It's a college football Saturday. But the Dodgers have a game to play tonight here in Atlanta. And I'm joined right now by a man that went to a college in Champagne, Illinois, and no, not the University of Illinois. That is the one and only, Kevin Kiermeyer. Thanks a lot for the time, appreciated.
Thank you, David.
Hey, I'm trying to figure you out. On Saturdays, you get really into college football. Last week you were pumped for Central Illinois or some school that beat Notre Dame, and today you're watching Oklahoma Northern Illinois. So I'm trying to figure out where your loyalties lie.
My loyalty lies with the Purdue Bulletmakers, who are getting trounced right now by Notre Dame.
So a lot of ball left.
But yeah, I'm a Purdue Bulletmaker fan. But they're backs against the wall right now.
Yeah, there we go. See in Tampa Bay, they know all about you, but in LA we don't know a lot about you. You're an Indiana kids, So why did college take you to Champagne, Illinois?
Well, I didn't have and he offers hardly for I wanted. I knew it was I was going to play baseball or football. Had a gross spurt my senior year and none of those were looking really good. But I grew and had a really good senior year football and then baseball as well. We won state championships in both. And
where I got scouted by my junior college. I was in Champan, Illinois park on junior college is what they're called, and I took a visit there and I said, Okay, I'm going to do the baseball route and made a good choice. But yeah, I didn't really have many offers at all and made the best of junior college, and two years later I was drafted.
Wait a minute, you mentioned football and baseball but not basketball. How could that be for a kid from the Hoosier State.
Yeah, I was. I was small.
I was really small, and our high school was very talented, really good players, and playing time wasn't going to be really a thing. And it got to the point my senior year. I played all all the way up until my senior year, and then it got to the point where I'm saying, Okay, I'm gonna be on a college campus somewhere next year. I gotta start getting some things figured out. So I decided not to play basketball and devote all my time to baseball and to try to
have the best senior year I could. And you know, everything worked out.
Yeah, it did, no doubt a great career for Kevin Kiirmeier. But when you talk about not being scouted, going to a junior college and then being drafted, do you feel like you've played with a chip on your shoulder. Maybe not in a bad way, but in a good way.
Yeah, for sure. I was selected in the thirty first round.
I was a nine hundred and forty first pick overall in the twenty ten draft, and for me, I was a little upset with how late I went, but at the same time, like you just said, it motivated me and all I needed was an opportunity, and I said that from the get go, and I knew I had to play good quick and got off to a good start and rookie ball, and then I feel like I solidified myself and showed won the Rais what I could do, and then they gave me more leeway and then made
a steady climb through the miners and got to the big leagues in thirteen for my debut.
So it's U and you know here we are towards the end of it.
Now.
It's been a heck of a ride, but I will always go back and.
Just knowing, you know how hard I worked and junior college you get that opportunity and throughout my whole career. Now I'm proud of what I accomplished. And I look back and you know, being the nine hundred and forty first pick, I'm very appreciative because I feel like I had to do all the right things to get where I am today and then some and like I said here, I am proud, proud as can be of what I accomplished being a late round pick and defied the odds.
I guess when you're in the grind, you can't really reflect on your accomplishments as a baseball player. But at this stage of the of your career, even though you're in a pennant race and you're going to the postseason with the Dodgers, have you had more time to reflect on the way your career has gone.
Yeah, this whole year has.
I feel like I've done a lot of reflecting and just knowing that you know, every time I go to certain ballparks, it's most likely going to be my last time going there.
So I've taken so many things in and just.
A lot of a lot of memories replaying throughout this whole year, but thankful, grateful for everything thrown my way, and I just I want to have fun going out the best way I could. And I'm you know, with the perfect team, perfect organization to to finish out the season strong and try to you know, make that that October postseason push, and uh, that's what it's all about.
So yeah, a lot of a lot of nostalgic feels throughout this whole year, but once again, more than anything, just appreciation and gratefulness that I've had for everything that has come my way has been my favorite part about my career.
Kevin Kiirmeier is our guest just in front of first pitch between the Dodgers and Braves. Since you brought up all these different ballparks that you feel a little nostalgic about. Are there that you enjoyed playing center field in more than others? And well, you know we always hear about in field dirt, how about the warning tracks and just the dimensions of some of these stadiums.
Yeah, it was different and unique in its own different way. But for me, you know, I uh, you know the Rays obviously. I love playing at Tropicana Field. Uh played there more in anywhere. Roger Center awesome in Toronto as well. I mean, I just I appreciate when when fans appreciate me, especially at your home place, and even going out to Dodger Stadium is amazing. That grass and that surface out there, It's incredible, and just how good it feels to play
out there is amazing. But I I like, I like places where I can go make a play at the wall, So any any place with like an eight football in center Field Baltimore, I love playing there.
I made some really good catches there over the years.
But uh, I liked I like thinking I could run them down anywhere. So for me, that's kind of a tough question because I enjoy playing everywhere. But for me just Detroit, Kansas City. I like the big, the big outfields where I can run around and show everybody what I can do. As I've gotten older, I.
Appreciate the smaller ones a little bit more. But you know, I love going out there.
Making plays in defense has been what I've been best at throughout my whole career, not even close, and I like making plays no matter where I'm playing.
Kevin, I feel like your validation for another center fielder means a lot. Are there other center fielders in the game right now that you are impressed by the way they handle center field?
Yeah?
The first thing that comes to mind is Pete crow Armstrong. We just we just saw him with the Cubs, and I knew he was good, but watching him in person, he's elite and he's he's gonna be elite for years to come.
He he's impressed me.
A ton Byron Buxton when he's healthy is very special out there. But Pete crow Armstrong, I mean, he put on a show against us is past week, and uh, me and all the other guys had to tip our hats to him because he was he was special out there. And I I always appreciate good defense, whether you're on my team or not.
When you're special as an elite defender like yourself, it's got to be a compliment. When a guy like pie crow Armstrong, he's compared to Kevin Kiermeyer. People are saying that was akure meer type of play or plays that he made in that series.
Yeah, you know, just thankful that my name is even you know, thrown to to be in the upperslant of centerfielder type of guys out there. But uh, you know, if I were to tell him something, I would have said, hey, I had the last ten years, you can you can have the next ten because he's he's unreal. And I just said when I when I talk about that solely centerfield defense, and I I love defense more than anything, so I appreciate and I, uh, you know, game recognized
his game, and he is he's unreal out there. So he's got a long career ahead of him, but he he's the guy who who's stood out for me so far, and he's one of the best center fairs I've seen in person a long time.
Well for this generation, Kevin, you're the bar. You set the bar for the way center field can be played, how elite it can be played. And certainly you're in that conversation when somebody makes a play, they say that was a keer Meer type play. So thanks a lot for the time, and this will not be our last conversation. I look forward to talking to you when you got champagne all over your face.
There we go. I can't wait. Thanks David there.
He is the man. Kevin Kiermeier will send it back to you in the studio