Brewers' Braun hoping for All-Star nod

Growing up in California, Milwaukee Brewers’ slugger Ryan Braun idolized Ken Griffey Jr. Now, with National League All-Star voting drawing to a close, Braun will have to overcome his boyhood hero for a starting slot in the NL outfield.

Braun, currently fourth among outfielders, has been making up ground on Griffey rapidly, and was about 175,000 votes behind in the most recent results. Balloting ends next Wednesday, and fans can vote on MLB.com.

After a 2007 season in which he set an all-time rookie slugging record (.634) and hit 34 home runs in just 113 games, Braun captured the Rookie of the Year Award, then promptly donated his bonus to charity. He so impressed Milwaukee brass on and off the field that in the offseason, the team locked him up to the richest deal in organization history, an an eight-year, $45 million contract.

It appears he’s worth the money. Currently, he’s fifth in the NL in home runs with 20, and ninth in RBI (57). Among NL outfielders, only Lance Berkman has more home runs and RBI than Braun, who recently took a few moments during a rare off day to speak with NBCSports.com about his wondrous rookie season, what making the all-star would mean to him, and baseball pranks.

Q: Almost midway through ’08, you’re probably on your way to 40 home runs, 100+ RBI, what do you think about your year so far? A: I feel like I’m doing OK. I have extremely high expectations, and I always feel like there are things I can improve upon. For the most part I feel like I’ve been consistent, and the team is playing well right now so it’s exciting to continue to get better and work hard to get to the postseason.

Q: What do you feel you need to improve on? A: Everything in general. The biggest thing for me is my approach. Offensively, I just want to have consistent at-bats and make sure I have the same level of focus and intensity for every at-bat, day-in and day-out.

Q: How do you feel about where the Brewers are? You guys are 15-7 in June, are you reaching your stride? A: We’re in great shape. Beginning of the year we had a tough schedule; a lot of day games, a lot of road games, but I think we weathered that storm, and right now we’re hitting on all cylinders. We’ve had great starting pitching, the bullpen’s been phenomenal, and everyone’s contributing offensively, so it’s a lot of fun to come to the clubhouse when we’re playing like this, and I don’t see any reason for that to change.

Q: What is the clubhouse like with many young players who are helping to revive Milwaukee baseball? A: It’s fun. It’s a very loose clubhouse, and we have guys with great personalities so we have a lot of fun messing with each other. It makes a big difference, just the fact that we enjoy spending time with each other, even away from the field. We spend so much time together, that having that relationship and wanting to win for each other goes a long way.

Q: You guys finished two games behind Chicago last year in the division. What’s going to be the key to making the playoffs this time around? A: Just recognizing the importance and significance of every game. Just having the experience of being in the playoff race last year in September is something invaluable for us this year. We know what to expect and anticipate, and we’re more prepared than we were last year.

Q: What’s the biggest lesson from it? A: I think we learned the significance of focusing on ourselves. You get caught up sometimes in scoreboard-watching, and we were definitely watching what the Cubs were doing. But ultimately if we go out and play the way we’re capable of, and the way we expect ourselves to play, it doesn’t really matter what anyone else is doing.

Q: You were a Brewers first-round pick in ’05. Did you expect success so quickly? I always had high expectations for myself. I certainly expected to get there pretty quickly but I never set a timetable. I wanted to go through the minors, learn as much as possible, get used to the grind of playing every day, and as soon as I was prepared and ready in all facets, I hoped the opportunity would come. It certainly came pretty fast.

Q: You came in with a big impact, and won rookie of the year hitting 34 homers despite playing in only 113 games. At any point during that wild ride, did you kind of pinch yourself over your success? Not really, not during the course of the season at least. Everything happens so fast and there’s so much going on that you rarely have the opportunity to reflect on it. Not until the offseason when things slowed down did I get the chance to look back, reflect and realize how special the first year really was. I learned a lot last year and I’m continuing to learn more now.

Q: What did it feel like to win the rookie of the year award? A: It’s extremely special. It’s a culmination of everything I’ve worked for to that point of my baseball career. Whenever you win an award like that, in a historical sense, it’s something special in the history of the game. Obviously there’s only one person in each league, each year who gets that award. So I really felt an appreciation for what everyone’s done to help me get to that point, and it’s rewarding to know that all the hard work and effort I put in has paid off as well.

Q: Obviously, you experience the season in the daily grind of it, but when you maybe look at your rookie card, and just look at the statistics of what was a truly remarkable season, what do you think of it? A: It really is pretty special, especially for my first year. Whenever you do something that is mentioned in a historical sense, it’s pretty crazy. And I know last year I set the all-time rookie record for slugging percentage. When you hear the names of people who put up similar slugging percentages or numbers, it’s really amazing and incredible, and nothing I could have envisioned happening to me, certainly not this early in my career.

Q: How have you had to adjust at the plate this year as pitchers have gotten to know you more? A: Baseball is a constant game for adjustments. Whoever makes them quicker – the pitcher or the hitter – will ultimately have more success. Teams are constantly changing the way they pitch to me, so I’m constantly trying to adjust to that. For the most part, I feel I’ve done OK, but I feel I can certainly do better than I have.

Q: You switched positions this year to outfield. Are you more comfortable there? A: I am. I feel great. I’m really enjoying it, trusting my athleticism, relying on my instincts, and trying to learn from everything I’ve been through. I feel like I’ve played it well, and the adjustment has gone smoothly, and I’m having fun out there.

Q: Between yourself and Prince Fielder, the Brewers might have a middle of the order to rival any team in baseball for years to come. Do you two talk about expectations of the future? A: It’s not something we necessarily talk about. We’ve learned the importance of focusing day-to-day, not looking ahead too much. We certainly appreciate the fact we play together along with so many great young players for the next few years. The future is something that’s extremely exciting for us, but at the same time, we expect to win now. Our focus is on right now.

Q: You’re currently in fourth among NL outfielders for all-star voting? Have you been keeping an eye on the voting tallies as they come out? A: You know, the media brings it up every time it’s updated, so I’m certainly aware of what’s going on. I’m not going to pretend like I’m not paying attention to it. At the same time, it’s not a day-to-day focus, but at least once a week, I’ll see where I’m at. It’d be a tremendous honor and a great accomplishment and obviously I’d love the opportunity to play in the all-star game, so we’ll see what happens.

Q: And what about potentially having the opportunity to play at Yankee Stadium before it closes? A: It’s certainly going to be a historic all-star game. For me, I love New York and I love the big stage, so I would love the opportunity to play in the all-star game just because it has a chance to be the last significant sporting event in the stadium unless the Yankees make the World Series. It’s certainly going to be a special event.

Q: What would it mean to you to be a starter? A: You know what, I think it’s pretty cool because Ken Griffey Jr., is in third place, and he was one of my favorite players growing up, so just recognizing that I’m right there in votes with him speaks volumes to where I’m at and what I’ve accomplished, so that alone is pretty cool.

Q: So Griffey was one of your favorites? Who else did you look up to? A: Griffey was definitely one of my favorites. Also, Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter. Those guys are great baseball players, but they’ve also carried themselves the right way off the field as well, so they’re great role models for myself and all the other young guys coming up now.
Quick hits
Q: There are so few days off in the schedule. What do you do on your days off? A: Golf a little, go to the local mall or just hang out. It’s nice to relax and get away from baseball a little bit. If we’re in Milwaukee, we go up to Lake Geneva, we go up there all the time, do some jet skiing, or just rent a boat, go out and spend a nice day on the water. It’s a nice escape from baseball.

Q: Where do you keep your rookie of the year award? A: My parents have it at their house in L.A.

Q: How many of your own rookie cards do you own? A: I don’t own many myself, but my parents have every one they could get their hands on.

Q: What’s your favorite sport to watch other than baseball? A: Basketball. I grew up in Los Angeles and I’m a big Lakers fan so I watch as many Lakers games as possible. It hasn’t been a fun last week-and-a-half, I’ll tell you that.

Q: Do you play fantasy sports? A: Not really. I follow it, but I don’t really play very often.

Q: What’s your favorite movie? A: I’m a big Denzel Washington fan. I don’t have a specific favorite, but any movie he’s in.

Q: What was the best rookie prank your team played against you last year? A: The rookies have to sing on the bus, I wasn’t really prepared for that, so the first bus trip, I had to sing.

Q: That doesn’t sound that bad. What did you have to sing? A: I did two Boys II Men songs. One was "On Bended Knee," and the other was I think, "River Runs Dry." It wasn’t very good, and no one wants to hear me sing, but I had fun with it.

Q: Can you sing? A: Not really. I’m OK. I got into it. I got a personality, but not the voice.

Q: Here’s the most important question: Did you know the words to those songs by heart? A: I had an iPod in one ear. Whoever was sitting in the front of the bus, I got their iPod and that was the first available song.

(msnbc.com)