Kristian Robinson Opens Up

With legal issues behind him, the D-backs prospect talked about mental health challenges and the joy of getting back to baseball.

Kristian Robinson is back and playing baseball again for the Visalia Rawhide, which is the Class A affiliate for the  Arizona Diamondbacks. The formerly top ranked prospect had been unable to participate in affiliated games due to legal and visa issues as a result of an incident during the 2020 pandemic season in which he assaulted a police officer. The root of the incident stemmed from ongoing mental health issues that Robinson had been dealing with, which came to a head that unfortunate day. 

Robinson, who is a native of the Bahamas, has completed all of his probationary sentence, and was granted a work visa last month. He played his first game with the Rawhide on May 30th. During a ZOOM press conference yesterday Robinson addressed the local media and answered questions with his agent as his side.

He first read from a prepared statement, immediately acknowledging the mental health challenges he's faced over the last four years.  Expressing hope that today's press conference could help raise awareness of mental health issues, the sensitive and articulate Robinson went to great lengths to show his appreciation for all those that have supported him. His wife, his parents and siblings, the organization, and both his former and current agents, and many others all played a role in helping him get through the last few years and back to baseball.  Below is a summary of the rest of the press conference. 

The emotions of getting back on the field

His emotions have been "all over the place", but having his wife and son here with him have helped him a great deal.  Overall he's felt great excitement, joy and happiness. "Nothing beats playing at 6-7 P.M. every night, and I've been reminded of that and am just grateful for it" he said.   

He was clearly nervous about doing the ZOOM conference but as he spoke he flashed a huge smile saying  "I have butterflies right now, and that's what I've been building all week, but it's all been positive emotions all around."

His focus the first game was just to calm down as best as he could  and treat it as just another day  at Salt River Fields in extended spring training as opposed to a grand return. 

What was his playing routine the last few years?

"Obviously I don't have the games under my belt that everyone else had playing in the minor leagues. But I still went into the field and I treated it as another day where I wanted to get better and work on my game. I gave it my best." 

"It was challenging, there's no measure or scale at that point.  You're doing the same thing every day. But I'm grateful for that time I had at the complex.  And those game reps I did get without having to worry about the back of a stat sheet...I could go in there and get four at bats, think about what I did, go in the field work on what I need to work on, and do the same thing the next day." 

What aspects of his game have improved?

"Mental, no doubt about that."  Robinson did not want to go into too much depth or details about the specific mental challenges he has faced. But beyond that he shared how his perspective has changed. 

"I feel myself starting to gauge a mental sense of the game that I didn't have before. I hope to continue to grow that part of my game because I think that will create longevity in my career." 

How have you felt in the box through these early games?

"Nervous, excited...in that order. I also noticed that once I'm in the box, it's game on. I don't care who's on the mound, who's on the field, who's sitting and watching in the stands. I'm going to do what I need to do to get the results for myself in the field ... It's felt good overall, very relieving to just be there"

How much are you sharing with teammates about mental health awareness?

"I haven't had much conversation with my teammates about this. I don't want it to be something where it's interfering with what we're doing here."

He went on to say he didn't think it was the right time to bring it up and doesn't want it to be a distraction, but when the time is right, he will do that. 

What does it mean to you to be able to share good moments and celebrate with teammates?

"I love it! We actually had a moment yesterday in the clubhouse, we were playing our music, dancing around, laughing, smiling, just like, back to this, this is fun. This is why we grind, to be able to get back into the clubhouse and party, and have a happy bus ride back home.  I'm the biggest cheerleader. I try to be for myself, but definitely for other people.  Gavin Conticello, one of our third baseman.....on blast here.....but he hit a home run, absolutely crushed this ball and I was jumping up and down in the dugout, couldn't stop shouting and yelling for him. I had to remember we were up by a lot and I didn't want to disrespect the other team so I had to quiet myself down"....(big laugh)

The night he received the email informing him his work visa had been approved

"I couldn't have been more excited...I found out about 8:30 P.M...I had to stay up all night, how could I sleep now…I can work, I'm ready to work! Just really excited. I gave [Player Development Director Josh Barfield] a call 6:30 the next morning.  Just overall excited and relieved, it was a long process, every day, just checking my e mail and seeing if there was an update. But it came through, ...at rest...at peace."

Are you looking forward to getting back to Hillsboro, (High A Affiliate)

"Definitely. If I do end up there at some point this year it will be very exciting to be in a Hops jersey again…I love Hillsboro…but I'm in Visalia right now and it's fun here. We're doing our thing…I'm ready to open up the series back home and have the same sort of experience here." 

Have you felt like you were falling behind too much, or like you'll have time to catch up?

"I think I've experienced both sides of it. I've always heard baseball was here before I got here and it's going to be here when I leave. I can't be bigger than the game. I realize that...it's going to go on without me. But I think it gives me more of an appreciate for it. And Just remembering that I am privileged and blessed."

What are game reps and speed of game compared to what he was able to experience in extended spring training?

"It hasn't gotten to me as I anticipated it would. I thought it would feel a lot quicker.   My manager said you don't have to be Superman on the field. It's ok to be Clark Kent."

He talked about things like making sure you hit the cutoff man instead of trying to make a throw home, and just focusing on HIS job helps slow the game down. 

"I'm starting to learn that more at the plate. Emotions weigh more at the plate, there's a lo more pressure sometimes...actually it hasn't felt that quick or fast as yet. Maybe I should not say that"...(Big laugh)

What do you wish you had known about the importance of mental health 4 years ago?

"This is going to sound naïve, but that it exists, that you do need to take care of yourself mentally. I don't want to go into too much detail about everything that happened around that time. But there's no hiding it. There was some struggle and trial. I think at this point now I know that I have to do a better job at taking care of myself mentally. It all lies in effort and how much I take care of myself."

Listen to the entire ZOOM call with Robinson down below: