Gavin Stone: World Series isn’t the goal, it’s demanded

Yahoo Sports national MLB insider Russell Dorsey sits down with Dodgers rookie pitcher Gavin Stone discussing what it means to pitch wearing the prestigious Dodger Blue and seeing the greatness of Shohei Ohtani up close and in person.

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Video Transcript

Mentally as you know, a guy in your, secondly, still your rookie season, even though you had the cup of coffee last year pitching for this organization pitching at Dodger Stadium where Sandy Koufax is a legend, right?

Or Hershiser who, you know, really, well, what is it like pitching for an organization where it’s World Series or bust every year?

Yeah, I mean, it’s, it’s where you wanna be, I mean, if you wanna play baseball at the highest level, like that’s what you wanna achieve, that’s what you wanna go for.

Uh That should be the goal for every team I feel like, um and to be in an organization where it’s, it’s not just the goal, but it’s, it’s demanded.

And if you don’t, if you don’t meet those expectations, then it’s, it’s a, it’s basically a loss in the season.

Um And that’s what I love about, you know, being in the service is that, is that they want to win.

And that’s what I wanna do growing up in Arkansas who are some of your influences as a player growing up, Joe Kelly, I’m watching him like go from a starter to reliever, throwing slower throwing harder.

Uh, it was amazing to watch and like, I remember that as a little kid and, and growing up and, and wanting to be, like, judge because he was a smaller guy as well.

Uh, and so to get to play with him now is, is pretty special that day that you were like, oh man, that’s, that’s Joe Kelly and he’s my teammate as a locker over there.

Like, do you have that kid moment where you’re like, oh man, that’s, that’s Joe Kelly.

Oh yeah.

Or do you try to play it?

Cool.

No.

Yeah.

No, II I, well, I mean, I tried to play it cool but I let him know that like he was my favorite pitcher ever.

Uh And so he’s been really cool with me.

He’s, he’s given me a lot of information.

Uh you know, he’s kind of like he’s kinda like cursing that in that same mentality wise.

Like they’re great because of a reason and they have a great mentality and I think that’s, that’s a big part of it.

Um But yeah, he’s a, he’s a really cool dude.

I wanna ask you about one of your teammates show a Tony that seems to be must C TV.

For not only fans and people in the media but for players as well.

What is it like to watch him swing a bat on a nightly basis?

Yeah, it’s unbelievable.

I mean, I’ve never seen anybody swing a bat.

Like that, uh, the ball, he hit the other night that went out of the stadium was by far the most impressive hit that I’ve ever seen.

I know that everybody in the dugout whenever he hit that was just like, nobody made a sound.

It was just like, holy crap.

Um, but to see him do other things, uh, you know, uh, around the bases, I mean, still Stone Base, he gets a year.

uh, um, you still already hits it consistently.

Like it, it’s unbelievable.

II, I don’t even really know if there’s a player like that hits it like him, um, uh, and as consistent as he does.

Um, but I haven’t even got to watch him catch it so being able to, you know, watch him get into bullpens and stuff like that would be really cool.

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