[Chavez] must have spent days with a bucket of balls, getting me to work on my arm swing. This is the most basic stuff. |
[Seattle] had high expectations for me, and I guess I didn't live up to those expectations. |
After my last outing, I was up in the zone, and it was something that Chaves and I just started working on, my drive to the plate. So I know exactly what we'll be working on here. |
He wanted to make sure he knew I can compete, for me to pitch like he knows I can, like I know I can. |
I have a good fastball and I'm sure he is looking for that. I got beat on my second best pitch, something I shouldn't have done. |
I just need to be in the strike zone. Walks have been my nemesis for the last year and a half. I have to go out there and throw strikes and attack hitters and prove to them I can get guys out. |
I respect what he's done in this game. He's a great guy. You see him as being so fierce and intense, but when you talk to him one-on-one, you see what a great guy he is. He said this is his way to give back to the game, his way to give back to other players. It was something that superstars in his day, who he watched and admired, did for him. |
I want to go so bad it hurts. I can't focus on schoolwork because it's all I keep thinking about. I'll drive up there and try [to buy tickets] if I have to. |
I'm having a great time; I like it here. It's a good bunch of guys. |
In the end, we got to the slow and easy takeoff, and when my foot hits the ground and my arm starts forward, then I explode. My fastball has gone from 87-93 to 95-96. |
It came as a surprise to me. I didn't hear anything about this being a possibility. I don't know how to react. I've never been in this situation before. I've got to go there and show them what I can do. |
It felt like you were throwing in a tunnel. Even though there were nets between the cages, every so often a ball would sail right at you from the cage next to you. You knew it wasn't going to hit you, but you still saw it out of the corner of your eye. |
It was continual improvement for me. Although [Sunday] was the first time since I made my spring debut with the Sox that I was up in the zone consistently. I was a little too excited to make my debut here in U.S. Cellular Field, even though it was 1 a.m. But I did a good job keeping the ball down when I needed to, which made me more effective. |
It's a great situation to come into. I have to keep making my adjustments in order to compete and help them win. That's what it's all about. I'm open to any advice and different input. |
It's going to be tough on me to have her in Michigan, but it will probably be tougher on Bella. But in the season, I'm at the park for a long time every day and on road trips, she'd have to go in a kennel, which wouldn't be very enjoyable. |