Speaker 1: All right, Tim, I am out of my mental headspace
Speaker 1: right now because I'm joined right now by one of
Speaker 1: the smartest guys in that Dodger clubhouse. He is going
Speaker 1: to make me even more of a mental midget during
Speaker 1: these next few minutes as we get set for first
Speaker 1: pitch in our nation's capital, and that is Dodger rookie
Speaker 1: reliever Jack Dryer. Jack, thanks a lot for the time,
Speaker 1: appreciate it.
Speaker 2: Thank you very much for having me.
Speaker 1: What was Blake trying telling you in the food room.
Speaker 2: We just had a little pep talk. He wanted to
Speaker 2: make sure that I was aware of, you know, what
Speaker 2: to expect in a talk like this, But he had
Speaker 2: nothing but good things to say.
Speaker 1: And Blake Tryning, by the way, the first two days
Speaker 1: in DC very dressed up, but today he's back to
Speaker 1: Blake Tryning with that black tank top.
Speaker 2: I think he must have gotten used to his old roots,
Speaker 2: so maybe he's feeling a little bit more comfortable now.
Speaker 1: Blake has kind of taken the role of what Daniel
Speaker 1: Hudson did for the bullpen last year. How much of
Speaker 1: a leader is Blake trying for you guys?
Speaker 2: Yeah, he's been great, obviously, you know, one of the
Speaker 2: veterans on the team. So he's done a great job
Speaker 2: of taking me any other young guys under his wing
Speaker 2: and kind of showing us the ropes, telling us what
Speaker 2: to expect. But it's not just him, you know, we
Speaker 2: have an entire bullpen of good guys like that. So
Speaker 2: I'm just very thankful to be a part of the group.
Speaker 1: How do you get prepared for your groupings of hitters,
Speaker 1: because we've heard since Dave Roberts and Andrew Freeman took over,
Speaker 1: it's not so much about innings, it's about groupings of hitters.
Speaker 2: Yeah. I think one thing that the Dodgers do really
Speaker 2: well is have excellent communication. So going into games or series,
Speaker 2: we know where our lanes might be. But at the
Speaker 2: end of the day, our job is to go out
Speaker 2: there and just you know, do our job get outs,
Speaker 2: help the team have a chance to win. And so
Speaker 2: I think over all the bullpen has done an excellent
Speaker 2: job of that so far.
Speaker 1: How much does it feed off itself when you come
Speaker 1: in and you're facing a high leverage part of the order,
Speaker 1: like in Philadelphia striking out Bryce Sharper, facing that part
Speaker 1: of their lineup and succeeding, how much does that feed
Speaker 1: off itself as far as confidence goes.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, you know, obviously if you afterwards, if
Speaker 2: you go back and look at it, it's a cool moment,
Speaker 2: and you know, it's fun to think about. But at
Speaker 2: the end of the day, it doesn't matter who you're facing.
Speaker 2: You know, our job is to go in there and
Speaker 2: throw strikes and get outs, and so that's just all
Speaker 2: I try to do.
Speaker 1: It seems like you've been in the league for five years,
Speaker 1: the way you're still composed on the mound. How have
Speaker 1: you been able to keep your poise and not let
Speaker 1: the game get too fast?
Speaker 2: I think, you know, going back to even when I was,
Speaker 2: you know, twelve years old, my dad would always tell me,
Speaker 2: you know, somebody should be able to watch the game
Speaker 2: and not know if you guys are winning or losing
Speaker 2: based on your body language. And so I think that's
Speaker 2: been a big part of how I try to, you know,
Speaker 2: act on the mound. You know, just like you said,
Speaker 2: keep my composure and do whatever it takes to let
Speaker 2: the team win. And so, you know, antics can stay
Speaker 2: out of the game.
Speaker 1: Jack Dryer is our guest all business, except when it
Speaker 1: comes to Rubik's cubes. How quickly? Can you solve a
Speaker 1: Rubik's cube?
Speaker 2: Back in the day when I was when I was
Speaker 2: practicing every day, it was thirteen seconds was my best time.
Speaker 2: But now I average about, you know, eighteen to twenty.
Speaker 1: So it's like me running the mile. You've slowed down.
Speaker 2: Yeah, over time, you'll it'll lose your touch eventually.
Speaker 1: How many of your teammates and your bullpen mates know
Speaker 1: this about you and how many have tried to challenge
Speaker 1: you so far?
Speaker 2: I think it's pretty well known. You know, in spring training,
Speaker 2: Dot called me up in front of the team and
Speaker 2: had a competition between me and Tommy Edmund and so
Speaker 2: Stanford guy, Yeah, Stanford guy, very very bright mind. So
Speaker 2: that was a cool moment. But everybody is aware of
Speaker 2: it now. I think guys just kind of avoid the topic.
Speaker 1: So how did it end up between you and Tommy
Speaker 1: Edmond in front of the team.
Speaker 2: We gave him a bit of a head start and
Speaker 2: I was able to I was able to close close
Speaker 2: the gap, so it ended up in my favor.
Speaker 1: Hey, speaking of all that, obviously we know this game
Speaker 1: is all some say ninety percent mental. What are the
Speaker 1: mental exercises you go through to get ready to pitch.
Speaker 2: Yeah. I think that's one thing that, you know, can
Speaker 2: really separate guys. And I think that's why the Dodgers
Speaker 2: do such a good job is because we have you know,
Speaker 2: mental coaches and coaches who understand the mental side of baseball.
Speaker 2: So it's all kinds of things, you know, like poitive
Speaker 2: self talk, reinforcement, visualization, all that kind of stuff. So
Speaker 2: we're really hitting you know, every step on the way.
Speaker 1: All right, Jack, thanks a lot for the time, appreciate it.
Speaker 1: If you ever need a life coach, I'm available this season.
Speaker 2: Thank you very much. I'll have to take you up
Speaker 2: on that.