Miguel Rojas (7-5-24)

DV catches up with Miggy Ro before the Dodgers start a 3-game series against the Brewers. 

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
The Dodgers and Brewers getting set forfirst pitch, and this is a great
series for shortstops. Willie Thomas onthe Brewers side, but the king of
defensive shortstops here with the Dodgers,Miguel Rojas. Thanks a lot for the
time. Yeah, no problem,man. Everybody knows trying to I mean
trying to get this thing going.You know, like we haven't been playing

(00:21):
really good the last couple of days, but I feel like this is a
great up portunity for us to closeout the homestand with a serious win against
a rival that they're they're playing prettygood baseball too, So it's gonna be
a fun and really enjoyable series.Miguel, you obviously understand the grind of
one hundred and sixty two games,but how important is it not to allow

(00:42):
complacency to set in. Yeah.I feel like as a as a professional
athletes, we have to come everysingle day and and do our part and
to work at it kind of beprepared for the game, regardless of like
how long this season is going tobe, and I mean what the part
of the season we are right now, like knowing that the All Star break
is coming and we're gonna need thosedays, you know, to kind of

(01:04):
relax and and set the mind forthe second half of the year. But
at the end of the day,we can't really stop working. We have
to come to a ball part everysingle day with uh the mentality of winning
this baseball game. So it's reallyimportant. It doesn't matter what what kind
of UH of a day do youhaving off the field, you have to
come here and give your best tothe team to prepare them be ready for

(01:26):
the game. Jason Heyward said somethinglast night after the game. He believes
some of the guys having to fillin for the injured players have been trying
to do too much. How importantis it not to try to do that?
It's really hard not to, youknow, like when you get an
opportunity to play and you get anopportunity to help the team in a daily
basis, I feel like you areyou feel the pressure and you feel the

(01:47):
necessity of getting your job done.I don't think it's a it's a bad
thing, you know, like we'regonna have to face that, We're gonna
have to deliver it on the topmoments. And I feel like with the
with the injuries that we been having, throughout the last couple of months of
the season. Uh, that's gonnacreate a character on players who are start

(02:07):
the year on the on the benchor on the on a different role.
I feel like this is our timeto be the next guy up, you
know. Uh, James Allman isgoing to have a new opportunity to come
here impact the game, and weall believe in him, and we all
believe and everybody that's out there inthe on the field. So for me,
it's not it's not it's not necessarilya bad thing that you feel pressure

(02:28):
to do your job, no doubt. Got to have that urgency. And
Miguel Rojas certainly has been a consummateteammate, on selfish teammate. And I'm
not sure you heard what Mookie Bettshad to say in the booth a couple
of nights ago about Miguel Rojas.He talked about how karma is paying you
forward now after your unselfishness putting inthe time with him when he was playing
shortstop learning shortstop. What does thatmean to you that he still appreciates the

(02:53):
time you put in to help himbe a better player. That's the best,
because I mean when I when Idecided to do it. I decided
because I just want him to feelcomfortable and to feel better at shortstop.
I know it's not an easy task. He said it that he's one of
the like the hardest thing that hehave to do on a baseball field and

(03:13):
during a baseball season, And it'snot a really easy thing to do when
you have to go to short stopand be the best that you can be
in that position by yourself, youknow, like he we have like a
great group of coaches, great groupof people. I know he has his
own kind of core on his familyand his friends, but at the same
time, you're going to need yourteammates to actually like help you keep you,

(03:36):
keep you accountable, and at thesame time like help you to kind
of like overcome little things, youknow, and be next to you when
you're not like doing so good aswell. So for me, it was
never like a sacrifice that I didbecause everything that I did with him helped
me to stay in shape for thismoment. And I think my body's charted,
my mind is shart because I nevertook a game a day off from

(03:59):
working and from like doing what Ineed to do. And that guy,
right there make me work extremely hardbecause he's never satisfied with what he have.
I love that. Miguel Rojas,like I said, this is a
series of the best shortstops in baseball. How do you look at a series
like this when you got Willie adamis playing your position. Obviously he's younger
than you, but certainly you canappreciate how good he is. Well.

(04:24):
First off, I really enjoy whenI have to go against the best,
and I feel like Willie's been ontop of the game for a long time
now, you know, he foundit seems like he found a home in
Milwaukee. Unleach kind of his potentialoffensively, but he's always being a defensive
first guy for me. When whenI get the opportunity to play against him

(04:44):
in Tampa, I always see hisability to actually make great plays, but
he always make the routine plays aswell. So that's kind of what you
want as a short step, youknow, being able to make every routine
play and at the end of theday when the need, when the he
needs a clutch play out there.A shortstop, he's one of the guys
that I kind of look up tobecause he's he's really good out there.

(05:08):
And on my side, I feellike really proud that with thirty five years
old, I can actually compete againsta guy like him in his mid twenties.
That's something that I really take prideof. Hey, it's not thirty
five years old, it's thirty fiveyears young with way Miguel Rojas is playing
this year. Thanks a lot forthe time, and obviously your words speak

(05:30):
volumes to appreciate the time. Thankyou by appreciate it.