Speaker 1: And now an exclusive interview with David Bassey for Dodger Talk.
Speaker 1: The Dodgers are wrapping up this nine game road trip
Speaker 1: as they get set for first pitch against the Mets,
Speaker 1: and we're joined right now by one of my favorite
Speaker 1: Dodger relievers. In fact, I kind of identify I've gravitated
Speaker 1: towards the bullpen this year, There's no doubt about it.
Speaker 1: Jack Dryer is our guest. Jack, thanks a lot for
Speaker 1: the time, appreciate.
Speaker 2: It absolutely, Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1: What's these ten days been like for you and the
Speaker 1: rest of the relievers that started at Yankee Stadium and
Speaker 1: ending up now in City Field.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, coming off of the All Star Break,
Speaker 2: you know, it's been a while since some of us
Speaker 2: have been home now, so I'm just excited to continue playing,
Speaker 2: playing good baseball and then wrap up the long road
Speaker 2: trip and get back to La Jack.
Speaker 1: Over the years, I've heard baseball teams say road trips
Speaker 1: like this on the East Coast really brings the team
Speaker 1: closer together. Has that happened with the Dodgers. I mean,
Speaker 1: you guys are a close knit group to begin with,
Speaker 1: but has this solidified all that? Yeah?
Speaker 2: Absolutely, I think Yeah, like you said, we're already very
Speaker 2: close as a team. But you know, this much time
Speaker 2: on the road gives you plenty of opportunity to go
Speaker 2: explore the city together, you know, try different foods, you know,
Speaker 2: whatever it is. So it's definitely fun to be able
Speaker 2: to spend some time away from the field with the guys.
Speaker 1: Jack. This season, it's been an interesting one because last
Speaker 1: year it never felt like you had major speed bumps
Speaker 1: in your rookie season. This year, how did you get
Speaker 1: through the speed bumps?
Speaker 2: You know, it's continuing to harp on the things that
Speaker 2: I talked about last year, which is, you know, focus
Speaker 2: on what you can control. You know, in the big
Speaker 2: leagues there's a lot of noise going on, whether or
Speaker 2: it's social media or things you see online, whatever it is,
Speaker 2: and so just focusing on what you can control and
Speaker 2: putting your head down and just stacking one day at
Speaker 2: a time, that's all you can do.
Speaker 1: When you would have tough outings, where would you go,
Speaker 1: how would you deal with it?
Speaker 2: When?
Speaker 1: When would you be able to get your mind clear?
Speaker 2: Yeah? You know, it's being able to lean on different people.
Speaker 2: So first and foremost my wife being able to go
Speaker 2: to her and you know, kind of talk about something
Speaker 2: other than baseball is very helpful. But then you know,
Speaker 2: the coaching staff, teammates, review sessions about the outing and
Speaker 2: then looking forward to the next out and coming up.
Speaker 2: Just all of those things are really important. And so
Speaker 2: that goes back to, you know, showing how close the
Speaker 2: team is because you can have those conversations with pretty
Speaker 2: much anybody that you want.
Speaker 1: To What was it besides the mental part of the game.
Speaker 1: Did you make a significant adjustment to your mechanics? Because
Speaker 1: I'm not a pitching coach, but I could just tell you,
Speaker 1: and I've told the listeners that you starting to look
Speaker 1: like Jack Dryer again.
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, it's kind of a boring answer, but
Speaker 2: I really think like the answer is in the details
Speaker 2: of the mental preparation. And so, you know, the lowest
Speaker 2: hanging fruit for improvement, I think is always going to
Speaker 2: be the mental game. Whether it's a mechanical shift or
Speaker 2: a pitch selection shift, or you know, anything it is,
Speaker 2: it all goes back to your mentality and your conviction,
Speaker 2: and so just continuing to get better at that and
Speaker 2: you know, ensuring that I'm convicted every time I go
Speaker 2: out on the mound because I have the best defense
Speaker 2: in the world behind me, great catchers calling games like
Speaker 2: there's there's nowhere I'd rather be plying.
Speaker 1: Jack Dryer is our guest in front of first pitch
Speaker 1: between the Dodgers and Mets. All right, preparation. It feels
Speaker 1: like preparation helps a pitcher on the mound, not panic,
Speaker 1: because if you're prepared, you know where to go. Have
Speaker 1: you found that more this year?
Speaker 2: Yes? Absolutely. I think preparation just gives you the opportunity
Speaker 2: for you know, when when something arises, you know how
Speaker 2: to handle it because in your preparation, you've handled it before.
Speaker 2: And so it just allows you to not experience something
Speaker 2: for the first time. It makes you feel like you've
Speaker 2: done it before, whether it's good or bad, or even
Speaker 2: if it is new. And so I think I think
Speaker 2: that's the most beneficial part of the preparation is is
Speaker 2: you know you're you're essentially training yourself to experience something
Speaker 2: that you're going to experience in the future.
Speaker 1: Jack Dryer is our guest, and before I let you go.
Speaker 1: The first day here at City Field, we talked to
Speaker 1: Will Klein, who talked to Clayton Kershaw at the White
Speaker 1: House and Kershaw asked him, why are you throwing sidearm now,
Speaker 1: which means that his arm slot was lower. Did pitching
Speaker 1: coach Kershaw give you any sort of observational advice?
Speaker 2: Well, first of all, I was very happy to see him,
Speaker 2: and you know, gave each other a hug, and he
Speaker 2: just said, hey, man, you're throwing kind of hard now,
Speaker 2: and so I took that as a compliment. But again
Speaker 2: it's just, you know, I think he is the you know,
Speaker 2: kind of the blueprint for how you should handle your
Speaker 2: preparation and he did it better than anybody for eighteen years. So,
Speaker 2: you know, just continuing to handle your preparation and good
Speaker 2: things will happen in the game.
Speaker 1: So does that mean you're throwing harder than you were
Speaker 1: last year or does it mean you're throwing harder than
Speaker 1: you were earlier this season?
Speaker 2: Both. I've thrown harder than I've ever thrown in my
Speaker 2: entire life this year. So just continuing to trend in
Speaker 2: the right.
Speaker 1: All right, Jack, I know you guys like to keep
Speaker 1: it close to the vest. We'll leave it right there.
Speaker 1: Thanks a lot for the time. Always great to catch
Speaker 1: up with you.
Speaker 2: Thank you for having me