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Speaker 1: Welcome everybody to another earning their Stripes interview. This is

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Speaker 1: Ethan Midowski. Joining me today is Ian Smith and we

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Speaker 1: have a very very special guest today that we're really

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Speaker 1: excited to talk to you. It is Marlin's second round pick,

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Speaker 1: Nassim Nunez, a shortstop from Lawrenceville, Georgia. The Marlins signed him.

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Speaker 1: He was committed to Clemson, but he forego forgave his

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Speaker 1: commitment to the Tigers and decided to sign with the Marlins,

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Speaker 1: and the organization is very happy about that. He's shortstop

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Speaker 1: and he just finished up his first season in the

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Speaker 1: GCL as out of rookie ball and right now he's

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Speaker 1: working in the Instructional League with the Marlins. We saw

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Speaker 1: him at the instructional game recently at Marlins Park and

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Speaker 1: we're just really excited to talk to him today. A

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Speaker 1: guy that plays with a ton of swag and a

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Speaker 1: guy I really love to watch play. And that's the

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Speaker 1: first thing I want to ask you about and I

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Speaker 1: see him, is what makes you bring that confidence in

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Speaker 1: that swagger to the ballpark every day? Where do you

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Speaker 1: get that from?

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Speaker 2: Would you say, well, I believe my mom gave me.

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Speaker 2: My mom always provided me with my swag. He kind

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Speaker 2: of telled me to be the best person you are

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Speaker 2: and have fun on the field and just believe that

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Speaker 2: nobody's better than there a.

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Speaker 1: Second round pick. What was that feeling like when you

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Speaker 1: got that call so early on draft night?

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Speaker 2: I feel it was insane, especially just having all my

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Speaker 2: family and friends in the room with me. It was

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Speaker 2: just something that I would love to tais again. But

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Speaker 2: you know they're biggest things in better time to come.

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Speaker 1: That's awesome.

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Speaker 3: Well, and not seeing I've noticed you. It's start to

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Speaker 3: have a connection already with Osiris and Victor Junu so

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Speaker 3: far since you've been in the system. How's it been

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Speaker 3: getting to know those guys and building a connection with them.

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Speaker 2: Oh, you know, it's been. It's been real cool. I've

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Speaker 2: known Osiris for a good while. I've known Osiris for

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Speaker 2: a good while, and just meeting Victor Jr. Was it

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Speaker 2: was a blessing because Osias introduced me to him and

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Speaker 2: it was it was amazing.

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Speaker 1: Does it make you more inclined to go out and

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Speaker 1: perform every day when you're playing with your boys like that,

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Speaker 1: because I mean we saw you and Victor Junior were

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Speaker 1: like a bromance almost I mean, you guys were on

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Speaker 1: Instagram live all the time together and stuff, so I

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Speaker 1: just wanted to know does it Does it make you

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Speaker 1: more inclined to go out and just play up to

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Speaker 1: the best of your abilities when you're playing with your

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Speaker 1: boys like that?

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Speaker 2: I believe. I believe that I go out and play

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Speaker 2: every game for each one of my teammates, but having

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Speaker 2: the fact that Osiris is Victor, I guess on my

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Speaker 2: side and behind my back, and it's amazing.

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Speaker 3: To get well to get to the baseball diamond a

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Speaker 3: little bit here. You finished the year with twenty eight

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Speaker 3: sole on bases in just fourty eight games, and you

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Speaker 3: only were caught twice, one off the organization's lead and

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Speaker 3: by far the best percentage. Do you think your work

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Speaker 3: on the basis this year was probably your strongest start

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Speaker 3: to your pro career.

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Speaker 2: Definitely, most definitely playing, playing and just practicing every day,

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Speaker 2: trying to bet in my game. It's something that I

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Speaker 2: think Friday, and base running and defense is something that

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Speaker 2: I really work extra hard on. I believe that the

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Speaker 2: hitting will come with size and development and everything else

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Speaker 2: in that aspect. So most definitely, base running and defense

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Speaker 2: was most definitely up there.

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Speaker 1: Seem I think you caught a lot of us about

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Speaker 1: a surprise a little bit. And this is not a

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Speaker 1: knock on you or anything, but just the way you

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Speaker 1: came out swinging the bat right out of the gates

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Speaker 1: and the gcl was very impressive. And you know it

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Speaker 1: got a little tough towards the end there. But what

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Speaker 1: do you think the toughest adjustment was when you got

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Speaker 1: into pro ball that you saw right away that kind

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Speaker 1: of showed in the tailing off of your performance a

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Speaker 1: little bit. Not to knock you, but I'm just saying,

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Speaker 1: you know, you know what was the biggest adjustments that

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Speaker 1: you found.

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Speaker 2: The biggest adjustment for me was most definitely battling with

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Speaker 2: fatigue and having to understand who I am as a

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Speaker 2: person when I'm tired, because throughout high school and summer ball,

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Speaker 2: I was never really tired. So just finding finding out

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Speaker 2: tricks and little ways that I might have to see

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Speaker 2: on days that I'm not feeling hundred percent. So most

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Speaker 2: definitely that's something I'm working on now.

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Speaker 1: Do you think your arm is the biggest part of

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Speaker 1: your game in terms of your defense or do you

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Speaker 1: think it comes from your range and other aspects of

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Speaker 1: your defense.

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Speaker 2: I believe it's from range and just having a sense

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Speaker 2: of knowledge where I'm at on the field kind of

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Speaker 2: and the arms all. It's good to be there, but

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Speaker 2: I don't I don't want to rely on it because

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Speaker 2: that makes me lazy with my feet and getting the

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Speaker 2: ball in the most definitely, I say my hands and

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Speaker 2: my seat.

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Speaker 1: You really flash that range in one specific play and

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Speaker 1: we were talking about it before we got started here,

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Speaker 1: but uh, I'll run us through that play that we

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Speaker 1: saw on video where you just ranged all the way

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Speaker 1: back behind the base and second base, second base, you

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Speaker 1: basically threw a guy out from center field. Take us

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Speaker 1: through that and what goes through your mind when you're

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Speaker 1: making a play like that where you're really just like, wow,

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Speaker 1: I just did something special.

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Speaker 2: Well, I'm at plays like that. It's like MLB the

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Speaker 2: show where it's slow mode where everything just happens and

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Speaker 2: you just you just make it. That's that's something I

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Speaker 2: can't be taught. And I believe that's reaction and reflex

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Speaker 2: and everybody has a different I don't know what's the

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Speaker 2: worst for about It's about people. People do it differently,

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Speaker 2: and some people make them play a different way. But

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Speaker 2: I believe it's there for everybody, but some people just

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Speaker 2: have more of an ability to get to that that

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Speaker 2: type of play. You know.

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Speaker 3: Well, jumping back off the field here a little bit

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Speaker 3: is your interactions with the fans in person and social

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Speaker 3: media like have been inspiring for a player with such

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Speaker 3: your a young age, you seem to go out of

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Speaker 3: your way to make someone's day. I saw you have

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Speaker 3: a bad to a young fan during the GCL, and

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Speaker 3: I don't think I've ever seen a kid light up

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Speaker 3: so much. How important is their fan connection to you?

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Speaker 2: I believe that's that's going to be something very important

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Speaker 2: because at the end of the day, you got to

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Speaker 2: remember where you came from, and just a couple of

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Speaker 2: months ago, I could have been that kid wanting a bat,

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Speaker 2: or even a couple of years ago, you know. And

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Speaker 2: it's just making somebody's day can motivate them to do

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Speaker 2: so much, so many things that they might not even

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Speaker 2: have an idea they could accomplish. So I always try

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Speaker 2: to be the best bring smiles of people's faces and

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Speaker 2: provide smiles to people. So you never know what people

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Speaker 2: go through, so don't make it harder, make it better.

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Speaker 1: Speaking of speaking of where you came from the scene.

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Speaker 1: You're so young and you're you're reaching the big you know,

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Speaker 1: the big stage already here, you're in pro ball at

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Speaker 1: just you know, nineteen years old. So I want to

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Speaker 1: ask you what's the most important thing about where you

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Speaker 1: came from that helped you got to where you are now?

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Speaker 2: Would you say my support system? Most definitely having so

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Speaker 2: many close friends, family, friends, and even family that are

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Speaker 2: just there for me and fight for me no matter

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Speaker 2: what decision I make, what what occurs, They're they're just

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Speaker 2: always on my side. And I couldn't ask for anything better.

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Speaker 2: And I believe that helping me become the man unbecoming

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Speaker 2: and help me become the person that I am right.

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Speaker 3: Now, man, that's what we love to hear. Brother. Well,

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Speaker 3: now that just got one last question for you, man.

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Speaker 3: Miami seems to be building an organization the right way

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Speaker 3: for the first time in a long time, and if

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Speaker 3: potentially it seems like it could be special for future

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Speaker 3: stars like yourself. What are your thoughts on how Miami

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Speaker 3: has built this system from nothing to pretty much loaded

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Speaker 3: in just eighteen months.

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Speaker 2: Well, you know, we got we got the we got

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Speaker 2: Jeter Jeter's He's obviously a great player, and now we're

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Speaker 2: seeing what he can do as a CEO and as

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Speaker 2: well as Gary Denbo and the rest of the head

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Speaker 2: off his well, I believe that we're gonna have one

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Speaker 2: of the best teams in their fall. I truly believe

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Speaker 2: that with all my heart, and I just hope that

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Speaker 2: becomes reality.

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Speaker 1: To two follow ups before we get you out of

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Speaker 1: here in a team that I want to touch off

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Speaker 1: of based off Ian's last question, So you mentioned Jeter

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Speaker 1: being a shortstop. What's it like playing for Derek Jeter's organization.

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Speaker 2: It's amazing. Like what growing up with my grandfather, we

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Speaker 2: used to watch the Yankees all the time, and it

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Speaker 2: was just amazing though that Jeter was on that on

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Speaker 2: the TV screen and I was watching him in all

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Speaker 2: about the players and how well he carried himself as

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Speaker 2: a man and a adlete on and off the field,

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Speaker 2: and that's just something that I look forward to kicking

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Speaker 2: his brain about.

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Speaker 1: Ian mentioned the rebuild that the Marlins are going through

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Speaker 1: here and being the second pick, you know, the second

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Speaker 1: round pick of this draft this year, it comes with

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Speaker 1: a lot of expectations and you know, a lot of

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Speaker 1: hope for where you're going to play in in down

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Speaker 1: the road, in the future of this team. So I

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Speaker 1: want to know what, how do you handle that pressure

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Speaker 1: and does that is that something that fuels you on

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Speaker 1: a daily basis that really gets you going towards Hey,

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Speaker 1: I'm going to be, you know, the next big piece

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Speaker 1: in this thing.

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Speaker 2: Well, I will definitely say it would fuel me to

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Speaker 2: a good amount. But I feel that stay drafting me

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Speaker 2: for a reason. And everybody develops different and different speeds.

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Speaker 2: So I say, just trust the process, have fun, play

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Speaker 2: the game, and whatever happens happens, but always play your

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Speaker 2: best and give it.

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Speaker 3: I don't think that anything different, man, Yeah, exactly.

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Speaker 1: We're gonna be patient when you and not seeing We're

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Speaker 1: really really excited about having you in the organization man,

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Speaker 1: and and we can't wait to continue watching you develop.

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Speaker 1: It was a great first season. Uh, you know, keep

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Speaker 1: working hard in trucks and have a great year next year,

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Speaker 1: and and we're gonna keep following you all along the way.

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Speaker 1: And hopefully we'll speak soon. Man. Hopefully we'll speak sometime

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Speaker 1: next year on the podcast. We'd love to have you back,

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Speaker 1: and we really appreciate you coming on today and and

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Speaker 1: speaking with us, And like I said, just go out there,

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Speaker 1: keep grinding, bro. We know you got it and we'll

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Speaker 1: be rooting for you the whole way. Boss.

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Speaker 2: Oh cool.

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Speaker 3: Thank you for having me appreciate it. Thanks you for

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Speaker 3: taking the time. Man.

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Speaker 2: I'll be easy m r M