Weaver a Believer

Jered Weaver came into the 2016 season described as defiant:

Angels right-hander Jered Weaver faced Class-A hitters for four innings Tuesday afternoon and said he felt great in his ultimate test before returning to a major league mound.

Two hours later, he leaned back at his locker and struck his most defiant tone yet about detractors.

“Haters equals motivation for me,” Weaver said. “I feed off of it.”

Weaver then talked about how he did not want those critics to praise him when he succeeded this season. The 33-year-old right-hander was asked whether he always has been so affected by the opinion of others.

“I’ve just always kept it in,” he said. “Now it’s coming out. … I’m tired of being professional. This is what I do. … I don’t do this to not be good. I do this to be good.

“I want to be the best, and I was there at one point. Then I hit a bump in the road, and every bump in the road is a chance for you to rise and show people that it’s still in there.”

Weaver made his first start Sunday and pitched well. He allowed one run in six inning of work as the Angels defeated the Rangers 3-1. Weaver allowed six hits, including a solo home run by Nomar Mazara (in his MLB debut). He walked one and struck out four. It may not have been the overpowering performance that Weaver might have produced a few years ago., but it was a ringing success. Today, he lived up to his pre-season motivation.

from baseballmusings.com http://ift.tt/1Yo6UeM