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Red Sox legend/captain/HoF Jason Varitek joins live from Fort Myers! The Greg Hill Show!
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00:00With us right now, Jason Veritek. How are you?
00:04I'm great. How are you guys? Welcome.
00:06Beautiful weather this morning.
00:08Really?
00:09Sun's out, gun's out.
00:10Yeah, I mean...
00:11100%.
00:11I hope it's going to warm up at some point.
00:14Yeah, I mean, if, you know, little weather check before sandals hit when it's 39 degrees.
00:20Yeah, well, I made a mistake there.
00:21That's why he's the captain in your face.
00:24That is correct.
00:26Actually, I saw on the social media you were taking a little abuse from the missus because you were gone
00:32for the storm and she had to snowblow and shovel everything.
00:36Yeah, I mean, you're not there. There's not much you can do.
00:39I understand.
00:40I tackled, you know, maybe four of the previous 12.
00:44Okay, so you're all set.
00:46I participated once, changed the cat litter once.
00:49Right, I mean, you're working.
00:50It's a vet move, right?
00:51I mean, is there any appreciation for the fact that you're here in the sunshine working?
00:55Oh, yeah, I got to make sure that I get enough sunscreen on that I don't get burnt.
01:00That's smart.
01:01And now she's got to make sure there's enough grass area or an area that the dog can go to
01:06the restroom.
01:07Yeah, I understand that.
01:08It's very important.
01:08It's very difficult in the snow when it comes to the dogs getting out there and doing their business.
01:13Extremely.
01:13I'm glad.
01:14How's it been going so far?
01:16Well, back to the dog.
01:17I couldn't hold it that long if I was a dog.
01:19What do you mean?
01:20I'm 53 now.
01:21You got to go.
01:22You got to go.
01:22That's it.
01:23Totally.
01:24By the closest tree.
01:26Just don't eat the yellow snow.
01:27It's not lemonade, kids.
01:29No, that is correct.
01:30That is correct.
01:32How's it been so far?
01:33It's been great.
01:35I mean, the first thing that comes to mind right now with this whole group and from the
01:39get-go with pitchers and catchers, it's just been energy.
01:42There's a great energy in this camp.
01:45Is that the young guys stepping up and saying, regardless of who is here or isn't here, that
01:53it's our time?
01:54Or is that you guys, from a coaching staff perspective, kind of pushing them into that?
02:00Or it's just kind of the natural progression?
02:02Well, I mean, there's sometimes you walk in and you're not quite sure if you have a good
02:07enough team or, you know, you have to wait and see.
02:10This is a good team.
02:12We have a lot, a lot, a lot of work to do to become the team that we want to
02:17be.
02:17But the energy and hope is there.
02:20And you feel the energy with the people walking around the fields watching practice and people
02:24there for BPs.
02:26Their energy in their work and the fun and, you know, the due diligence to work through.
02:34Like, it's been some of the best, like, team fundamentals I've seen in years.
02:38And it's been a joy to watch so far.
02:41Alex Gora said last week, this is the best outfield in baseball.
02:45You agree?
02:46Hands down.
02:47I mean, they're later there with Kyle Hudson, who does an amazing job with our outfielders.
02:52And they're extremely talented.
02:54Talent does matter.
02:55But they work.
02:55And they work on their craft.
02:57And, you know, everybody has different player plans, different things that they can work
03:01on and continue to get better.
03:03And that whole group works to get better.
03:05Jason, how did the one game or the wild card best of three help this team?
03:11And that obviously you didn't get past the Yankees.
03:12You wanted to win the series.
03:13But what does that experience mean?
03:16And what does getting there and losing maybe do to fire up these guys to get further this year?
03:21First year, you know, for everybody that's played in playoffs, I mean, that taste is like no other.
03:27Like, it's a craving.
03:28It's a blood that you continue to grow.
03:31So those who had it for the first time, you have a taste of what it is and then where
03:34your shortcomings were.
03:36And, you know, in such a short series, you can pick and point and do whatever you want for what
03:42made the difference.
03:43But we lost.
03:44And I think that everybody went into their offseason from the pitching department all the way through the hitters and
03:50the infielders.
03:50And, you know, people are in better shape.
03:53They're ready to go.
03:54And, you know, the WBC, you know, we're losing a lot of players for a while.
03:59And, you know, it shows the talent that's on this team.
04:03Yesterday, at least three ABS challenges.
04:07What do you, as a catcher, what do you think of the way that's working?
04:10I think there was, I think at one point there was nine.
04:12Nine.
04:13Okay.
04:13Which is, you know, on our end, which is good and bad.
04:18But, you know, it's early.
04:19It's early for some of these umpires that didn't really have it.
04:21And their last experience was last spring training and run through it for the first time besides the guys that
04:26were in AAA last year that had a full season or two seasons of dealing with it.
04:31So, you know, just as much it was, it's their spring training also.
04:36So, we have to continue to, you know, grab data, grab things, and find out our best, you know, attack
04:43angles to utilize it.
04:44And you're going to mess up right now.
04:46And that's okay.
04:47But guys who get turned over a certain percentage, they're just, they're gone.
04:51They're out of baseball, right?
04:52Umpwise, is that how that works?
04:54No, it's the bottom percentage.
04:56You're not allowed to challenge.
04:59You are sandals.
05:02Jason, one of the things like the new world of baseball that we're in nowadays,
05:06it seems like, you know, you've got to be able to strike guys out and you've got to be able
05:09to hit the long ball.
05:10And this Red Sox franchise organization has always had that big pop in the lineup.
05:15Where do you expect that pop to come from this year?
05:19Who do you expect that player to take that next step to that leap to be that guy?
05:23I don't think for us to be successful the way that our pitching is made up that it's necessarily going
05:32to entail just the long ball.
05:33We have to do all the little things.
05:35We have to execute.
05:36We have to execute on offense and have quality at bats.
05:39You know, and this might be a group that puts the ball in play.
05:42A couple guys might fall into some more of a powerful season.
05:45But it's an athletic group that can both run a little bit.
05:50And, you know, there's a lot of contact.
05:52And, you know, we should be able to maneuver the baseball in different ways.
05:56But we're going to have to work for each piece.
05:57Wiggy, as an all-state catcher, would disagree.
06:00He's been talking about it for a long time.
06:02But he is big on the long ball.
06:05Yeah, I mean, I feel like that's what baseball is.
06:07But I was going to ask you kind of follow up to the athleticism.
06:11When you have a team that might be a little bit more athletic and can just hit to kind of
06:16for contact,
06:17do you take advantage of that athleticism more and aggressive base running?
06:21Because you might not have a guy that can hit 35, 40 home runs.
06:25Absolutely.
06:26We have to do that.
06:26That's part of the little things.
06:27We have to base run well.
06:29We have to play good defense.
06:30We have to protect 90.
06:32On the offensive end, we have to take advantage of each moment that we have.
06:39So it's situational hitting.
06:41It's hitting runners in scoring position.
06:43It's taking quality of bats inning after inning.
06:46Jason, last year at this time, we were down here and Wiggy was jumping into your lessons with the guys.
06:52But the whole conversation was Devers.
06:54Was he going to play the field?
06:56The impact of Bregman.
06:57The fact that neither are here one year later.
07:01How surprised are you?
07:03If you asked me that this time last year, before one got here and the other one was here,
07:08and then they're both gone now, I'd be a surprise.
07:11But that's, you know, the nature of our game.
07:14You know, I've enjoyed both of them an extreme amount in different ways.
07:18It was with Rafi a long time and have the utmost respect for Bregi and what he brought.
07:26And, you know, he's a winner.
07:31Jason, when you look at, you know, I think the offseason was really good when it comes to pitching.
07:36You know, obviously you've dealt with pitches your whole career as a catcher.
07:40What makes this group, especially with some of the additions, better than kind of what we saw last year?
07:48What's going to take them to a different direction than maybe what we saw last year with some of the
07:52additions that you guys brought in?
07:53Well, first and foremost, the group has to be healthy.
07:57And especially with as many as we're losing to the WBC-wise, which is such an amazing adrenaline playoff atmosphere
08:07to play in,
08:09that we get everybody through things healthy.
08:12On the pitching end, to be healthy is going to be very important.
08:16The guys brought in, you know, different range from Oviedo that's more of a power-type pitcher
08:23to Ranger who can do a lot of things with the baseball.
08:27And, you know, also Gray does a lot of things with the baseball.
08:31It comes down to execution.
08:32Them to stay healthy and execute what they're doing, they'll be just fine.
08:37I'm old.
08:39You brought up being 53.
08:41Is this your 30th year with the organization?
08:46I'm not sure if it's my 29th or 30th.
08:48I'm not sure which one it is.
08:50It might be 28th.
08:50Pretty amazing.
08:51Yeah.
08:52One organization.
08:53Maybe that's part of being 53.
08:55You can't get the numbers exactly right.
08:58But you want to keep going?
09:00Absolutely.
09:00I have still a tremendous amount of energy you can ask the kids.
09:05And when I lose that, then I'm going to have to question how long I do this.
09:10Your agent was Scott Boris, and he is someone who has changed the way I think all athletes
09:17deal with contracts, free agency.
09:19He's been a staunch advocate for the player.
09:22Is there any chance in hell that the Players of Union and Major League Baseball agrees to
09:28a salary cap?
09:30Is there any chance?
09:32I wouldn't think so.
09:35No.
09:37Most likely not.
09:38Yeah.
09:39I mean, I don't see it, but I don't know how that's Scott's part.
09:44I think he asked me something about Scott.
09:46Well, because he's the one who's going to be most impacted by that, right?
09:48He's got more contracts than anybody in Major League Baseball with more money.
09:52Yeah, but I can go back to, you know, you brought up Scott.
09:55Like, people see one entity I went through, and anything personal, anything psychological,
10:00anything that it doesn't necessarily show up on the field, that man was such a help to
10:07me and get you in the right places and is a dear friend and somebody that I wouldn't
10:13have had a career if I didn't have him.
10:15Yeah.
10:16Wow.
10:17But, I mean, is there a way to avoid, is it likely that you avoid a lockout or avoid
10:25a strike if the players are not willing to accept a salary cap from your perspective?
10:33Um, I think there's a, I haven't really dove in too hard into this because, you know, there's
10:39a lot of, a lot of grouping pieces of, of coordinating every day for what we have to
10:43do right now in the moment.
10:45But, um, you know, there's, they're always, it's, there's two sides, there's two sides
10:50to a story and there's two sides, two agendas to what they want to do.
10:54The most important thing is, you know, we don't lose the fan base that comes sees us
10:58every day and have a way we can, you know, I don't even know what side I'm supposed to
11:03be on because it was on one on one point on another on now and it's like, you come, you
11:08just want to come to work and grab the fungo.
11:11Yeah.
11:11And not get furloughed.
11:12What do we got on tap today?
11:14What, like, what's the schedule today for you?
11:16Um, let's see, uh, at our early workout this morning, came out here.
11:22We have a meeting at eight.
11:24I have another meeting at eight 15 with the, about the pitchers for the day.
11:28Then we have our group meeting.
11:31We have a major league baseball bats meeting, and then we're probably on the field by nine
11:3730.
11:38And then, um, you know, we have a little, uh, defensive work.
11:44So I'll be with the infielders for that part.
11:47And we have just a couple sides, defensive work, BP group, half the group takes off and
11:53heads over to Minnesota.
11:55You brought up the meeting today.
11:57We we've heard a lot about that, uh, opening season meeting and, and Alex and the family
12:02stuff.
12:03Was that, was that as emotional and as motivating as it was described?
12:08Uh, I would say absolutely.
12:10Yes.
12:11Um, you know, that's probably, I've been here for whatever we decided is 28 to 30 years.
12:16And then plus another five or six in, um, other spring trainings.
12:21That was the best opening spring training speech slash video I've ever seen.
12:28Ever.
12:28Ever.
12:29In your entire career.
12:30Yeah.
12:30It just was just different.
12:32It was fun.
12:33It was cute.
12:36And you got Pete Foxy's, you know, son going to give me the money, you know, it was just
12:41fun.
12:42And, and, uh, it was just, they did a great job of doing it.
12:45Our, our video department and Alex's idea driven by Alex's idea.
12:49And it was just fun.
12:51It was the coolest thing.
12:52So it was fun to see.
12:53Um, we are, we've been talking about the fan expectation for this season being, uh, where
12:59you got last season.
13:00And what, from a coaching perspective, what's, what's your guys' expectation for this team?
13:04I, our expectation is to get to the world series and to win a world series.
13:08And you do that by taking care of things.
13:11Now, quick start, no season goes through without adversity, without a bump.
13:16Uh, there's been very few teams in very few moments.
13:19Even the team that wins world series last year, went through some big bumps, um, persevere
13:23through those and take care of your business day to day.
13:26And we do that, our talent will show through.
13:29All right.
13:30I was going to say, Jason, that's interesting because I feel like a lot of coaches, you
13:34know, regardless of the sport, when you ask them about expectations, they never want to
13:39say winning a championship.
13:41Well, you're Mike Vrabel, for instance, would, we asked them four or five times.
13:45And I, and I, as a player, I remember every year the expectation or the goal that I felt
13:50was we're winning a Superbowl.
13:52Like, so it's, it's cool to hear actually a coach say, our expectation is to win a world
13:58series.
13:58Is that like the, the, the narrative being pushed in the clubhouse is like, Hey, we can
14:03win it.
14:04We're good enough to win it.
14:04Like, that's our goal is, is that like what's being pushed in this, you know, clubhouses
14:09to these guys?
14:10A hundred percent.
14:11Um, and you know, you have to live up to expectations also from the standpoint of, yeah, great job getting
14:19them over.
14:20That's what you're supposed to do.
14:21Right.
14:21And, you know, and that's very, very well led by our manager and, um, you know, we're
14:26the support systems behind it.
14:28But yeah, we have expectations to put this team in, in a spot to win a world series.
14:32Jason, you would know you're two times 0407 world series champions.
14:36Is there anything those teams had in common and that things you look out for this time
14:40of year for what makes the championship club?
14:45Well, this, this club.
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