Pittsburgh Pirates: Clear The Deck! Interview with Greg Brown

The budding superstar

The last question had to deal with what he has seen with Ke’Bryan Hayes thus far in his short time with the Pittsburgh Pirates. I personally think this kid is going to be special and compete for some hardware. I asked what did Brown see from watching him in the booth.

"BROWN’S RESPONSE: “I was taken back when John (Wehner) said this to me, and he said Hayes is the best third baseman he’s ever seen. That is extremely high praise from John, who does not throw around accolades very often. The thing I love about Hayes was that he came up through the Minor Leagues with a track record of an outstanding defender with gold gloves galore.” Continued: “Even when he arrived on the scene last year, we thought at least we would have an outstanding defender at the hot corner. Nobody thought, at least in the broadcast booth, that he would hit the way he did. Not only was he the best defensive player, but he was the best offensive player.” Continued: “I’m going to bring this up when Hayes is back and healthy, and it’s something that Tony La Russa said when he was the Cardinals manager. When Scott Rolen was his third baseman, he said he would pay money to watch him take ground balls. I never understood what that meant until now. That’s how I feel about Ke’Bryan Hayes, and I would pay money to just watch him take ground balls. HE IS MUST SEE T.V.”"

That, my friends, was one of the biggest moments of my life. To get the chance to talk baseball and memories with one of my idols has been an eye opening experience. Listening to this man talk to me and only me has been an honor, and Brown, if you’re still reading this, I hope that I did your name justice and I get to shake that hand in the booth sooner rather than later!