“Jake, there’s been a lot of speculation about your relationship with Scottie Quinn and the photo circulating online. Can you clarify what’s going on?”
“Yeah, I figured that question was coming. So let’s clear the air. No, Lucas Fischer did not steal my girlfriend. No, I’m not devastated. And yes, I fired my [BEEP BEEP BEEP] agent.”
“Why did you fire your agent?”
“He leaked a photo that was taken out of context to try to get me an endorsement deal. Sorry, Tide. Don’t call me. I’ll call you.”
(Laughter.)
“So your girlfriend didn’t cheat on you?”
“No. Scottie didn’t cheat on anybody. That’s not in her DNA. Honestly—well, I’m not going to be completely honest. You guys are sharks and don’t deserve it. Scottie and I knew we weren’t going to work out long term. I begged her not to break up with me.”
“Wait. Rodgers, were you two ever dating?”
“You saw us out on a lot of dates, Josh. Yes. We were dating.”
“Jake, you said you begged her to keep dating. Why would you do that?”
“Because for the first time in my career, people were talking about me for something good. Do you know what it’s like having every headline be ‘Jake’s one of the best ever, but he’s a jerk’—blah blah blah? It sucks. I just want you guys to say I’m awesome without all the caveats.”
(Laughter.)
“Listen, I leaned on Scottie way too much. You guys have done enough digging into my past to know that I’m a mess. Truth is, I’m just a lot less messy when I’m around her. But I made her life messier. So it’s gotta end.”
“Back to the photo with her and Lucas Fischer. What were your feelings when you saw it?”
“First, you gotta know: they were friends. They were joking around. It wasn’t the way it looked. But seeing them like thatmade something click for me. I realized if I actually cared about Scottie and not just my image, I needed to stop leaning on her and let her move on. So I sent the picture to my agent to explain why I was ending things. My agent decided that meant he should leak it. That part’s on me.”
“Did Scottie’s mom actually drag you into Doug’s office by the ear?”
“No comment. Mama Quinn’s off-limits.”
(Laughter.)
“So what happens now?”
“With me? I stop making Scottie my fixer and—yeah—go to therapy.”
(Laughter.)
“Word has it Lucas and Scottie were seen in the lobby of their hotel today, and they were definitely together.”
“Well, yeah. He’s been in love with her in secret for a year. About time he worked up the nerve to chase her down. Maybe if he’d done that a few months ago, I wouldn’t be in this mess.”
(Laughter.)
“Listen, Scottie’s one of the best people in this organization, and I’m lucky she’s still willing to help me stay on track.”
“How so?”
“Doug reassigned her. She’s my player coordinator now. We think that’ll be the best thing for all of us.”
“And Fischer?”
“The TikTok Kid is good people. He was falling all over himself this morning trying to make sure everyone knew Scottie didn’t do anything wrong. That matters to me. So yeah. Good guy. Good pitcher. He’ll help our bullpen. But he needs to know something: if he doesn’t treat Scottie right, I will absolutely choke him in a game.”
(Huge laughter.)
