Andrew Benintendi

Growing up, I was a big Red Sox fan and looked up to guys like Dustin Pedroia, who's obviously not the biggest guy, but the way he competes, the way he works, it was motivating for me.

You're going to struggle. You're going to do well. You can't really let the past or the day before - whether you had a good day or bad day - dictate the day you have that certain day.

My job is just to go out and play hard every day.

I think if you're not confident, you're not in the right place.

It's a long season, and if you can go back and forth pretty well, you'll end up OK.

Being stronger really helped my game.

The big thing I noticed from High-A to Double-A is that when you have an advantage count as a hitter, you're not going to get as many fastballs. Adjusting to the 2-0 changeup, that 3-1 off-speed pitch - things like that. I think my swing can stay the same; I just was getting myself out.

That's the beautiful thing about baseball. You can be any size and be successful.

I think the biggest adjustment I've made before coming here was going from High A to Double A. I was going in facing pitchers who had more experience and knew how to throw all their stuff for strikes and in hitter's counts, things like that.

I try to focus on what I can control, and that's just playing hard and playing well.

It's definitely a dream come true playing for the Red Sox.

I come from a pretty humble family, and I try to be a humble guy.