March 25, 2025 • 29 mins
Darren Headrick talks with Kentucky Baseball Coach Nick Mingione. Send in your questions on social media each week for Coach Mingione to answer.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
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This is the Nick Minchion Show on the UK Sports Natwork.
Have a question for Coach Minchion tweeted two at UK
Sports Network Now alongside the coach here in Stonefoyes of
UK Baseball Darren Hendrick.
Speaker 7 (01:50):
Fresh off a six nothing, two hit shutout of the
Auburn Tigers on Sunday. The Wildcats will be back home
tomorrow night against Xavier at six point thirty. We welcome
you into the Nick Menjeon Show. I'm Darren Hedrick with you.
And while it was a tough week overall for the Wildcats,
it did end on a high note with that victory
against the Tigers. And you look at what coach Menjeon
(02:12):
likes to call the margin of victory. The Wildcats were
oh so close to going four and oh on the week,
but dropped three games by a combined three runs. But
the Wildcats, like I say, they're not far off. In fact,
they've had a lead in all six of their SEC games.
It's just a team that continues to try and work
and be better. So we'll talk about all of that
(02:34):
coming up with head coach Nick Menjeon Tomorrow Night's broadcast
against Xavier is presented by the Kentucky Department of Fish
and Wildlife Resources. Spring is the perfect time to get outdoors,
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(02:57):
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Speaker 7 (06:08):
We're back in on the Nick Men's You Oones show
here on the UK Sports Network, as the Wildcats get
set to host Xavier to close out a five game
homestand tomorrow night at six thirty before a trip to Texas,
A and M and coaches with us now, after a
tough week for the Wildcats, three losses by three runs,
but you were able to come back Sunday and finish
off the week on a good note with a six
(06:29):
to nothing shutout of Auburn. But overall, just your thoughts
on what was a tough week for the Wildcats and
being oh so close to what could have been a.
Speaker 12 (06:37):
Four and oh week.
Speaker 4 (06:38):
Well, you know, you hear me say, it's a lot,
and the margin of victory is so small, it is
so small, and to lose three games all by one run.
You know, you look back on a year ago and
we found ourselves on the other side of those one
run games, you know, and obviously it's a new year
and a new team, so continuing to try to just
(06:58):
teach our guys and put them in the best positions
to win. And I'll tell you this, I love the
fight of this team. I mean when you sit there
and you look at where we've had six games that
we've played in the SEC, We've had a lead in
all of them at some point and just haven't been
able to finish off. And you know, so you hear
me say this, A lot A lot of this comes
(07:20):
down to execution and when we execute and do what
we're trained to do. And you know, we're not going
to be perfect.
Speaker 12 (07:27):
You know.
Speaker 4 (07:27):
I think you look back and you look around the
league and you just see teams it's just it is
a absolute dog fight.
Speaker 12 (07:34):
So I don't expect our guys to be perfect. One thing.
Speaker 4 (07:37):
We do need to do a better job of execute
at a high level. And when we do that, we're
going to put ourselves in some really good positions. And
we've been in some good positions. We just need to finish.
And you know, when you look at these one run losses,
you can always draw back to a player too. And
I told our team after the game, aster I thought
they were phenomenal. I mean, to shut that offense out
(07:57):
is in any team in our league is a big deal.
And I said, hey, man, get ready, we got eight
more weeks of this. You can sit there and draw
up two different players or two different pitches where we're
three and zero, but we're not. We were one and two.
That's what I'm talking about. The margin of victory is so.
Speaker 7 (08:13):
Small, whether you have a team like last year or
a team this year that's coming together and learning how
to win and compete in the SEC. How much do
you coach the mental side for these groups, for these
players versus the physical side and help them improving their skills.
Speaker 12 (08:29):
Yeah, you know, that's a huge part of it.
Speaker 4 (08:31):
And you know we spent a lot of time on
that this weekend prior to some of the games. Just
you know, we we have a list of things that
every year I do this with our teams. I basically
ask that year's team what made the team the year
before successful? And it's pretty amazing to hear the things
that they believe. You know, as coaches, we could have
(08:53):
all these thoughts and opinions, right, and we can look
at all the stats. We could look at all these things,
but to go back and ask the players that lived
it and been a part of it, and then to
ask the guys that were on the outside following us, Hey,
what was it?
Speaker 12 (09:07):
What was it?
Speaker 4 (09:08):
So we have this list of things that we believe
that made last year's team successful. So one of the
things we spoke about was our ability to move on quickly.
Like they mentioned that last year's team was so good
at that, Like they're just just like it doesn't matter,
like what's next, what's next? Onto the next thing, onto
the next pitch. You know, I'm we're going to learn,
(09:29):
grow and improve, and it's just like so what next
pitch if something bad happens, Like next pitch, next pitch,
next pitch. So this mentality is something that our team
has to get better at.
Speaker 12 (09:39):
So we spent a ton of time on that. So
how do you do that?
Speaker 4 (09:42):
I have to put things in place, and they have
to put things in place for them that they could
say and do to help them move on. And when
we do that and we continue to do that better, I.
Speaker 12 (09:52):
Really believe the results will speak for themselves.
Speaker 4 (09:55):
But just spending time on them and just you know, Darren,
this has to do with life. You know, like I
told them, I mean, like, hey, listen, this goes far
beyond baseball, right when something doesn't go your way, you know,
we may not have control over what just happened, but
we do have control over how we respond to that.
And that's what life's about, is responding, and we have
(10:16):
control over that. So we need to respond in the
right way. And they're learning, they're getting better. And I'll
just say this, I love this team. I love this team.
I believe in them, and I'm looking forward to the
rest of the season.
Speaker 7 (10:26):
With them and coach. I don't mean this as an excuse.
I know this program does it like excuses. But you've
got young players and you also have people in new
roles this year, so everybody's trying to learn. So what
has been like for you coaching this team And how
much fun do you have coaching this team with young
guys and big roles and also players stepping up into
(10:46):
new roles this year.
Speaker 4 (10:48):
Yeah, you know that's been really when you go through it.
I mean, Devin caught this weekend every other player that
started for us, all three starters and the other eight
positional players are all doing it for the first time,
like they're all doing it for the first time. Let
that sink in, like, so you know that's the facts.
(11:11):
So do we have to execute and do better. Absolutely,
But these guys are learning. That's like that is so
fulfilling as a coach, just to watch the guys like
grow and to do things that quite frankly, they couldn't
do a week ago or a month ago, or you know,
five months ago for that matter. So we're getting better, Like,
(11:32):
the guys are growing, they're getting better, and it's been
rewarding to see guys that you know, we're in our
program but didn't play much, like the Griff Cameron and
the Hudson Browns and you know Ethan Hindle's, you know,
those guys that have been in the program last year
but didn't get to playing time. And now to see
those guys like going out there and do that, and
then you mix in a Tyler Bell as a freshman.
(11:55):
It's like been really neat to watch all these guys grow.
Speaker 7 (11:58):
Let's take our first time out here on the nickmn's
own show. We'll chat more about the cats when we
come back on the UK Sports Network.
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Bank Welcome back into the Dick men Gione Show as
the Cats get ready to travel to Texas, A and
M this weekend down in College Station. The Wildcats will
first play Xavier tomorrow night at six point thirty at
(14:27):
Kentucky Proud Park. And Coach we were talking about, you know,
players getting some new roles and expanded roles this year.
You mentioned in the last segment someone like Griff and
Cameron and Hudson Brown. How exciting has it been to
see them get an opportunity and make the most of
it in what they've done so far.
Speaker 4 (14:46):
Yeah, you know, I'll start with Griff. You know, a Lexingtonian,
you know from right here in town. And you know,
Griff did not have like a great early preseason and
to his credit, man has he just responded and come
out on the other side of it. And you know,
I always say this, like when guys go through hard times,
(15:08):
that's usually when you grow the most. I can speak
to that in my personal life and my professional life.
It's like when I gone through hard times, It's like, man,
you don't enjoy it at the time, but then you
look back and you go man, that just helped in
shape and molded me into the person and the man
that I am today. And I give Griffin so much
credit because he did not have a good early preseason spring,
(15:30):
but boy has he just continue to work and just
put his head down. And you know, obviously, with Will
getting out, you know that provided him an opportunity for
somebody to step up, and he has done that in
such a big way. So he's impacted the game in
a lot of ways. You've seen it with him defensively.
What a center field he played this past week. You've
seen it with him on the basis. You've seen it
(15:51):
with him with his at bats, and he's he's brought
a competitive and a toughness to us that's been really good.
And then Hudson, how about that guy? Yeah, just waited
his turn, got his pinch hits, took advantage of those,
then gets an opportunity to get in the starting lineup,
that gets an opportunity to play defensively, and he's just
taken advantage of it. And you know, that's what you
(16:11):
want your players to do. And his heart, I will
say this. I talk about this all the time with
our team and our guys just about their hearts if
their hearts are in the right spot, and Hudson's has been.
He's all he's trying to do is help Kentucky win
in whatever way. He didn't get to start, no problem,
just waited for his pinch hit, boom, got it, took
advantage of it. And now he's getting more opportunities and
(16:33):
he's taken advantage of it and it's been neat and
fun to see for those guys.
Speaker 7 (16:37):
Patrick Carrera, your third baseman, we've seen him have some
big moments already. He's had multi hit games and four
straight outings. And here's another guy that stepped into a
big role taking over third base this year, and he's
been excelling as well.
Speaker 12 (16:52):
Yeah, a guy that's another one.
Speaker 4 (16:55):
To your point, is this way his turns third year
in our program, and you know, he's just all these
has gotten better on every level. He's gotten better physically,
he's gotten better mentally, he's gotten better offensively, defensively, his
arm strength. You know, the guys gave him a round
of applause just for the job that he did at
third base yesterday and yesterday's win, I mean, it just
(17:16):
didn't matter. The ball was going to hit to him,
and he was making plays all over the field to
his left, to his right, and coming in coming into
his left. I mean, he was phenomenal and a guy
that's super competitive. And you know, anybody that's ever asked
the national media guy's asked me before the game, I'm like,
this guy's a quality about machine.
Speaker 12 (17:32):
This is what he does.
Speaker 4 (17:33):
Like he is just a winning baseball player, and super
happy for him. And you know, Darin, the leadership he's
provided also has been phenomenal. You know, if you just
pay attention closely, and those fans that are going to
come out and watch us play, just watch him at
third base. Watch what he does. Watch how he stares
in at our pitcher. Watch how he communicates with him.
Watch how he spins the glove on his finger in
(17:54):
between pitches, Like, watch all.
Speaker 12 (17:56):
The little things.
Speaker 4 (17:57):
This guy's a winning baseball player and he's he's done
it not only with his play, but he's done it
vocally as well.
Speaker 7 (18:03):
How have you learned over the years your nine seasons
with Kentucky on coaching teams, whether to pat him on
the back, the moments to pat him on the back,
or the moments that you maybe have to give him
a little shot, you know, to get them going again.
How have you kind of learned to manage those kinds
of things.
Speaker 4 (18:20):
Well, one thing I've done is I've surrounded myself with
some amazing coaches and staff members, so I.
Speaker 12 (18:27):
Rely heavily on them. They have a great pulse.
Speaker 4 (18:30):
Instinctively, I feel like the Lord has blessed me with
an intuition on people. And what I would tell you is,
I don't treat all the players and every team the same.
They're totally different and what works for one guy may
not work for another guy. And anybody that's had multiple
kids they know that, right, Like you know, Chris and
I only have the one. But but every player is
(18:54):
different and what makes them tick and what makes that
team tick is totally different.
Speaker 12 (18:59):
So you know, I would tell you that it's still a.
Speaker 4 (19:01):
Learning process, you know, And as you go through and
you go through the ebb and flows of the season,
you have to figure out when the push and when
the love.
Speaker 12 (19:10):
I will tell you this, and I think you know this.
Speaker 4 (19:12):
My gift is the gift of encouragement, and when I'm
at my best, I'm doing that. And it's not always
the case, you know, because but you know, I'll give
this team credit for a lot of things. One thing
is we've been able to coach them in different ways,
Like we've got onto them and they've responded, Like we've
encouraged them and we've loved on them and they've responded.
(19:33):
And I would say that is the sign of a
good team. Yeah, that they can respond to however you
coach them. You know, so we'll still learning that. It's
still a work in progress. I could sit here and
tell you that I'm still trying to figure out that
with this team, but I do know this, whatever route
we've gone, they've definitely responded and it's been a fun
group to be around.
Speaker 7 (19:53):
We'll take our final time out here on the Nickn's
You Own Show. One segment to go. This is the
UK Sports Network BBN.
Speaker 17 (20:00):
It's your weekly look inside UK Athletics Saturdays at nine
am on LAX eighteen and stations across the state. Check
Ukathletics dot com slash UK Sports Network for stations and
times in your area.
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BBN Game Day.
Speaker 8 (20:14):
What keeps you going?
Speaker 9 (20:16):
Your love for the game, your teammates of victory At
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Ar Each Orthopedic providers specialize in treatment plans from non
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Once again, thank you to our official cornerstone partners who
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Speaker 7 (23:10):
Final segment of the show for this week is the
Cats get ready to take on Xavier at six point
thirty tomorrow night at Kentucky Proud Park are airtime six
point fifteen on the UK Sports Network And Coach just
real quickly, looking at at Xavier, this is a team
that's been in regionals, They're always competing for the conference championships.
This is a tough midweek challenge for your group tomorrow night. Yeah,
(23:30):
And that's what we've tried to do.
Speaker 4 (23:31):
We've tried to schedule really good teams and this Tuesday's
no different.
Speaker 12 (23:36):
When we have Xavier coming in and you look at
your APPI they have won the top RPIs in the country.
Speaker 7 (23:40):
Yeah, no doubt about it. And then Texas A and
M this weekend going on the road. Real quick, I
just want to mention some guys that shined on the mound.
Let's go back to Sunday. Ben Cleaver an excellent start.
Tommy Skelding on the backside of that in the bullpen.
What did you see have those two young arms on Sunday?
Speaker 12 (23:56):
Man impressive. Impressive, you know.
Speaker 4 (23:58):
And I thought for what may been so impressive was
he had a really long first you know, threw thirty
two pitches, but didn't give up a run and came
off the mound with confidence. Darren, like, I can't tell
you enough, like how tough and competitive this guy is.
Speaker 12 (24:14):
And he comes off.
Speaker 4 (24:15):
The mound after throwing thirty two pitches and just like
super competitive, and what does he do. He proceeds to
go another three innings and doesn't give up a hit,
you know, and just rolls through and just like attacks
and attacks and attacks and attacks, and you know, and
then after him, I just thought Evan Byers was unbelievable
this week, doing three of the four games two innings,
(24:35):
just got us out of some tough and big jams.
Just cannot say enough about Evan and just how thankful
we are of him and his presence and his leadership
and his execution. And then Tommy was just I mean,
that's about as good as he gets. I mean, just
filling up the strike zone on the attack, multiple pitches
for a strike left these righties. It was just an
(24:56):
impressive display of just pouring the ball in the strike zone,
moving the game along and that's exactly what we needed.
We had a five to nothing lead, we were able
to get it to six. And those three guys yesterday
just could not.
Speaker 12 (25:08):
Say enough good things. They were just super impressive.
Speaker 7 (25:11):
Tommy is one of those guys with his stuff. As
he just continues to grow and get better, He's going
to be a factor in this bullpen going forward, isn't he? Oh?
Speaker 12 (25:19):
Absolutely?
Speaker 4 (25:19):
And you know we talked about Griffin and Huddy and Hindle,
you know, these guys that have been in a program
and now that are getting opportunities.
Speaker 12 (25:28):
You know, Tommy's a guy that.
Speaker 4 (25:29):
You know, had surgery out of high school, you know,
prior to coming here, and just man, he was a
professional prospect, you know, so to watch him come back
and just man, the fastball, the cutter, just how much
he's grown, you know, and even the way he cares himself.
You know, we want our pictures to be the tip
of the spirit. You hear us say that all the time,
and boy was he that, you know, And even in Georgia.
(25:50):
You know, early in the week we watched video of
Tommy and just how he came off the mound and
what it was just it was impressive. So happy for
him and need him to continue. But definitely guy that's
gonna get more opportunities come in and out of our bullpen.
Speaker 7 (26:02):
Going back to Cleaver real quick, just knowing this is
his first full season in a starting role, especially on
the weekend and in the SEC to see what he's
done so far. What does it say about him that
he's a guy that already's been established, which like, when
he's on the mound, we have a chance to win
this ball game.
Speaker 12 (26:19):
Yeah, it says he's a dog.
Speaker 4 (26:20):
And that's what he's talking about, right, I mean, I
tell the guys that's what a dog looks like, Ben Clever,
you know. But I really believe it starts with his mentality,
his level of toughness and belief and confidence. It spills
over into the rest of our team and that is
huge for us. That is huge because our team feels
like every time he's on the mountain, we have a
(26:42):
chance to win the game. And you know what, there's
a lot of things that statistics and analytics and things
can measure.
Speaker 12 (26:48):
Yeah, they can't measure that.
Speaker 4 (26:50):
They can't measure what it's like for a team to
come off the mound, for a guy to come off
the mound and a team just rally behind him, and
when he's on the mound, they want to fight and
call for them.
Speaker 12 (27:00):
And Ben's a winner.
Speaker 4 (27:02):
And regardless of how this week's or the rest of
the weeks and the season goes, I mean, he has
just proven to himself that he can do it at
the highest level and we believe in him.
Speaker 7 (27:13):
Coach, you mentioned some statistics and analytics, and I'm looking
at your pitching staff top twenty five and ERA top
thirty in WHIP And for those who might not be
familiar with WHIP, it's walks and hits divided by innings pitched,
and basically it tries to measure how many base runners
you give up over nine innings. One point two is
pretty good when you look at some of these outstanding numbers.
(27:35):
What excites you more when you look at stats? Is
it ERA or is it the whip?
Speaker 4 (27:39):
You know, obviously those are two super important statistics. The
thing I keep going back to with this staff is
if you think about this week alone, we threw fourteen
different guys, and we still had some guys that didn't
get a chance to get in a game that are
good arms due you know, some freshmen that are just
sitting here waiting for their opportunities.
Speaker 12 (27:56):
The thing I keep going back to with this pitching.
Speaker 4 (27:59):
Staff is they're all all so different. When I watch video,
and I know you know this, it's like, I just
watch so much video, and when I watch the shape
and the movements of their pitches, they're different. And I
believe when guys start getting more comfortable with their roles
and the more and more they get out there, and
the weather starts warming up and our bodies start to
(28:19):
feel better and all these things that typically happen as
the season goes on, I think what you're gonna see
is a pitching staff that is just so different. You know,
a lot of times we face teams there they have
a right handed pitcher and he's ninety two ninety four
touch ninety six with a slider, and they take that
guy out. Here comes the next guy, ninety two ninety
four touch ninety six with a slider. Then they're bringing
(28:40):
the next guy and this guy's ninety five ninety seven
with a slider, and it's like same arm angles, same
shapes of the pitches, and this pitching staff is different.
We have splitters, and we have changeups, and we have cutters,
and we have curveballs, and we have two steamers, and
we got four steamers and they're all kind of have
their own repper Cari and I just give coach Ozell
a lot credit for that, you know, And he's just
(29:03):
he's been able to give our guys and put him
in positions to have a bunch of different things. So
those stats definitely, I'm so happy you brought those up,
and those are important as well as just the variety
that we.
Speaker 12 (29:14):
Have coming out of our bullpen and the staff coach.
We'll see it tomorrow night. A good savior. Can't wait.
Go Cats.
Speaker 7 (29:20):
This has been the Nicknamseiones Show on the UK Sports
Network
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Speaker 6 (01:33):
This is the Nick Minchion Show on the UK Sports Natwork.
Have a question for Coach Minchion tweeted two at UK
Sports Network Now alongside the coach here in Stonefoyes of
UK Baseball Darren Hendrick.
Speaker 7 (01:50):
Fresh off a six nothing, two hit shutout of the
Auburn Tigers on Sunday. The Wildcats will be back home
tomorrow night against Xavier at six point thirty. We welcome
you into the Nick Menjeon Show. I'm Darren Hedrick with you.
And while it was a tough week overall for the Wildcats,
it did end on a high note with that victory
against the Tigers. And you look at what coach Menjeon
(02:12):
likes to call the margin of victory. The Wildcats were
oh so close to going four and oh on the week,
but dropped three games by a combined three runs. But
the Wildcats, like I say, they're not far off. In fact,
they've had a lead in all six of their SEC games.
It's just a team that continues to try and work
and be better. So we'll talk about all of that
(02:34):
coming up with head coach Nick Menjeon Tomorrow Night's broadcast
against Xavier is presented by the Kentucky Department of Fish
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(02:57):
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Speaker 7 (06:08):
We're back in on the Nick Men's You Oones show
here on the UK Sports Network, as the Wildcats get
set to host Xavier to close out a five game
homestand tomorrow night at six thirty before a trip to Texas,
A and M and coaches with us now, after a
tough week for the Wildcats, three losses by three runs,
but you were able to come back Sunday and finish
off the week on a good note with a six
(06:29):
to nothing shutout of Auburn. But overall, just your thoughts
on what was a tough week for the Wildcats and
being oh so close to what could have been a.
Speaker 12 (06:37):
Four and oh week.
Speaker 4 (06:38):
Well, you know, you hear me say, it's a lot,
and the margin of victory is so small, it is
so small, and to lose three games all by one run.
You know, you look back on a year ago and
we found ourselves on the other side of those one
run games, you know, and obviously it's a new year
and a new team, so continuing to try to just
(06:58):
teach our guys and put them in the best positions
to win. And I'll tell you this, I love the
fight of this team. I mean when you sit there
and you look at where we've had six games that
we've played in the SEC, We've had a lead in
all of them at some point and just haven't been
able to finish off. And you know, so you hear
me say this, A lot A lot of this comes
(07:20):
down to execution and when we execute and do what
we're trained to do. And you know, we're not going
to be perfect.
Speaker 12 (07:27):
You know.
Speaker 4 (07:27):
I think you look back and you look around the
league and you just see teams it's just it is
a absolute dog fight.
Speaker 12 (07:34):
So I don't expect our guys to be perfect. One thing.
Speaker 4 (07:37):
We do need to do a better job of execute
at a high level. And when we do that, we're
going to put ourselves in some really good positions. And
we've been in some good positions. We just need to finish.
And you know, when you look at these one run losses,
you can always draw back to a player too. And
I told our team after the game, aster I thought
they were phenomenal. I mean, to shut that offense out
(07:57):
is in any team in our league is a big deal.
And I said, hey, man, get ready, we got eight
more weeks of this. You can sit there and draw
up two different players or two different pitches where we're
three and zero, but we're not. We were one and two.
That's what I'm talking about. The margin of victory is so.
Speaker 7 (08:13):
Small, whether you have a team like last year or
a team this year that's coming together and learning how
to win and compete in the SEC. How much do
you coach the mental side for these groups, for these
players versus the physical side and help them improving their skills.
Speaker 12 (08:29):
Yeah, you know, that's a huge part of it.
Speaker 4 (08:31):
And you know we spent a lot of time on
that this weekend prior to some of the games. Just
you know, we we have a list of things that
every year I do this with our teams. I basically
ask that year's team what made the team the year
before successful? And it's pretty amazing to hear the things
that they believe. You know, as coaches, we could have
(08:53):
all these thoughts and opinions, right, and we can look
at all the stats. We could look at all these things,
but to go back and ask the players that lived
it and been a part of it, and then to
ask the guys that were on the outside following us, Hey,
what was it?
Speaker 12 (09:07):
What was it?
Speaker 4 (09:08):
So we have this list of things that we believe
that made last year's team successful. So one of the
things we spoke about was our ability to move on quickly.
Like they mentioned that last year's team was so good
at that, Like they're just just like it doesn't matter,
like what's next, what's next? Onto the next thing, onto
the next pitch. You know, I'm we're going to learn,
(09:29):
grow and improve, and it's just like so what next
pitch if something bad happens, Like next pitch, next pitch,
next pitch. So this mentality is something that our team
has to get better at.
Speaker 12 (09:39):
So we spent a ton of time on that. So
how do you do that?
Speaker 4 (09:42):
I have to put things in place, and they have
to put things in place for them that they could
say and do to help them move on. And when
we do that and we continue to do that better, I.
Speaker 12 (09:52):
Really believe the results will speak for themselves.
Speaker 4 (09:55):
But just spending time on them and just you know, Darren,
this has to do with life. You know, like I
told them, I mean, like, hey, listen, this goes far
beyond baseball, right when something doesn't go your way, you know,
we may not have control over what just happened, but
we do have control over how we respond to that.
And that's what life's about, is responding, and we have
(10:16):
control over that. So we need to respond in the
right way. And they're learning, they're getting better. And I'll
just say this, I love this team. I love this team.
I believe in them, and I'm looking forward to the
rest of the season.
Speaker 7 (10:26):
With them and coach. I don't mean this as an excuse.
I know this program does it like excuses. But you've
got young players and you also have people in new
roles this year, so everybody's trying to learn. So what
has been like for you coaching this team And how
much fun do you have coaching this team with young
guys and big roles and also players stepping up into
(10:46):
new roles this year.
Speaker 4 (10:48):
Yeah, you know that's been really when you go through it.
I mean, Devin caught this weekend every other player that
started for us, all three starters and the other eight
positional players are all doing it for the first time,
like they're all doing it for the first time. Let
that sink in, like, so you know that's the facts.
(11:11):
So do we have to execute and do better. Absolutely,
But these guys are learning. That's like that is so
fulfilling as a coach, just to watch the guys like
grow and to do things that quite frankly, they couldn't
do a week ago or a month ago, or you know,
five months ago for that matter. So we're getting better, Like,
(11:32):
the guys are growing, they're getting better, and it's been
rewarding to see guys that you know, we're in our
program but didn't play much, like the Griff Cameron and
the Hudson Browns and you know Ethan Hindle's, you know,
those guys that have been in the program last year
but didn't get to playing time. And now to see
those guys like going out there and do that, and
then you mix in a Tyler Bell as a freshman.
(11:55):
It's like been really neat to watch all these guys grow.
Speaker 7 (11:58):
Let's take our first time out here on the nickmn's
own show. We'll chat more about the cats when we
come back on the UK Sports Network.
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Bank Welcome back into the Dick men Gione Show as
the Cats get ready to travel to Texas, A and
M this weekend down in College Station. The Wildcats will
first play Xavier tomorrow night at six point thirty at
(14:27):
Kentucky Proud Park. And Coach we were talking about, you know,
players getting some new roles and expanded roles this year.
You mentioned in the last segment someone like Griff and
Cameron and Hudson Brown. How exciting has it been to
see them get an opportunity and make the most of
it in what they've done so far.
Speaker 4 (14:46):
Yeah, you know, I'll start with Griff. You know, a Lexingtonian,
you know from right here in town. And you know,
Griff did not have like a great early preseason and
to his credit, man has he just responded and come
out on the other side of it. And you know,
I always say this, like when guys go through hard times,
(15:08):
that's usually when you grow the most. I can speak
to that in my personal life and my professional life.
It's like when I gone through hard times, It's like, man,
you don't enjoy it at the time, but then you
look back and you go man, that just helped in
shape and molded me into the person and the man
that I am today. And I give Griffin so much
credit because he did not have a good early preseason spring,
(15:30):
but boy has he just continue to work and just
put his head down. And you know, obviously, with Will
getting out, you know that provided him an opportunity for
somebody to step up, and he has done that in
such a big way. So he's impacted the game in
a lot of ways. You've seen it with him defensively.
What a center field he played this past week. You've
seen it with him on the basis. You've seen it
(15:51):
with him with his at bats, and he's he's brought
a competitive and a toughness to us that's been really good.
And then Hudson, how about that guy? Yeah, just waited
his turn, got his pinch hits, took advantage of those,
then gets an opportunity to get in the starting lineup,
that gets an opportunity to play defensively, and he's just
taken advantage of it. And you know, that's what you
(16:11):
want your players to do. And his heart, I will
say this. I talk about this all the time with
our team and our guys just about their hearts if
their hearts are in the right spot, and Hudson's has been.
He's all he's trying to do is help Kentucky win
in whatever way. He didn't get to start, no problem,
just waited for his pinch hit, boom, got it, took
advantage of it. And now he's getting more opportunities and
(16:33):
he's taken advantage of it and it's been neat and
fun to see for those guys.
Speaker 7 (16:37):
Patrick Carrera, your third baseman, we've seen him have some
big moments already. He's had multi hit games and four
straight outings. And here's another guy that stepped into a
big role taking over third base this year, and he's
been excelling as well.
Speaker 12 (16:52):
Yeah, a guy that's another one.
Speaker 4 (16:55):
To your point, is this way his turns third year
in our program, and you know, he's just all these
has gotten better on every level. He's gotten better physically,
he's gotten better mentally, he's gotten better offensively, defensively, his
arm strength. You know, the guys gave him a round
of applause just for the job that he did at
third base yesterday and yesterday's win, I mean, it just
(17:16):
didn't matter. The ball was going to hit to him,
and he was making plays all over the field to
his left, to his right, and coming in coming into
his left. I mean, he was phenomenal and a guy
that's super competitive. And you know, anybody that's ever asked
the national media guy's asked me before the game, I'm like,
this guy's a quality about machine.
Speaker 12 (17:32):
This is what he does.
Speaker 4 (17:33):
Like he is just a winning baseball player, and super
happy for him. And you know, Darin, the leadership he's
provided also has been phenomenal. You know, if you just
pay attention closely, and those fans that are going to
come out and watch us play, just watch him at
third base. Watch what he does. Watch how he stares
in at our pitcher. Watch how he communicates with him.
Watch how he spins the glove on his finger in
(17:54):
between pitches, Like, watch all.
Speaker 12 (17:56):
The little things.
Speaker 4 (17:57):
This guy's a winning baseball player and he's he's done
it not only with his play, but he's done it
vocally as well.
Speaker 7 (18:03):
How have you learned over the years your nine seasons
with Kentucky on coaching teams, whether to pat him on
the back, the moments to pat him on the back,
or the moments that you maybe have to give him
a little shot, you know, to get them going again.
How have you kind of learned to manage those kinds
of things.
Speaker 4 (18:20):
Well, one thing I've done is I've surrounded myself with
some amazing coaches and staff members, so I.
Speaker 12 (18:27):
Rely heavily on them. They have a great pulse.
Speaker 4 (18:30):
Instinctively, I feel like the Lord has blessed me with
an intuition on people. And what I would tell you is,
I don't treat all the players and every team the same.
They're totally different and what works for one guy may
not work for another guy. And anybody that's had multiple
kids they know that, right, Like you know, Chris and
I only have the one. But but every player is
(18:54):
different and what makes them tick and what makes that
team tick is totally different.
Speaker 12 (18:59):
So you know, I would tell you that it's still a.
Speaker 4 (19:01):
Learning process, you know, And as you go through and
you go through the ebb and flows of the season,
you have to figure out when the push and when
the love.
Speaker 12 (19:10):
I will tell you this, and I think you know this.
Speaker 4 (19:12):
My gift is the gift of encouragement, and when I'm
at my best, I'm doing that. And it's not always
the case, you know, because but you know, I'll give
this team credit for a lot of things. One thing
is we've been able to coach them in different ways,
Like we've got onto them and they've responded, Like we've
encouraged them and we've loved on them and they've responded.
(19:33):
And I would say that is the sign of a
good team. Yeah, that they can respond to however you
coach them. You know, so we'll still learning that. It's
still a work in progress. I could sit here and
tell you that I'm still trying to figure out that
with this team, but I do know this, whatever route
we've gone, they've definitely responded and it's been a fun
group to be around.
Speaker 7 (19:53):
We'll take our final time out here on the Nickn's
You Own Show. One segment to go. This is the
UK Sports Network BBN.
Speaker 17 (20:00):
It's your weekly look inside UK Athletics Saturdays at nine
am on LAX eighteen and stations across the state. Check
Ukathletics dot com slash UK Sports Network for stations and
times in your area.
Speaker 3 (20:12):
BBN Game Day.
Speaker 8 (20:14):
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(21:05):
Put a little play in your day with these new
scratch offs from the Kentucky Lottery. Play responsibly. Remember it's
just a game.
Speaker 16 (21:14):
Or not.
Speaker 11 (21:14):
Kathleen, UK Athletics would like to thank our official cornerstone partners,
Central Bank, the official Bank of UK Athletics, Kentucky Farm
Bureau Insurance, Big On Commitment and UK Healthcare, official healthcare
partner of Big Blue Nations.
Speaker 4 (21:29):
Kentucky Holo Okay take the learning track walking in Kentucky
go some seventy two.
Speaker 11 (21:37):
Once again, thank you to our official cornerstone partners who
play a vital role in the success of the University
of Kentucky Athletics program.
Speaker 1 (21:45):
This is coke zero sugar? Could I be the best
coke ever? Try and taste with your ears here those bubbles,
imagine them tangling on your top. Fuzzy deliciousness. Listen to
that cascading liquid, a mouthwatering waterfall, aresistably tasty. Zero sugar,
(22:06):
Chris refreshing and ice gold. Is coke zero sugar the
best coke effort?
Speaker 19 (22:13):
Try and decide, Hey, BBN coach Pulp here. Our program's
mentality is relentless, twenty four to seven work, total dedication
every day. It's what it takes to raise banners and
it's what it takes to tackle the Commonwealth's biggest healthcare challenges,
big blue determination. It's why UK Healthcare is the number
(22:37):
one hospital in Kentucky and the official healthcare partner of
UK Athletics.
Speaker 17 (22:44):
BBN Game Day h your weekly look inside UK Athletics
senturdays at nine am on LAX eighteen and stations across
the state. Check Ukathletics dot Com, Slash UK Sports Network
for stations and times in your area, BBN Game Day.
Speaker 7 (23:10):
Final segment of the show for this week is the
Cats get ready to take on Xavier at six point
thirty tomorrow night at Kentucky Proud Park are airtime six
point fifteen on the UK Sports Network And Coach just
real quickly, looking at at Xavier, this is a team
that's been in regionals, They're always competing for the conference championships.
This is a tough midweek challenge for your group tomorrow night. Yeah,
(23:30):
And that's what we've tried to do.
Speaker 4 (23:31):
We've tried to schedule really good teams and this Tuesday's
no different.
Speaker 12 (23:36):
When we have Xavier coming in and you look at
your APPI they have won the top RPIs in the country.
Speaker 7 (23:40):
Yeah, no doubt about it. And then Texas A and
M this weekend going on the road. Real quick, I
just want to mention some guys that shined on the mound.
Let's go back to Sunday. Ben Cleaver an excellent start.
Tommy Skelding on the backside of that in the bullpen.
What did you see have those two young arms on Sunday?
Speaker 12 (23:56):
Man impressive. Impressive, you know.
Speaker 4 (23:58):
And I thought for what may been so impressive was
he had a really long first you know, threw thirty
two pitches, but didn't give up a run and came
off the mound with confidence. Darren, like, I can't tell
you enough, like how tough and competitive this guy is.
Speaker 12 (24:14):
And he comes off.
Speaker 4 (24:15):
The mound after throwing thirty two pitches and just like
super competitive, and what does he do. He proceeds to
go another three innings and doesn't give up a hit,
you know, and just rolls through and just like attacks
and attacks and attacks and attacks, and you know, and
then after him, I just thought Evan Byers was unbelievable
this week, doing three of the four games two innings,
(24:35):
just got us out of some tough and big jams.
Just cannot say enough about Evan and just how thankful
we are of him and his presence and his leadership
and his execution. And then Tommy was just I mean,
that's about as good as he gets. I mean, just
filling up the strike zone on the attack, multiple pitches
for a strike left these righties. It was just an
(24:56):
impressive display of just pouring the ball in the strike zone,
moving the game along and that's exactly what we needed.
We had a five to nothing lead, we were able
to get it to six. And those three guys yesterday
just could not.
Speaker 12 (25:08):
Say enough good things. They were just super impressive.
Speaker 7 (25:11):
Tommy is one of those guys with his stuff. As
he just continues to grow and get better, He's going
to be a factor in this bullpen going forward, isn't he? Oh?
Speaker 12 (25:19):
Absolutely?
Speaker 4 (25:19):
And you know we talked about Griffin and Huddy and Hindle,
you know, these guys that have been in a program
and now that are getting opportunities.
Speaker 12 (25:28):
You know, Tommy's a guy that.
Speaker 4 (25:29):
You know, had surgery out of high school, you know,
prior to coming here, and just man, he was a
professional prospect, you know, so to watch him come back
and just man, the fastball, the cutter, just how much
he's grown, you know, and even the way he cares himself.
You know, we want our pictures to be the tip
of the spirit. You hear us say that all the time,
and boy was he that, you know, And even in Georgia.
(25:50):
You know, early in the week we watched video of
Tommy and just how he came off the mound and
what it was just it was impressive. So happy for
him and need him to continue. But definitely guy that's
gonna get more opportunities come in and out of our bullpen.
Speaker 7 (26:02):
Going back to Cleaver real quick, just knowing this is
his first full season in a starting role, especially on
the weekend and in the SEC to see what he's
done so far. What does it say about him that
he's a guy that already's been established, which like, when
he's on the mound, we have a chance to win
this ball game.
Speaker 12 (26:19):
Yeah, it says he's a dog.
Speaker 4 (26:20):
And that's what he's talking about, right, I mean, I
tell the guys that's what a dog looks like, Ben Clever,
you know. But I really believe it starts with his mentality,
his level of toughness and belief and confidence. It spills
over into the rest of our team and that is
huge for us. That is huge because our team feels
like every time he's on the mountain, we have a
(26:42):
chance to win the game. And you know what, there's
a lot of things that statistics and analytics and things
can measure.
Speaker 12 (26:48):
Yeah, they can't measure that.
Speaker 4 (26:50):
They can't measure what it's like for a team to
come off the mound, for a guy to come off
the mound and a team just rally behind him, and
when he's on the mound, they want to fight and
call for them.
Speaker 12 (27:00):
And Ben's a winner.
Speaker 4 (27:02):
And regardless of how this week's or the rest of
the weeks and the season goes, I mean, he has
just proven to himself that he can do it at
the highest level and we believe in him.
Speaker 7 (27:13):
Coach, you mentioned some statistics and analytics, and I'm looking
at your pitching staff top twenty five and ERA top
thirty in WHIP And for those who might not be
familiar with WHIP, it's walks and hits divided by innings pitched,
and basically it tries to measure how many base runners
you give up over nine innings. One point two is
pretty good when you look at some of these outstanding numbers.
(27:35):
What excites you more when you look at stats? Is
it ERA or is it the whip?
Speaker 4 (27:39):
You know, obviously those are two super important statistics. The
thing I keep going back to with this staff is
if you think about this week alone, we threw fourteen
different guys, and we still had some guys that didn't
get a chance to get in a game that are
good arms due you know, some freshmen that are just
sitting here waiting for their opportunities.
Speaker 12 (27:56):
The thing I keep going back to with this pitching.
Speaker 4 (27:59):
Staff is they're all all so different. When I watch video,
and I know you know this, it's like, I just
watch so much video, and when I watch the shape
and the movements of their pitches, they're different. And I
believe when guys start getting more comfortable with their roles
and the more and more they get out there, and
the weather starts warming up and our bodies start to
(28:19):
feel better and all these things that typically happen as
the season goes on, I think what you're gonna see
is a pitching staff that is just so different. You know,
a lot of times we face teams there they have
a right handed pitcher and he's ninety two ninety four
touch ninety six with a slider, and they take that
guy out. Here comes the next guy, ninety two ninety
four touch ninety six with a slider. Then they're bringing
(28:40):
the next guy and this guy's ninety five ninety seven
with a slider, and it's like same arm angles, same
shapes of the pitches, and this pitching staff is different.
We have splitters, and we have changeups, and we have cutters,
and we have curveballs, and we have two steamers, and
we got four steamers and they're all kind of have
their own repper Cari and I just give coach Ozell
a lot credit for that, you know, And he's just
(29:03):
he's been able to give our guys and put him
in positions to have a bunch of different things. So
those stats definitely, I'm so happy you brought those up,
and those are important as well as just the variety
that we.
Speaker 12 (29:14):
Have coming out of our bullpen and the staff coach.
We'll see it tomorrow night. A good savior. Can't wait.
Go Cats.
Speaker 7 (29:20):
This has been the Nicknamseiones Show on the UK Sports
Network
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