Kevin Kiermaier (8-2-24)

DV chats with the newest Dodger before a 3-game series in Oakland. 

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Kevin Kiirmar will be making his Dodger debut tonight, starting
in center field. Kevin, Welcome to the Dodgers, and thank
you for the time.

Speaker 2 (00:07):
Thank you, thanks for having me. I'm ready to go.

Speaker 1 (00:08):
I'm sure it's been a while, last forty eight hours.
How have you handled all this?

Speaker 3 (00:12):
Yeah, this is the first time I've ever been traded
the middle of the season, with a ton of stuff
all over the map right now, But it's a great opportunity,
So I don't really care about the other stuff. I
care about winning here and doing whatever I can to
help these guys win. And I can't wait to show
them when I'm about and you know, hopefully get off
to a good start, but then see what kind of

(00:34):
player I can be when I'm going good.

Speaker 2 (00:35):
And I'm gonna do everything in my power to try
to do just that.

Speaker 1 (00:38):
Kevin, When do you look around this clubhouse? A few
of them just walk by. What's it like to be
part of this team now?

Speaker 2 (00:44):
Yeah, I mean, it's it's amazing.

Speaker 3 (00:45):
I never they were interested me last couple of years
in free agency. But me, you know, wearing the Dodger
stuff across my chest on the hats.

Speaker 2 (00:54):
It's amazing. It's really cool. I feel honored.

Speaker 3 (00:56):
I'm privileged to be here in this great situation, and
you know, it's a it's a star studded roster and
a lot of guys can play, and the resumes speak
for themselves, and I'm just happy to be a part
of it.

Speaker 1 (01:07):
Kevin, I read last week that you're planning on retiring
at the end of this season. Can anything change your mind?

Speaker 2 (01:15):
I don't know. We'll see. I uh, you.

Speaker 3 (01:17):
Know, playing on turf all these years is really taking
a toll on my body, and I know the product
I put on the field is a little different than
seasons past. But you know, this opportunity right here. I've
even moving around in the outfield already. I feel like
I already have like an extra gear and adrenaline, and
you know, good situations like this will will pump life

(01:38):
into you, and I feel like that's what I have
so far, and I can't wait to take the field
these guys and just try to win as many games
as we can.

Speaker 1 (01:45):
You know, Carl Crawford came to the Dodgers after playing
a lot of years like you did at Tropicana Field.
You just gave me flashbacks to how he said this
could maybe give you a little bit more life to
your career.

Speaker 3 (01:57):
Yeah, and I've never uh, I've never been on grass
more than two weeks at a time. I mean, spring
training is the most ever get but throughout the season
being with the Blue Jays and the Rays my career,
I always look forward to road trips just to be
on grass. So now for me to have my home
field on grass and be on a lot more, I
think it's gonna pay huge dividends for my body. And

(02:17):
when I'm fresh and I'm moving good, I can be
a very efficient player, and you know I can do
some damage.

Speaker 2 (02:22):
So I'm gonna do everything in my power to do
just that.

Speaker 1 (02:25):
Hey, before I let you go, Oakland's a big outfield.
You're one of those guys that could cover a lot
of ground. What do you know about this outfield and
how different is it from others?

Speaker 3 (02:34):
Yeah, this is my favorite surface in the big leagues.
I love the grass here. Everything it's it's amazing. I've
always loved it, but especially years as of late. But
usually you know, the only time I ever have trouble
is it's a high sky here with the sun, So
I'm sure Sunday will probably be a little test, but
you know, nothing I can't handle.

Speaker 1 (02:51):
Hey, go feel that grass. You're gonna have a lot
of it with the Dodgers and at Dodgers Stadium. Thanks
a lot for the time, and we're all very excited
to have Kevin Kiermeyer finally patrolling center field for the Dodgers.

Speaker 2 (03:02):
Thank you, thanks for having me. Let's go