High marks we gotta start off
with the most important question. There have been three
pretty epic walk-off celebration so far at Citi Field
this year you've got Alvarez and wanker two of the
last three. And then of course you earlier
in the season, how would you rank them? Who had
the best of the three? You're putting me on the spot. I
can't, I can't rank them. Honestly, I think the last two, I think, if I were
to rank one, it had to be winkers. Winkers. Was he his his Pam job? Job. And the way he was
celebrating was awesome. I loved
it. What does you know a stretch
like this? Do for group? It's a really long season. Everybody
talks about August being the dog days of summer, to have that type of infusion of
energy two out of three days. When a big Series against a
really good team in that way, what do you think it does for a
group know, it feels great, feels great for shirts, or those are a great ballclub,
great pitching great hitting. And to get that momentum coming
towards this road trip, is, is exciting. Ting exciting, for sure. So, Mark, I always, I'm always
curious about just how much Slots and batting order matter
for the hitter Carlos Mendoza for the game today said I think
Mark feels really good. And that number two hole. Does it feel different? Is there
anything about that spot that for you just seems to work. I feel like like just coming up and from
literally all the way to high school to probe always been the
top top of the order. So it's just kind of you like use that. That like towards
motivation. I'm on the top of the order. I gotta start the game off hot. I feel like that's my mentality
is just to get on base and put a good at-bat,
especially in my first at-bat. I'm I'm just focused on putting
a good at-bat making the picture work and
having the guys see him throw pitches.
See what's working for him. That's my mentality and and I feel comfortable for sure
and the tool nine-game hitting streak and
when you're hitting so well in those Nine games to well over
300 for power. What for you is been working. So well over this
recent stretch just not trying to do too much.
Honestly. Like I said, I'm just trying to have good
at-bats. Obviously anything I can do to
help the team win. We all these games are crucial. It's
exciting. It's it's I heard Petco Park is a great
environment. I'm excited for that and and we're coming close
to September baseball Wild Card race. And and this is
exciting to be a part of for sure you should I put together
good at-bats. What for you constitutes a good at-bat. Okay
result barring the result. I put together something good
there. Like I said, just seeing a lot
of pictures like I think six to seven pitches in
a bat. It is a good at-bat and I feel like if I put together
three good at-bats every single day. I'm doing my job as a
player and for our team to score runs and
to get on Whatever I can do. I think
that's my goal. Every single day is just to put together
three out of four out of five good at bat. So it's targeted Francisco Lindor
about you the other day and he was talking about how impressed
he's been with how even-keeled you've stayed all season long
whether you're going really hot or whether you're in any sort of
a slump. What have you been able to do
what point have you been able to get to mentally where you've
been able to keep that at least outwardly even Keel no matter what's going
on? Honestly, like you said even
even Kia's just is the perfect way to describe
it. I'm just staying focused on the
day-to-day process and what I got to do
today, and I'm not really like worried about a slump or you're
a hot streak. I feel like I'm confident in my game. I'm
confident and what I could do on a day-to-day basis and and
that's just it is just Like you said, not trying to get
too high or too low because this game is, that's what it is.
Is it's a rollercoaster. You one day, you feel like you're on
top of the world and the other day, the guy beat you.
And you feel like, man is just that's just how hard the game is
and that's why I love it so much. The only thing he said about you
is that you've been really honest with
yourself and with him or other veterans that you haven't
convinced yourself. When things aren't going well that they are
going well, you'll say. All right. What are you seeing?
What's been different? Are there? Specific example? Is that you can remember, where something either land or
JD or somebody said to you, that helped you turn a corner
and get out of a slump a little bit quicker
than you would have in the past. Yeah, I think we were we were on
the airplane. Flying somewhere and Lindor, kind of threw me
something. Like he said, when you have a
something with your mindset, like you have a 40, Freedom fruit like Freedom with
your mind, something, something. And along those lines
is just like, when you're just out there, reacting, and you just locked in on every
pitch, then you're just locked in, on every at bat. I feel like Put in the work. I put in the
work every single day in the offseason. I've been doing
this for 20 something years and it's just
like now it's just go play just go react just like don't
let your mind take you away from being president. And because it's what matters is
what's happening now, like it's not
your a bad scene the passage this at-bat right now what man in scoring position like it's just being present and
just focusing on that. I feel like that that's that's the most important thing
I've been trying to do and that's what's keeping me keeping
me saying throughout the season marked appreciate the
time keep it up. Thank you, Steve.