August 28 — Kevin Kilpatrick Jr.

Columbus Clingstones broadcaster Jack Johnson visited with outfielder Kevin Kilpatrick Jr. at Toyota Field in Huntsville, Alabama.

 Kilpatrick discussed his first career Double-A home run, what comes naturally to him on the field and what he has worked hardest to develop, shared a story about something he has created recently that he is most proud of, and reflected on his favorite moment of the Clingstones’ inaugural season so far.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome back to the Columbus Klingstones pregame show, everybody. Game three between the Stones and the Rocket City Trash Pandas. And I'm joined by Kevin Kilpatrick Jr. on the pregame show. Kevin, we got a pretty good view here. Sitting in the second row behind home play. This isn't a bad place to see a ball game, is it? Oh, it's money right here.

SPEAKER_01 0:16

I mean, it's a great view. Can argue strikes and balls if you need to, you know, everything, everything that you will want is right here. Great, great cushion too, on the seats.

SPEAKER_00 0:25

Yeah, we're about as comfortable as we've ever been for a pregame interview. We got a great view down the right field line. That's where you went last night. First bomb of the year, first bomb of your double-A career. I know you've been waiting a long time for it. You've had so many just get right up against the wall, right at the warning track. What was that moment like when you rounded first and said, yeah, that's gone. It's over now. I've finally done it.

SPEAKER_01 0:47

Uh it was it was great. You know, it was just a kind of testimony to all of um all the work that I've been putting in and just staying staying neutral and staying neutral with myself and just trusting that my abilities and whatever I'm working on in the cages, it will replicate in the outfield and in the field in general and getting the ball over the fence. But if I just keep taking good swings, then hopefully those keep happening, you know. But as long as I put up a good A B and something good for the team to get in runs, and I'll be good.

SPEAKER_00 1:13

I'll tell you what, man, the swings have been as good as they've been all year for an extended period of time. It's not just a week, it's not just a month, it's been over a month for you where you're hitting over 350. You're hitting over 368 since July 13th, since the All-Star break, you're hitting nearly 360. What's going on? What happened over the last month or so that has clicked in for you?

SPEAKER_01 1:35

I don't I don't know, man. I've just been kind of the same thing from the beginning. I mean, probably I don't know if it's some luck in there or anything, but I'm just talking to the guys every day, picking everybody's brain and just going putting one foot in front of the other, you know, just staying on the grind and all of the results and everything, if that if that comes in, then that's great. But I'm just all worried about the process and just keep taking good swings. And I couldn't even tell you what number I was batted. I don't even know about the numbers. I'm just happy that the guys were getting some wins in that we're getting some wins in and we're rolling. Does it surprise you the number that I gave you, or did you feel like you were somewhere in that neighborhood? I couldn't even tell you the number. I'm actually surprised that I'm even hitting like that. So I was just thinking of just squaring the ball up more and getting on base so I can get in some runs for the guys.

SPEAKER_00 2:21

When you talk about the process, it's every day, it's the same repetitive steps to be as good as you've been over the last month. What's the most valuable part of that process for you? What's something when you come to the yard every day that you need to feel or need to accomplish before game time to get yourself ready?

SPEAKER_01 2:41

Um, well, and it all tells me in my prep work in the cages. Uh a lot of the times it's purely on swings because every day you're not gonna be feeling great. You're not gonna backspin balls to the back of the cage every day, you know. So it's just taking what you got and putting your best foot out there and putting your best effort. And then after that, everything kind of works itself out. Like if you're late, if you're just nonstop late in the cage one day, maybe in the game you're like, alright, let's get that foot down early and maybe that evens it out. Maybe if you're too early in the cages and you get in the game, you're like, let's see a couple pitches, let's see it deep, you're right on time. You know, sometimes it kind of sets you up for success.

SPEAKER_00 3:14

What do you feel like comes naturally to you in baseball? And what do you feel like you've really had to work for in your professional career?

SPEAKER_01 3:20

Uh, outfield work for sure. Outfield work comes naturally. I love playing outfield. I used to play football. I was a defensive back growing up and everything, so I kind of treat it as that, like just going to get the ball, securing it, and not letting anything get behind you. And the thing I would say I would work on the most is being a better overall baseball player, honestly, is just how you handle the game. Like just probably the mental part of the game. And the game is a lot more mental than physical. Like you see the best physical guys out here. We're playing in professional baseball, it's the best guys out. But the more you work on your mental mental part and correct those mental habits that you have, I feel like that's that's when the game gets fun.

SPEAKER_00 3:58

What's the best thing you feel like you've learned or someone has taught you since you were drafted in the Braves organization about the mental side of the game?

SPEAKER_01 4:06

Um, bad days. Uh, we had a guy, Klaus, Klaus used to tell me all the time, he used to be like, Don't ever say that won't happen to you. Because he was like, it can happen to anybody and it can happen at any time. So he and with that being said, he kind of went a little deeper into it and he was just, I mean, man, bad days are gonna happen, and you can't look at somebody else's bad day and say that that won't happen to you because tomorrow it could be the same exact thing that can happen to you. So it's just take each day for what it is, learn from whatever you can learn from from that day, and then go out tomorrow and try to be better than you were the day before.

SPEAKER_00 4:38

I love the way that you put that. I want to ask you this question because I asked Cody Gabello, the manager, this question on Tuesday. Brett Sears made a bench in wood shop class in high school. That's the thing he had the most pride in that he made in high school. I asked Gabby the same question. What was the best thing you made that you took the most pride in? So I'll ask you that question. What's something you've made or created? Could be in school or it could just be in your life leading up to these days that you take the most pride in. You look back on, you say, I did pretty good with that.

SPEAKER_01 5:07

Uh actually, probably our um, I will say it's me a little bit, but I'm kind of we got teammates, me, EJ, Nick Clarno, Ian Mahia, all of our guys, we get on Minecraft, you know, like so we're in Minecraft. That's probably the best thing I've like. I mean, school, I wasn't really an adventure, so I really couldn't do a lot of things, but honestly, the Minecraft world that we have right now is pretty sick. It's pretty elite. But also, I built my sister's bed back at home, so that was pretty good. It's probably the best thing.

SPEAKER_00 5:38

Alright, what we got in Minecraft world that you've been working on that you take the most pride in right now?

SPEAKER_01 5:43

Oh, we got a whole like neighborhood. We're actually building a hotel soon, you know, hotel to be done in the Minecraft world. You can come stay if you need. You got extra beds in there. Zombies can't get to you. But we made a whole neighborhood. I mean, we have driveways, we have lawns, we have multiple houses with decks and pools in the back and everything, grass everywhere. We also have jungle houses, we have, you know, timeshares over there in the forest if you want to go over there. You know, we built a couple houses over there. So it's chest everywhere, diamonds, you know, just in case you need anything, you know, we got it set. That's what I'm proud of.

SPEAKER_00 6:16

Got yourself a whole community set up. What's the best video game you've played in your life outside of Minecraft? What's a game that you look back to in the past and say, that was that was the one for me?

SPEAKER_01 6:28

Oh, 2K. Maybe, maybe on the 2K17, 2K16 era. I'm pretty sure 2K16 had, you know, Blake Griffin on the cover with Kevin Durant, and I forgot the other guy, it was Ghana left. That was probably the best 2K I've ever played in my life. And I love 2K. Like video games wise, I played 2K since 2K11, 2K10, since the old 2Ks, you know, I've always played 2K.

SPEAKER_00 6:53

So when you got my player, point guard, forward, how you setting up my player? What's his attributes?

SPEAKER_01 7:01

Um, I usually go for the point guard, the short, cheesy point guard that can dribble left to right really fast and shoot up a lot of threes, sometimes dunk, but really he's just like six foot one, can just run really fast and shoot threes, dribble around everybody. And then I also go with my Yama Bill on the center. Some seven foot three dude that can do everything. So you can do whatever. You know, you can make a whole avatar and just make him the best ever.

SPEAKER_00 7:24

Playing here first season in double A. What's been your favorite moment of the season so far?

SPEAKER_01 7:29

Oh, probably Q's walk-off. Well not walk-off, but Q's go-ahead home run at home. Was it a grand slam or grand slam? Q's go-ahead grand slam at home. That was I I can't even like put into words. The crowd was in it. It was dark at late at night. Lights are lights are extra bright. Q's up in the moment, and the guys rallied together. We had to put up, put, put up a big inning, and Q went big fly, and everything just erupted. Like I felt like the stadium was shaking and it was gonna fall apart.

SPEAKER_00 7:59

It's crazy. That was against Montgomery. Got business to take care of here in Rocket City, but got Montgomery next week, then Pensacola. Playoff races on. What do you feel like this team has to accomplish to make the playoffs this year?

SPEAKER_01 8:11

Oh, if we keep being ourselves and always working on our on our flaws and always working on whatever we can work to work on to get better. If we keep doing that, and I mean the sky's the limit, man, we can we can win it out. I got I got a lot of trust in this team. It's a good group of guys.

SPEAKER_00 8:26

Heard it here first from the second row at Toyota Field. Kevin Kilpatrick Jr. says they can win it all. Also, time shares hotels opening up in Minecraft pretty soon. So Kev, I appreciate you taking the time, man. You know it. Thank you, Jack. Appreciate you.