Mik Aoki Named Notre Dame Head Baseball Coach
Jul 13, 2010
Player Quotes
Ryan Richter · Junior · Pitcher
On first impression of Coach Aoki…
“Everything I have heard, I am really excited. He seems very excited and has his priorities set to get our program back to the NCAA Tournament and ultimately Omaha.”
On being hungry for success next season…
“I think we definitely are, it is something we have been striving for and has eluded us the last few years. It is a two-way street. We believe they have brought in the right coach for us and now it is up to us to perform on the field.”
On the length it will take to turn things around…
“I am hoping it will be quick. I know we have the talent to turn this thing around. The communication will be a big thing for our team because we feel like we need a strong leader especially in this transition.”
On the pitching staff…
“I love what he had to say about communication. I heard he was a good pitching coach at Boston College and he handled the pitchers there, which is something we are excited about.”
On something that stood out in Coach Aoki’s speech…
“Definitely being perfect at every aspect, whether it is in the classroom or on the field. I think he is a big believer of if you can do it in the classroom you can do it on the field and vice-versa. You can’t slack in one phase and expect to perform in the other.”
Alex Robinson · Junior · Outfielder
On a fresh start…
“Yes sir, I think that is are correct. We are excited about the change. It is a whole new look for all of us. This is just a new light on the end to a bad season. Hopefully we can turn things around and I am pretty pleased and pretty excited about what we have coming for us.”
On whether Notre Dame can turn around quickly…
“It depends on how hard we want to work. I think we have the guys who have the work ethic and obviously Coach Aoki has a strong background and I feel that we can turn it around pretty quickly.”
On areas of improvement…
“We have a strong team. It really is just structure and organization. I love Coach Schrage but there were just things that we can improve. I am really looking forward to Coach Aoki.”
On Coach Aoki’s ability to develop players…
“I really like his (Coach Aoki’s) idea of player development. Over the past few years, we had strong coaching but just not a lot of player development. I felt that we let some talent go to waste and I think that is going to be a strong aspect for us.”