I am really proud of the kids. They played well again. We got some timely hitting and the pitching part of it from Kyle (Cody) and Andrew (Nelson) was outstanding.”
On the mound presence displayed tonight…
“I was happy with it. I think anybody would be happy with it. They looked confident and I thought they did a really good job of pounding the strike zone. When the game got to a spot when they could shy away they didn’t. It was the first start in several weeks for Kyle. It was as good as Andrew has looked in a weekend in a long time. I’m really proud of both of them and they were able to keep the bullpen as fresh as possible heading into tomorrow.”
On Max Kuhn’s recent hot streak…
“It’s important for somebody at the top to get hot. Obviously A.J. (Reed) had a tremendous game yesterday, as well as did Max (Kuhn). Ka’ai (Tom) was good again today and so was Max. He got the big ball there when it really mattered. It put some distance between us and the Bulldogs. He is seeing it really well right now and also playing very well at third base.”
#23, Kyle Cody, RHP, So.
On making his first start since March 1…
“It felt good to get back out there. It was a big win for us. We needed to win this series and it was good to get it done tonight. My stuff felt good tonight and it was just good to get back out there.”
On his mindset heading into the game…
“That I had to pound the strike zone. They are struggling right now hitting the ball and we just have to make them hit it and that’s what we did tonight. Nelson did a great job tonight in pounding the zone and got the win.”
On working in his breaking ball…
“I just have to get back into it and start throwing it more. It’s a game breaker if you can throw that for a strike as well. It keeps the hitters off balance and it was good to get that back in the strike zone.”
On his mound presence tonight…
“It was big to get a bunch of zero’s. It brings it to the whole team, even when we are in the box. It’s good to know that we are up right away. It was just a good team win.”
#12, Andrew Nelson, RHP, Jr.
On claiming his first career SEC victory…
“Kyle (Cody) did a great job tonight. It was fun to come out of the bullpen again. I know I have started, I’ve done bullpen, I’ve done it all this year. I like them both, but it felt good to come out of the bullpen. I felt relaxed and confident. I struggled a little bit through it, but I was able to fix it by throwing balls down in the zone and get some outs.”
On the versatility he brings to the pitching staff…
“It doesn’t really matter where I am pitching. It’s the same mindset. It’s all about throwing strikes and throwing it down in the zone. We let them hit the ball which let our defense work. I try to keep it the same, whether I am starting or coming out of the bullpen and whatever Henderson needs, I am happy to do it.”
On the performance of the defense…
“As a sinker pitcher you always want to try and get groundballs. I have done a pretty good job of getting groundballs and they make most of the plays. There’s outstanding defense behind us in the infield, and outfield too, but we have turned a lot of double plays this year which shows an outstanding job done by them.”
#8, Max Kuhn, 3B, Jr.
On capturing another three-hit game…
“I’m just seeing it well and am starting to get back into things. I had a couple weeks where I struggled a little bit, but that happens all of the time and now I am back to where I felt for most of the season. I’m just getting back to being consistent.”
On winning a second consecutive SEC series…
“It’s huge, especially now heading into the postseason. We are getting hot and hopefully we can come back tomorrow against their ace and get a sweep.”
On the pitching performance from Kyle Cody…
“It set the mood, both him and Nelson. We got zeros both nights, even A.J. last night. The pitching staff has done great the past two or three weeks. Everything that is going on both offensively and defensively and on the mound, it is going as planned heading into the postseason.”
On his home run ball tonight…
“The guy threw four straight balls, so I knew a fastball was coming and I put a good swing on it and that was pretty much it.”
