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Home , Christian Yelich, Commissioner of Baseball, Craig Biggio, Hank Aaron Award, Intentional Talk, Robin Yount

MLB : Dodgers vs Red Sox Friday, October 26, 2018 J.D. Martinez He led the in slugging, and WAR. He just missed what is it, one home , Award Presentation two RBI, a .

CHRIS ROSE: Hi, everybody. I'm from CHRISTIAN YELICH: Something like that. Intentional Talk of MLB Network. We are here prepared for a very special announcement concerning : Christian, the legacy of one Hank Aaron today. congratulations to you. A great year and thanks for being here. As you can tell by the background, first and foremost, we are here to announce the two CHRIS ROSE: Thank you, Commissioner, we winners, one in the and one in the appreciate it. National League. Now, the winners were selected through a combination of the fan vote on MLB.com and Mr. Aaron, you have a few words about this. also a panel that involved several Hall of Famers, including the aforementioned Hank Aaron, along with HANK AARON: Thank you very much. Let me thank , , , Ken the Commissioner. Let me thank all who voted for Griffey Jr., and . these two young men. I watched Christian and I watched J.D., and I watched Major League in First and foremost, I will introduce everybody that's on its entirety. But the most important thing I think, the the dais. We have Christian Yelich of the Milwaukee thing that makes you proud of is the fact that in Brewers with us, we have the Hall of Famer Hank Christian's year that he had, he came that close, that Aaron, the Commissioner of Baseball Rob Manfred, close, I say "that close", I mean really close of winning and J.D. Martinez of the Red Sox. And without the Triple Crown. further ado, I would like to turn this over to the Commissioner of Baseball. Now, many of you don't know what that means. That means something very special. When you talk about COMMISSIONER ROB MANFRED: Thank you, Chris. players like and Yaz and some of those This is the 20th anniversary of the Hank Aaron Award, other great ballplayers who did win the Triple Crown, which is given to the outstanding offensively player in it's something that you can be very proud of. And so I each of the leagues. We're thrilled to have Hank Aaron just want to congratulate Christian. here with us, along with his wife Billye, and his granddaughter, to celebrate this evening. I want to I want to congratulate J.D. for such an outstanding year thank the Hall-of-Fame voters who worked in selecting he had, not only himself, but his entire team. our two winners tonight, as well as the fans that voted on MLB.com. J.D. MARTINEZ: Appreciate it.

Our American League winner this year is J.D. Martinez, HANK AARON: Congratulations to you, and may you sitting to my left. He led the majors with 130 RBI, led continue to keep prospering. the majors in total bases with 358, and he was second in , batting average and slugging percentage. J.D. MARTINEZ: Appreciate it. Most important, he led his team to the World Series. And I know J.D. is anxious to get back to work, and I HANK AARON: I want to congratulate both of you. promised him I would be brief. So there you go. CHRIS ROSE: J.D., a few words. A guy has made Our National League winner, Christian Yelich. I want to hitting such an art and science along the way. What thank Christian for making the trip, not too far from does it mean to you? home. We appreciate it, nonetheless. He was the first Milwaukee Brewer to win the batting title, batting .326. J.D. MARTINEZ: Obviously it's a huge award. And I

Rev #1 by #178 at 2018-10-26 23:11:00 GMT page 1 of 3 feel very honored to receive it from where I was five Q. Christian, both you and J.D. changed teams over years ago to today. It's really a blessing. A lot of the winter. What does it mean when you join a new people helped me along the way. Just to get here franchise and live up to or exceed the hype the first today and sit in front of Hank, who growing up Paul year? Casanova was my mentor, and he was a guy who CHRISTIAN YELICH: Yeah, I think that's something really took me under his wing and made me fall in love that's on your mind from the start. You just want to with baseball. A lot of those stories that he told me contribute. And in my case, I came to a team that was were about Hank. So it's pretty cool to be on stage a game away from the playoffs. My goal going in was with him today. to be the player that they traded for, nothing more, nothing less, and just contribute to what they already CHRIS ROSE: Christian, for a guy who played his first had going there. It was an unbelievable year, it was a year in Milwaukee, where of course where Mr. Aaron lot of fun. And we came one game away from being in spent a few years, I imagine this has to be especially the World Series. special? And I think we can take what we learned from this year CHRISTIAN YELICH: Yeah, it's hard to explain what it and the feeling of disappointment we had of being so feels like, but it's definitely a huge honor. He's a lot close, but not being able to get over the final hump and more homers up there than I have, but you're just use it as motivation going into next year, and see if we humbled to win an award like this and be up here with can take that final step. the caliber of players that not only J.D. is, but you were in your career. Q. Christian, in the days since Game 7 of the NLCS what have you been up to? Would you say you're HANK AARON: Thank you. over the loss now or are you still trying to get over it? CHRISTIAN YELICH: It's hard to process and really CHRISTIAN YELICH: I'd say you're never really over it take it all in. I think it's something that will set in a little but you've moved on from it. I think that sticks with bit later. you. You understand -- that's what you work for as a player is to play a World Series and to win a World CHRIS ROSE: Christian, he's at 755, you're at... Series. And to be that close is definitely disappointing, but like I said earlier, use that as motivation throughout CHRISTIAN YELICH: Not even close. I'd have to play the offseason and into next season. And I think as a multiple careers. team, as far as playing in 163, we understand that every game counts. That game in mid April counts just CHRIS ROSE: Because J.D. is a little busy today, we as much as the game in mid-September when you're in do have time for a few questions for him, and then the playoff chase. there will be time to ask questions of the people that are remaining. If you could just say your name and It was a great learning experience for us as a team and we'll get going on a couple of questions. I think it's going to help us going forward.

Q. What did you go through to show the ankle was Q. Mr. Aaron, end of the season is a time for taking fit today? Any lingering pain? Other than tape, did stock. I wonder what your thoughts were on the you need any painkiller or anything? health of the game in general and specifically in J.D. MARTINEZ: (Laughing) I don't know. Definitely regard to getting young African American players the trainers put me through a little bit of a workout into the game and into ? testing it out. And it's something that obviously it's a HANK AARON: The second question I would prefer little discomforting, but I'm comfortable with playing, you to ask me a little later. and definitely going to go out there and do our best. The first one I would like to say that Major League Q. As somebody who prides themselves on for Baseball is healthy. I think that when you see young hitting average and power, what does it mean to players such as Christian and some of the other win an award after somebody like Mr. Aaron who players like J.D., and some of these young kids coming did that during his career? up, you kind of wish that you were playing, not for the J.D. MARTINEZ: Huge. If you look at the numbers, sake of the money thing but simply because of the best right-handed hitter in baseball, in our sport, in our competition. There's some great athletes that we have career. And to just be on the podium and be next to now, really. If you think about all of the young kids that him and receiving his award is an honor and it's huge. we have that's coming up. I watched this kid when he played with Miami, I think, for a couple of years, and I

Rev #1 by #178 at 2018-10-26 23:11:00 GMT page 2 of 3 watched him and to be very honest with you, I tried to year in the Big Leagues. So I really didn't play here too get a team to trade for him (laughter). But to no avail. much.

But he is an up-and-coming guy. And also J.D., same I had a little luck here, not that good of luck. I hit a few way. And this is all through the league, all through the home runs but not many. This is a ballpark that can League, that these kids can play, throw hard. I think I make you start thinking a little bit. And the reason I say made this remark last year and I'll make it again, I told is the reason it makes you start thinking is you see that if he and I was playing, they'd be probably Green Monster out there, not here, not in Los Angeles, sending us to class D ball, because we wouldn't know but in Boston, you see the Green Monster in Boston, how to the hit these guys at 100 miles an hour. It and the first thing you want to know is can you hit it would be hard to learn how to do that. over the fence, really.

But that's baseball. That is baseball. I watched him But this ballpark here always gave me trouble because play and walk up to the plate and hit somebody that's I just never felt like I could ever play the way I wanted to throwing 100 miles an hour, and said, oh, my god, I play because I got here late, traveled all night flying couldn't do it. here. And I just -- I never did get up to it, really.

But anyway, the game is healthy and because of the Commissioner. The Commissioner has done an outstanding job of keeping the game where it was for a long time. And he has done a great job. And I want to say I am proud to be part of it.

CHRIS ROSE: If you and Willie Mays are playing in class D, I'm buying season tickets.

Q. Christian, how much do you attribute to changing the team, your numbers right now, being in Milwaukee? CHRISTIAN YELICH: I think it's definitely a little a little bit better place to hit. But I think really just learning yourself as a player. You're trying to improve every year. And you're trying to make improvements on what you learn about yourself, when you're successful or struggle. You try to minimize those stretches. And you realize what you do when you're successful and you try and lengthen those.

I think that was the biggest thing this year, was just having a little bit better understanding of what I do well as a player. And I think playing in that playoff race and having all those games mean something down the stretch definitely helped as well. But like I say, you're continually trying to improve throughout your career, and I think I can constantly get better and it's a great mindset to take into every season.

Q. Hank, you played so many times in this stadium, I'm curious when you come back in here are there any special memories that immediately come to mind? HANK AARON: I didn't play here that much. I played my last year here when I was with the Braves. I came back here and played the last year when I was with Milwaukee. But I didn't -- in fact, when they traded -- I'm sorry, not when they traded, but when they moved the ballclub from Boston to Milwaukee, it was my first

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