TOKYO - Team USA Manager Mike Scioscia, along with the managers of Israel, Korea, and Mexico, participated in a pre-tournament press conference for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 on Wednesday, July 28, at Yokohama City Hall in Yokohama, Japan.

Below are quotes provided from Scioscia during the press conference.

Team USA's first game is on Friday, July 30, at 7 p.m. JST/6 a.m. EDT against Israel.

MIKE SCIOSCIA TRANSCRIPT:

• On how long it has been since arriving in Tokyo, team preparation, and what it feels like to participate in the Olympic Games.
• First, it is a great honor for me–and I know I speak for our players and coaches, too–to have the opportunity to be part of a group wearing the USA jersey in such a tremendous tournament like the Olympics. So, we are really excited about that. We had a great workout in North Carolina before we got here and played our Collegiate National Team, but once we came over here there was a little bit of a lag. We got here on July 22nd, and we do not play until the 30th, so in those eight days we have put together simulated games and we have done some high-speed drills to try to keep our guys as simulated and game conditioned as we can and let them get used to the surfaces we’re going to plan on here in Japan. 
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• On the style of play that can be expected during the Olympic Games as it relates to a lot of discussions regarding Major League Baseball, such as home runs, bat velocities, pace of play, etc.
• The type of game that will be played is going to depend on each individual manager and their talent. I think in just our scouting–looking at teams–there is definitely going to be some speed in this tournament. There is going to be situational hitting. I think there is a lot of things that make our game beautiful that you’ll see in this tournament. Hopefully we’re going to play good, consistent baseball and when the situation arises, I think we have the type of team that can push some of the action that you were talking about.
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• On the strengths players on the U.S. roster with experience playing professional baseball in Japan can bring to the tournament.
• We had a pretty big turnover from our qualifying team as we looked for players coming out of our tournament in Florida. We had the guys that we have on our team now… we had them on our radar for a long time to see if the guys playing in Japan were going to be available if we moved on. We are very fortunate to have [Nick] Martinez, [Scott] McGough, and [Tyler] Austin join our club and they will be very, very important players as we get into this tournament. They are familiar with the [Nippon Professional Baseball] league and familiar with the ballparks, and a lot of the players on the Japanese team. We haven’t seen much of the other four teams in the tournament, so they will be a help to us if we ever get dealt playing Japan. But, right now, we need production. Austin is a middle of the lineup hitter that we’re excited to have. McGough will be a big part of our bullpen and Nick Martinez is going to be one of our starters, so they are going to be very important to us.
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• On the most important thing needed to win a short tournament like the Olympic Games.
• Although there are a lot of things that go into winning a ball game, I think it still comes down to how well you pitch and how well you play defense. In a series like we’re going to play in the tournament, I really believe the team that pitches the best and plays the best defense has the best chance to win. That is where our focus will be. I think in playing many playoff games and playing in a couple World Series, I know how important pitching and defense becomes when you’re playing against terrific teams and when you’re playing in a format we’re going to be playing in.
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• On the young players on the roster.
• Yes, we have some ex-Major Leaguers playing but we are equally excited about the young talent that are playing in the Minor Leagues in the United States right now. You’re going to see some great pitchers. Shane Baz and Joe Ryan; these guys have terrific arms... Simeon Woods-Richardson. These are guys I think you’re going to hear about in the near future as they get their opportunity in the Major Leagues. Those young players are important to us. Our catcher, [Mark] Kolozsvary, is very talented and he’s only in double-A (AA). We have a group that is both veteran, experienced players that have played in the Major Leagues and young guys on their way up. So, we like our young talent, too.
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• On communicating with MLB Clubs about the young arms on Team USA’s roster.
• We’ve definitely communicated with every organization. Dave Wallace, our pitching coach, has been in constant communication with every organization that we have a pitcher on our team from: what their schedule is, what they are able to do, if there are any limitations on the number of pitches our guys can throw. Right now, we are very, very comfortable about their being very few restrictions on our young pitchers we have on the roster and we’ll be able to pitch them as we need them.