It's a long season.

_____________________

“No one was trying to hurt anyone. It was just to prove a point… Take it for what it’s worth. It’s a long season.”

- Willie Bloomquist on the June 11 Diamondbacks - Dodgers brawl

_____________________

“It’s a long season. We can’t worry about [getting swept by the Tigers]. We’re playing as hard as we can. Just not catching any breaks.”

- Ryan Raburn

_____________________

“You have to stay confident. It’s a long season. You have to keep your head up and play hard every day. Hopefully, I’ll keep swinging good and help the team. Sometimes, that’s the kind of game you need to get back on track. We’ll see tomorrow.”

- Freddy Galvis

_____________________

“If you look around a major-league field, they’re big physical guys. That certainly impacts our decision-making process. It’s a long season. The stronger you are, the more durable you are, the better chance you have of succeeding in this game. Obviously, [first-round pick Hunter “Bull” Dozier] fits that bill.”

- J.J. Picollo, Kansas City Royals assistant general manager

_____________________

“Jose Valverde has not been very good lately. But he could get better. So could some of his fellow relief pitchers. Or the Tigers could make a trade. Or maybe someone in Toledo could help. Really, it’s a long season.”

Chris Iott, mlive columnist

_____________________

“It’s a long season so you know there’s going to have ebbs and flows. We’re going to score runs sometimes, we’re not going to score runs sometimes. As a starting pitcher, you have to go out there and keep your team in the game no matter how many runs they’re scoring. That’s your job. For the most part, I’ve been able to do that but you can’t concentrate on that kind of stuff.”

- Kyle Lohse

_____________________

“I didn’t feel bad. I just didn’t feel normal, I guess. Nobody goes out there every five days and feels 100 percent. There’s always something that you feel, whether it be in your arms or your legs or just somewhere in your body, your lower back or something like that. It’s a grind. It’s a long season. You’re going to have stuff flare up from time to time. Guys kind of have to know when they’re capable of pitching with the injuries that they feel. I feel really good right now. I didn’t feel bad earlier in the year. I just feel a lot better right now.”

- David Price

_____________________

“[Mike Cameron] said it’s tough going to different leagues. You’re going through different pitching and everything. Guys have to go through it. He told me I’d be fine, I just have to keep my head up. It’s a long season. It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. I have great coaches in here that are going to help me out so I finish strong. If you show too much frustration, it’s going to eat you up, especially in the big leagues. There will be times I want to take a bat and break a TV with it. Of course, that’s baseball. But you’ve just got to take a deep breath. That’s the way the game goes. It’s all about the mental state. If you have a good mental state, then you’re going to be all right. I know so many great players that I’ve played with when I was young in the Minor Leagues; the mental factor just killed them. You have to have that in the big leagues.”

- Ben Revere

_____________________