Both of our NCAA Championships (1999, 2004) came in years where we won the Big East Tournament. Time will tell if that's an automatic correlation. There are no good losses. No moral victories. But I do know this team is one to be reckoned with at the NCAA tourney.

I can feel the emotions start to build, ... I've had conversations with my first recruit at Northeastern, with eight kids from my Dedham High School team that won 21 straight games, a lot of phone calls from my former players ... it's an exciting time for me.

The main thing that I wanted to get across to both of them is to not feel compelled to force things, because the important thing for both of them to realize is that we have two very special Major League players here. We have to find playing time for both because they really kind of complement one another.

He's not a stranger to the Major League level, ... I've seen him play a dynamic center field. There was a time where his tools were absolutely electric. He was a very highly touted, talked-about player.

I don't think any of us should spend a whole lot of time being concerned with that. The way it gets better and becomes much more attractive to look at is to address (problem areas).

He's probably looking at a three-week time frame.

I'm not advocating taking a ball on the first pitch every time up there. A couple of times (yesterday), the first pitch was there, and we swung at it. But I'm continuing to see these guys take smart approaches to hitting, and that's encouraging.

That second run was the result of 100-percent effort that he's given each time he's on the field. It's a very noteworthy play and the difference in the game. You can't teach that, but winners do things like that. You have to want to do it. I'm impressed with this player. If his bat reaches its potential, he's an every-day Major League player, in my opinion.

Any time you face a pitcher the caliber of Chris Carpenter, you get one opportunity against him. He started quick and it took us until the seventh to get our opportunity to crack through.

Not all of our starters are 22 years old, but we do have four of them that are 24 or less. We have to allow a little bit of time to allow these guys to have the opportunity to stabilize themselves.

It's important for Duffy to find a way to reach first base without getting a hit every time he's up.

Derek Lowe, for the fourth time in a row, was just phenomenal. Not good, not great, phenomenal.

It's been suggested to J.D. for the time being to back off as far as swinging the bat. Am I saying we will not see him for the rest of the year? I'm not saying that.

This is about the time he should get started. You're not looking for this guy to be out there for two- and three-inning stints. It's completely unnecessary to do that with him.

This is about the time to get him going.

Zach's doing what he needs to do to get his work done. It takes time -- that's all part of spring training.

Is he a candidate to have an opportunity to make the club? I don't know the answer to that. We'll take it a day at a time and see how he progresses from a health standpoint. If he comes along quicker, that obviously creates more options for us.

Every time he comes up in a situational at-bat, the job gets done.

There does come a point in time where reality sets in.

Exposure is the best teacher, ... It doesn't always work out the way you want it to, but with time and exposure, they grow.

We've got to find opportunities for them. I don't want to see either of them sit for any period of time and not participate. We can't let these guys sit for days on end and then ask them to do something special in the seventh or eighth inning.

We have two kids there. Both are very competent kids -- smart enough to understand what we're talking about -- and they will figure it out. We've got to find opportunities for both of them. We'll take it a day at a time and go from there. As I've said all along, with these two guys on the club, I don't want to see either one of them sit for too long a time and not participate. It's advantageous to both of them to do it that way.

Wilson has got a lot on his mind, and he's trying to sort through a lot of difficult things. He's got to mentally take some time and sort some things out.

That's the plan right now. But until we see how the leg responds in game-type situations, there is nothing that is completely certain. But there has to be a plan. And for the time being, that is the plan.