There’s a Rockies pitcher with more pressure to perform well during All-Star festivities than ace German Marquez. Only in Mike Redmond’s case, the harder he gets hit, the happier the fans will be.
“It’s hard not to get excited, to feel the crowd when a guy gets on a roll,” said Redmond, the Colorado bench coach who’ll be throwing batting practice pitches to Rockies shortstop Trevor Story during Monday night’s Home Run Derby.
“I think, if anything, (it’s about) just keeping myself under control and not getting too excited. Because you know you’re in it with him. Every home run he hits, you get more and more fired up. So I don’t need to get fired up, where I’m throwing too hard or whatever. Because you get the adrenaline going, just like he does.”
Redmond’s been down this road before, having been picked by Giancarlo Stanton to throw in the Derby when he was manager of the Marlins. Stanton was his star slugger during the 2014 Home Run Derby in Minneapolis.
Stanton hit six dingers in the first round and got a bye in the second before being eliminated by then-Reds third baseman Todd Frazier in the semifinals, 1-0. Frazier would fall to then-Athletics outfielder Yoenis Cespedes in the finals, 9-1.
Story, who’s slated to open the eight-player event against Texas outfielder Joey Gallo, asked the Rockies bench coach to do the honors shortly after the Colorado shortstop agreed to take part in the event. Redmond has been throwing batting practice to Story for the past five seasons.
“Nobody throws every pitch a strike,” the Rockies coach said, “but the beauty here is you don’t have to. (Story) can hit the ball out to center. He can hit the ball out to right. So it doesn’t have to be perfect. You just have to get it up there and for him to get the barrel on it.”
The assignment also changed Redmond’s All-Star break plans, but in a good way. Instead of heading back home, he’s planning on watching the game on Tuesday night at Coors Field with his two college-age sons — making it the first MLB game the trio will get to watch together in person.
“My kids were like, ‘Dad, you’ve got to do it,’” Redmond said.
As for his pitching assignment?
“You’re just playing,” Redmond said. “We’re just locked in and you’re just playing. The fans, you don’t even see ‘em. That sounds crazy and hard for people to believe, but you really just get locked in on what you’re doing and that’s it.”
No pressure, then.
“No pressure, man,” Redmond laughed. “This is fun. I love it.”
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July 13, 2021 at 03:43AM
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Trevor Story’s pitcher during the 2021 MLB Home Run Derby, Rockies bench coach Mike Redmond, happy to give up long balls at Coors Field - The Denver Post
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