As if there were any doubts, Payton Tolle has a media career waiting for him as soon as his baseball career ends, which shouldn’t be any time soon when you consider Boston’s prized lefty turns 24 on Sunday.
When it comes to genuine humor and all-out fun combined with his ability on the field, Tolle is one of the best things baseball has going for it right now.
And Tolle turned out to be the perfect choice as one of MLB’s player correspondents for the World Series that is ongoing between the Brewers and Rays.
Tolle fulfilled his responsibilities during Thursday’s media day and in the hours leading up to Game 1 on Friday.
To put it in baseball terms, Tolle struck out the side -- not that this should be a surprise for a player who hugged an opponent while tagging him out and did a pushup on the mound in between pitches during a game.
Here are some highlights from Tolle’s foray into media.
It has to start with the slide
With the DH in both leagues, Tolle might never get a chance to show off his slide on the bases in a Major League game. While that would certainly be entertaining to see the hulking 6-foot-6, 250-pound lefty dig into second for a double, he did the next best thing by going down the Bernie Brewer slide at American Family Field.
“I’m having trouble catching my breath right now,” said Tolle. “I’m nervous. This is for content, right?”
Then he went for it and shrieked like a 12-year-old riding a roller coaster. Fitting, because Tolle is a big kid himself.
As he dismounted, Tolle let out one of his signature belly laughs.
“I’m good,” said Tolle. “I’m in one piece. I didn’t pee myself.”
The Yelich setup
Before the joke started, Tolle let the audience in on it. “I’m going to tell everybody that Christian Yelich is their best friend. We’re going to see how that works out.”
To watch him put it into action was the fun of it. His first mark was Garrett Mitchell, who responded with shocked eyes.
“That’s special. That means a heck of a lot,” said Mitchell, who found it plausible he and Yelich are BFFs. “Ever since I got to the organization, that dude has kept my head on straight and has taught me the way and how to be a professional baseball player. We spent a lot of time having great conversations and talking through things, so that actually means a heck of a lot.”
Then it was time to talk to Chad Patrick.
“Did he actually say that?” Patrick wondered.
“Well, I don’t want to misquote him,” countered Tolle.
Kyle Harrison, a teammate of Tolle’s in Boston last season, didn’t seem to be a believer. But he played along like a good sport.
“I don’t know if he said that, but Yeli’s a great guy,” Harrison said. “He’s our captain. We love him.”
Brice Turang and Aaron Ashby were both all-in after hearing what Yelich said, at least according to Tolle.
“He’s the man, dude. We share lockers together,” Turang said. “We’re always talking. He’s a very good guy to learn from. I’ve been asking him questions, trying to learn stuff on and off the field, and he’s always treated me well, even when I was younger. He’s been great to me.”
“That’s an unbelievable compliment,” said Ashby. “He was one of the first guys to take me under his wing. For a former MVP to do that was so special. He was our captain before he was named the captain. For him to embody what this team is all about is super special.”
And then came the Truth Cam.
Tolle asked Yelich who his best friend on the team is.
“I mean, all of them, honestly,” said Yelich.
That answer had Tolle beaming as if he had just pitched his Red Sox to the World Series.
“That is the best answer you could have given. We told everybody that we’ve interviewed that you’re their best friend, so that’s perfect,” said Tolle.
Tailgating Tolle
While tailgating is mainly a football thing, some baseball venues are perfectly set up for it, American Family Field perhaps foremost among them. Tolle wasn’t going to miss the fun of mixing it up with the hyped fans prior to Milwaukee’s first World Series game since 1982. Tolle had some bratwurst and quickly decided it is the No. 1 tailgating spot in the league.
Tolle spotted a group of fans wearing domes shaped like bottlecaps.
“I’ve heard of cheesehead,” Tolle said to the fans, who may or may not have known he’s a Major League pitcher. “But I’ve never heard of the bottle cap head. Is that what we’re doing here?”
Packers fans love to be cheeseheads. “Brewers fans need their own thing,” said one of the men talking to Tolle.
In another vintage Tolle moment, he put the oversized bottle cap on his head.
The performance by Tolle left baseball fans and social media junkies waiting for Tolle’s next media gig.