Nick Solak Looking to Build Off 2019 Debut
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00:00Back on your rookie year with the Rangers, what goes through your mind?
00:05I think, you know, looking back on it, it's always going to be a whirlwind,
00:10you know, everything that happened and how fast it happened.
00:15But, you know, it was a dream come true being able to,
00:18you know, make my major league debut and then come up and,
00:22you know, play well and, you know, going out there and trying to help the team
00:25win and it's something that, you know, looking to
00:28build off of. Look at it, you were called up August 20th
00:32and then you're going to be honored here as the rookie of the year. It's pretty
00:35impressive that you were able to pull that off.
00:36Yeah, it was a good stretch, you know, when I got called up and
00:40ever since the trade, even in AAA, kind of was locked in and
00:44in a good spot and rode that out through the end of the year. So,
00:47you know, it's an honor to be recognized here tonight and
00:52yeah. We always looked at you, you never seemed like you were overwhelmed by
00:56anything when you were called up. Yeah, I just, you know, just try to go out
01:01there and do what I always do
01:05and, you know, I think that, you know, that helped keep me at a pretty
01:11even level where, you know, I could just go out there and compete.
01:15I've heard that you've been working really hard at third base. You're a guy
01:19that obviously can play multiple positions. Do you feel that
01:21that's your advantage, you know, to make yourself
01:24valuable like that? For sure. I think to have the ability to play multiple
01:28positions and bounce around, you know,
01:32makes the manager's job easier to make a lineup, gives them more options,
01:37you know, to do different things and have that flexibility. So,
01:42you know, to be able to play, you know, multiple positions and,
01:45you know, help the team win it in different positions,
01:48you know, is valuable. No young man
01:52grows up wanting to be a utility player. What is your
01:55best hope for spring training?
02:00To go out there and compete. You know, I think
02:04it's a role that, you know, I've embraced.
02:09It's fun. It's become fun carrying all the different gloves
02:13in the bag, you know, just to have them and,
02:16you know, have them all ready to go whichever one I need that particular day.
02:21Sometimes maybe multiple in the same day, but, you know, just to
02:25be able to continue to get better each and every day,
02:29you know, at those positions to ultimately
02:33help a lineup win games. Nick, what is your,
02:37have you been able to do any prep for center field?
02:42I've done some drills in the outfield. You know, taking some fly balls
02:48this offseason, different from off seasons past,
02:53but, you know, I think that, you know, just to be able to get some fly balls
02:59and run around a little bit is, you know, as much work as I can get.
03:05I think that, you know, and from playing the outfield the last couple years,
03:10being able to read balls off the bat, of course, when we get to spring training
03:13and then get game reps, I think that
03:16those are all, you know, the best way to prepare, but I've been doing things that
03:23can, that have gotten me prepared for that.
03:25And you hadn't taken, even though you played some outfield last season,
03:29you never took fly balls in the outfield, like during, it wasn't part of your
03:33offseason planning. That's correct. Yeah, I think, you know,
03:36this offseason was, you know, just a little different.
03:39I think I approached it differently. My plan was different going into it,
03:43knowing that, you know, I needed to work at third.
03:46I needed to work in the outfield in addition to, you know, the work that
03:51I always have done at second. What do you think of the new ballpark
03:56and the left field being a little bit closer for you? Yeah, I've been
03:59been over there a couple times, you know, one in December and then
04:04one time this past week during our mini camp. It's awesome,
04:07you know, to walk in there and, you know, just see the progress that
04:12they've made. You know, it's really exciting. It looks
04:16awesome. And, you know, with left field being a
04:20little bit closer, you know, I like wearing out the right field side
04:26especially, but, you know, if it helps in left too, then maybe some of those fly
04:30balls carry out. Nick, you had a taste of playing in the
04:33hot Texas heat, so how do you feel now about having the home games in a
04:36climate control stadium? Yeah, it's nice. You know, I got called up in
04:42August and it was hot and, you know, I'm not even sure how
04:45hot it gets in June and July, you know, even hotter.
04:49And, you know, some of those day games and games are
04:52pretty hot and, you know, you're approaching differently. You really have
04:54to hydrate, you know, take care of yourself going
04:57into it. I think, you know, being in a climate controlled
05:01environment, you know, you have some advantages
05:05where, you know, you're not sweating as much, you're not losing as much
05:10fluid, so I think it'll help. You know, you've spent all this time
05:15working at other positions and it's important for you to show versatility,
05:18but your route to this team is still going to be based on
05:22hitting your way on the roster. Is that the way you feel?
05:26I think a combination, you know, and I think,
05:33you know, even approaching this offseason working
05:37differently defensively, I've also approached it a little bit different
05:40offensively knowing, you know, what I struggled with last year
05:44when I did struggle and, you know, what pitchers were going to do to me
05:49coming down the stretch. So, you know, I think that, you know, of course,
05:53you know, the bat's important, the gloves is important too, and
05:57the base running is important. I think it, you know, all comes together to,
06:00you know, be a complete player and a winning player that can help the
06:06team win a lot of ballgames. Have you been to the Surprise campus?
06:10What's that? The Surprise? No, I haven't been to Surprise.
06:14It'll be my first Arizona spring training. As a kid,
06:18my family and I, we vacationed to Arizona for spring training, but
06:23we'd go, we were White Sox fans, so we were in
06:26Tucson Electric going way back and then one year in Glendale.
06:29So, yeah, I'll be, you know, a couple weeks
06:32in Surprise and that'll be the first time I've seen it. I'm
06:35excited to see the complex.