SEATTLE – The managers and players for the MLB All-Star teams spoke Monday, one day before they’ll participate in the 93rd annual All-Star Game.
Here are some quotes from Braves players and others:
Braves first baseman Matt Olson:
On teammate Ronald Acuña
“Being a lead-off guy for us, he sets the tone every day. He plays with such energy and he’s having a fun time with everybody. He’s a really good person and incredible baseball player. We’re happy to have him on our side.”
On representing his hometown team in the All-Star Game
“I think 10-year-old Matt thought it’d be really cool. I always pictured myself in a Braves uniform. You want to picture yourself in the All-Star Game doing all this stuff. To have them meshed together is cool.”
On the success of starters Spencer Strider and Bryce Elder
“Their attention to detail. Being a starting pitcher is so much about routine, figuring out what works for you every fifth day. You see Strider’s stuff, throwing 100 with a wipeout slider. Then you almost have the polar opposite with Elder. Sinking, moving the ball around. I think it’s great the way they learn from each other.”
On the Braves’ All-Star infield
“You have your little units. You’re all a team, but outfielders, catchers, infielders. To be able to have us all here - Arcia getting his first full every-day role with us, to do what he’s done. Then Ozzie and Austin, they’re going to be in the All-Star talk every year. It’s cool to have everybody here.”
Braves starter Spencer Strider:
On making the All-Star Game
“It’s pretty cool. It’s a big honor. I’m not going to throw in it but it’s exciting to be here and see some guys I’ve been watching for a long time. Hopefully I can learn something observing them. … I never really thought about being an All-Star. It’s a difficult thing to impact directly. I’m very honored to have been selected and it’s great to be here with seven of my teammates, too. We’ve been having a great year and there could’ve been more from our team. Excited to be here with them and to watch them play.”
On becoming an All-Star with his fellow 2020 draftee Bryce Elder
“It’s very cool. The fact we both do it differently is neat. It’s fun to watch him pitch. I feel like I can learn a lot from him. There’s a lot of things he does that I wish I could do that I’ll never be able to do. It’s special to be here together. It’s special to be here with the rest of our teammates.”
On Acuña
“On a daily basis, he always does something crazy. His athleticism is something I’ve never seen before. If you’re lucky enough to be in the weight room and he’s warming up or doing a workout, the ease with which he can do any movement is pretty remarkable.”
On grooming his mustache
“I shave. Not every day, but I shave when the urge strikes me. I have somewhat of a routine. A little bit of a routine. But I don’t manicure it, per se. It just kind of sits there on my face.”
On his best pitch
“I think it’s the fastball. I still throw it the most of any pitch and it’s still getting good metrics and a good whiff rate this year. I think having Travis (d’Arnaud) and Sean (Murphy) behind the plate has helped a lot. Both call a great game and have done a nice job putting me in position to strike guys out. The emphasis on throwing strikes, getting ahead and executing pitches where they’re most effective in the zone is usually the way to do that.”
On watching Shohei Ohtani pitch
“He’s one of my favorite pitches to watch. I think everybody feels that way. He’s unbelievable. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime talent that he is. Every time he plays, you never know. He could do something that’s never happened before. It’s fun to watch him.”
Braves starter Bryce Elder
On pitching with higher velocity
“It’s always nice to have but we’ve gotten in a place where sometimes people view it as mandatory, but I don’t necessarily think it is. You don’t have to have it. You can still get outs by commanding it and making it move.”
If he could’ve imagined making the All-Star team
“To be honest, no. I always thought maybe you pitch well enough, you end up achieving something like this. But to start the year in Triple-A, I really never would’ve thought of it. I’ve just put my head down and it worked out. This is pretty cool to be here.”
Braves third baseman Austin Riley
On Strider’s and Elder’s different styles succeeding
“It’s crazy. That’s why the game of baseball is so cool. It’s one end of the spectrum to another. As long as you go out there and are consistent, you give yourself a chance.”
On Elder’s ascension into an All-Star
“I don’t like to count anybody out (from potentially being an All-Star), but he was the opening-day starter in Gwinnett. That storyline right there is pretty sweet. To be an opening-day starter in Triple-A then an All-Star in the big leagues is pretty cool. He goes about his business as good as anyone. He knows his stuff. He’s not one of those guys who’s going to light up the radar but he knows his craft and knows he has good enough stuff to get guys out, and that’s what he does.”
Phillies manager Rob Thomson, who’s managing the National League team
On the Braves’ success
“They’ve got a great club. They’ve put up some really good offensive numbers. They’ve all earned that right to be on this team. I’m really looking forward to meeting them, all of the clubhouse. It’s really an honor to be managing this group.”
Angels two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani
On his desire to win with his free agency looming as the story of the upcoming offseason:
“Those feelings get stronger year by year. It sucks to lose. He wants to win, so it gets stronger every year.” (via interpreter Ippei Mizuhara)
Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña posted a picture on Instagram with Ohtani and Padres outfielder Juan Soto in the T-Mobile Park outfield, which prompted fun ideas from Braves fans. Acuña was asked earlier in the day what he’d ask Ohtani if the two had a lengthy conversation, and he said he’d want to know Ohtani’s routine that enables his success as a pitcher and hitter.
