Snake Bytes: 10/15

Quick Quotes

"He was the only one in the interview process that made mention of that 15 percent," Stewart said. "To me, that shows that he's going to get in there and grind and pay attention to the small things and even more important, it leads you to believe he's a motivator. He can motivate the kids to play better."

- Dave Stewart on Chip Hale

"I knew the wind was blowing out hard to right, so I was just talking to myself, hoping it would blow back. It blew back just enough for me to make the play."

- Mike Moustakas on his defensive play of the game

"We do them in Spring Training all the time. It was easy. It was right there, and I blew it."

- Randy Choate on game-ending error in the 10^th

Daily Digest: Chip Hale Edition

Chip Hale Wants to Improve Players 15%

One of the key philosophies that impressed Diamondback brass was Chip Hale's stated goal of wanting to improve each player under him by 15% by getting them to focus on performing above their predetermined skill-set and abilities.

Chip Hale Believes in His Gut

Another trait that likely helped Hale to impress Tony LaRussa is his belief in his gut to tell him when going by the numbers isn't the best idea.

Chip Hale on Retaliation

There is no question that games lost due to hit batsmen injury have hurt the Diamondbacks in the last few years. Nor is there any lack of clarity for how Kevin Towers felt about how the team should have been responding. While the men in charge may have changed, it seems the mentality will remain similar - though with Hale, he expects the clubhouse chemistry to dictate the response.

Around MLB

Royals One Win from World Series

The last time the Royals were this close to the World Series, George Brett, Dan Quisenberry, and Bret Saberhagen were the stars leading the team to an unlikely World Series Championship. Pac-Man was all the rage. "Careless Whisper" and "Like a Virgin" topped the music charts. Oh, and only 10 players from the current team were even born yet.

Giants Take 2-1 Lead on Error

Along the highways of America can often be found signs extolling that speed kills. The Cardinals would probably agree right now.

Los Angeles Dodgers Sign Friedman Away from Tampa

In an off-season in which it seemed there would be little the Dodgers could do to one-up their signings and extensions of the last two years, they managed to do so - without even signing a player. Andrew Friedman will take over as the President of Baseball Operations for the Dodgers, assuming a position similar to that held by Tony LaRussa.