Joc Pederson played his first comments on a major-league roster close to the vest.
How did he feel when he found out he was being called up from Triple-A?
“Excited.”
Was he feeling anxious about being called up to the majors this season? No.
“All I can control is what I do,” he said. “That’s all out of my control.”
If nothing else, Pederson’s cliches are major-league ready.
Pederson’s skills have been hyped to the point that they need no introduction. The 22-year-old hit 33 home runs and stole 30 bases at Triple-A Albuquerque this season. No Pacific Coast League player had achieved a 30-30 season in 80 years. He’s ranked among the top 30 prospects in baseball by every media outlet that ranks prospects.
Are his fielding skills ready for a major-league outfielder?
“We feel like Joc’s the best center field in he organization,” Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. “That being said, he’s also a guy who has no experience at the big-league level at this point. We’ll try to use him to hopefully gain some experience during this last month, but he’s really here to help us any way he can.”
Pederson isn’t in the starting lineup against the Washington Nationals. Scott Van Slyke is in left field (against southpaw starter Gio Gonzalez, as is custom), Yasiel Puig is in center field batting sixth (the lowest he’s been dropped in the order this season) and Matt Kemp is in right field.
Off the bench, Mattingly said, “we can use (Pederson) to steal a base, we can use him to pinch hit, we can actually play him all over.”
Pederson said that he’d be watching video of relief pitchers and take some hacks in the batting cage during the game. Those might represent the biggest adjustments he’ll have to make from being a starter to coming off the bench for the first time in his career.
In fact, Pederson couldn’t even remember the last time he wasn’t a regular starter.
Welcome to September, when even even the most hyped prospects get to take a number on the bench.
Pederson will wear number 65.