Brad Bergesen was happy with his performance against the Yankees -- Who wouldn't be? -- but he still wasn't entirely satisfied. He appears to be something of a perfectionist, but there's nothing wrong with that.
"I wouldn't say I'm completely satisfied,'' he said. "There's a few things I still need to focus on and accomplish this spring training but I felt that much more like myself today and I just need to continue to build on that."
So what more can a guy do than hold the Yankees to no runs on three hits over 5 2/3 innings?
"There were a couple of mental mistakes I made in the fifth inning, when I made a couple of bad 0-2 pitches and I just need to identify that and really focus and know what I want to do in those situations and not make those types of mistakes,'' he said.
Bergesen is 3-0 with a 3.77 ERA in four spring starts. His earlier outings weren't as pretty as today's, but the team has been more interested in how he feels than how he actually pitches.
"Today was the best I've felt,'' he said. "Going up against the Yankees and be able to to 5 2/3 helped out and builds ghe confidence. Just try to finish up the next two weeks and get ready."
So, after that nasty line drive that ended his promising 2009 season and the shoulder injury he suffered during a commercial shoot in December, has he gotten back to where he wanted to be at this point in spring training.
"Under the circumstances, yes," he said. "I know I keep saying this, but I think there are still a couple of things I need to do to feel like I did before the leg injury, before the arm injury, but given the circumstances, yes, I'm exactly where I'd like to be at this point."