Darick Hall, image- Jay Floyd |
Normally, I post the audio of these types of out-of-the-ordinary interviews. Many of those appear exclusively over on my Patreon page. In this instance, the recording is poor and truly doesn't sound good enough to release the recording, so I have transcribed a fun interview with Double-A Reading slugger Darick Hall below.
The 24-year-old lefty hitting first baseman has been a key contributor in the middle of the Reading lineup all season long. In 97 games, Hall sports a .249 batting average with 18 home runs and a league leading 62 RBI.
Hall was the Phillies' 14th round pick out of Dallas Baptist in 2016.
In the interview below, Hall chats about organizational rivalry with the Yankees throughout the minors, who may be his coolest teammate, music and more. Read ahead for somewhat of a different interview with Darick.
-So, I asked you if you'd like to have some fun with me and you agreed, not having any idea what I'm talking about. Would you like to answer Nine Silly-ass Questions?
Depending on what they are, yeah!
-Right. You have no choice now.
Awesome!
-So, listen. You're on the record. This is official business here. Do you like my shirt?
Yeah. I think it's pretty swaggy.
-Thanks, man. That is so kind. Who on the team is the coolest guy?
It's a hard question.
-Is there a lot of cool guys (to narrow it down to just one)?
There really is. Cool guy...I'd say, cool, just straight up cool- Mickey (Moniak). You know, he's pretty trendy. He likes to keep it fresh. I'd say he's a pretty cool guy.
-I like it. (Regarding) the Trenton team, is there a rivalry with the Yankees teams as you guys climb levels and play them in each of these leagues?
Obviously, you know. I'm not a hundred percent certain, but I'm pretty sure that most of the affiliates aren't big fans of the Yankees. (laughs) Just due to the nature, but they kind of got us-- (edging us out for the first half division title), playing two less games than us in the first half, so obviously these guys are a little bit of our rivals.
If we continue playing well, we have a chance to win the second half, then I think this is the team we'll be playing (in the playoffs). So, we're pretty competitive with them.
-Seeds or gum?
Gum.
-What kind? Just bubble gum, or any different flavor?
Yeah, Double Bubble. Just original. I like that because you don't have to keep getting more. You choose seeds, you might be done with seeds in two outs and you're not going to have a bag of them on you.
-Gum will last you longer. That's cool. Did you collect baseball cards as a kid?
Yeah! I did. I always got the Topps sets as a kid.
-So, the whole sets- did you ever unwrap them and put them in binders or pages or anything?
No, they're all boxed up.
-Do you still have them?
Yeah. I'd have to find them. They're in the garage. I kind of got out of that, around I'd say, like, 12 (years old). So, I've still got them.
-Do you keep any souvenirs from your career? Do you have any of your own cards?
I like to keep a few, just you know, kind of as a memento of the path and just having done it.
-Excellent. Is there anything in your music collection that you would deem embarrassing?
I would say I have an array of tastes. I'm not gonna lie, I have a few Selena Gomez songs. I'd say that's about as soft as I'll go.
-I wanted to ask you if there is a favorite cartoon character that you have?
Favorite cartoon character. Let's see. I'd take Tom.
-From Tom & Jerry?
Yeah. I used to love watching Tom & Jerry as a kid. That's one of my favorites.
-Now, I'm trying to remember. It's been so long...is Tom the cat?
Tom's the cat.
-So, he gets fooled and goofed on and clowned. But that's your favorite guy?
I just always thought he was funny.
-Okay. It must be empathy. A couple more here for you. Thanks for the time. I'm no longer counting, so we may go over nine (questions). Talk to me about (one of the Reading mascots) the Crazy Hot Dog Vendor. What are your thoughts?
(Laughs) I think he's hilarious. I think we have a couple (different men that play him) and it's funny there's different levels. We have a guy that's an expert. We have a few beginners and a guy kind of in the middle. But, I think it gives us energy when he runs by the dugout, yelling, hurling hot dogs, everybody gets fired up.
-Can the same be said about (friend of the team and honorary Reading cheerleader) Briscoe Disco?
Yeah! I'd say so. He gets it going. He gets people going.
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