Video summary
Elmer Rodríguez reflects on his shortest outing of the career, attributing the struggles primarily to a failure in getting ahead of hitters early in counts. He explains that while he initially achieved good results, opponents quickly made necessary adjustments, allowing them to capitalize on opportunities and score several runs. The core issue was his inability to maintain control once batters found their rhythm, which led to him falling behind in the count repeatedly. This lack of dominance forced him into a reactive mode rather than an aggressive one, ultimately resulting in a difficult performance where he could not secure the outs he needed.
The frustration peaked during specific moments, such as the fourth inning where he faced two straight hits after having two outs, and the third or fourth inning where he felt his execution faltered despite trying to focus on one pitch at a time. Rodríguez acknowledges that when he was ahead in counts, he was able to execute pitches effectively and record outs, but once batters started hitting the ball into play, he struggled to recover. He specifically mentions struggling against a couple of hitters who consistently put the ball in action, finding gaps in his defense and turning those opportunities into runs for the opposing team.
Regarding the Angels' pitching, Rodríguez admits he was not paying close attention because his primary focus remained on competing and doing his own job. He feels that he did not perform to the standard he would have wanted, but he remains committed to flushing out these mistakes and continuing to improve. Rather than letting the pressure of a bad game weigh him down, he chooses to move forward by addressing each situation individually, aiming to attack every hitter and pitch sequentially without dwelling on the previous errors.
Ultimately, Rodríguez views this experience as a learning opportunity to refine his approach for future games. He emphasizes that while it is frustrating to see runs score after getting ahead of batters, the key is to reset mentally and continue attacking opponent by opponent. His mindset is one of resilience, where he gets through each difficult moment and uses it as fuel to get better rather than letting it affect his confidence or focus for the rest of the season.
Read the full video transcript
Just overall, what did you think of your
stuff tonight?
>> I mean, just falling behind a lot of
hitters. Just not getting ahead in
counts. When I was doing it, I was, you
know, getting good results, but, you
know, I was getting behind. Like, they
were, you know, they made they made
their adjustments and got the hits with
when they had the chance. And yeah, a
lot a lot of couple of runs, but, you
know,
I feel like I got to use the attack from
the start. And just
I know when I when I was ahead, I was
getting my outs and getting, you know,
executing good pitches, but, yeah.
>> You felt like you were still attacking
like you did last last start, though?
>> I mean,
couple of hitters where I was just
falling behind and when I was coming
back, you know, they hit the ball they
hit the ball, put the ball in play, and,
you know, found the hole. So,
yeah, just
struggling to, you know, get ahead of
hitters and they make me pay for it.
>> Looking at that fourth inning, how
frustrating is that you have two outs
there and then you hit back-to-back
batters?
>> I mean, it's really frustrating, you
know, ahead of guys, you know, attacking
and then all of a sudden like two hit
batters and you got two straight hits,
couple of runs, like
>> [snorts]
>> that's that's the thing you don't want.
Like, you just want like attack those
guys, get ahead, and try to get those
outs.
>> It [snorts] seemed like your velocity
was falling off in in that third or
fourth inning. Did you notice that?
Anything to that?
>> No, I feel like it's just, you know,
going trying to go one pitch at a time.
And obviously you didn't get any
execution as I wanted in that inning.
And, you know, they they scored some
runs.
>> What did you [snorts] think of the
Angels pitching?
>> I mean, I wasn't paying attention. I was
just, you know, trying to do my job, go
out there and compete, and, you know,
I feel like I didn't do like my job as I
would have wanted to. So, you know, just
trying to flush and continue to get
better.
>> Do you feel like puts some more pressure
on you as you're going through the game
and things aren't going your way?
>> No, like I just, you know,
every time like I just get by it and you
try to flush it and just go on to the
next one and just attack and go hitter
by hitter, and, you know, pitch by
pitch.