Pitches are like pages of a book; they're so important. The chess game; how I set you up early, and how I'll do it differently later.

The pitcher setting up the batter. It's chess, and you play with it.

Announcers don't do enough of the cat-and-mouse strategy and all the work that goes into it. You watch a broadcast and guys get the pitches wrong.

I look at this as a second life. Every game feels like an event. Every pitch matters. I need that. It elevates your aggressiveness.

It's a very big mental game, all day leading up to warm-ups. You're not sure if your curveball will break, or will you be able to throw it over the plate? It's all negative thoughts going into the game.

You put deadlines on people you really don't want, because that's how you feel about them.