It took roughly 20 seconds after he began speaking for the first mention of the word "winning."
Nico Hoerner became the latest college hitter to go to the Cubs in the first round of the MLB Draft and in his introductory teleconference with the Chicago media, the Stanford shortstop didn't waste any team showing what he was about.
Theo Epstein's Cubs front office spends a lot of time and energy on the character of a player they draft and it's paid off well with Albert Almora Jr., Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber and Ian Happ in the past (as far as the Draft goes, at least).
Hoerner checked all the boxes for Epstein and Co.
"First and foremost, it's his ability on the baseball field," said Jason McLeod, Cubs senior VP of player development and amateur scouting. "He's a talented player that can really swing the bat, that's a high-contact bat. We think there's actually more power for him there in terms of extra-base hits and lifting the ball.
"But we really love what he can do at the plate. He's a multi-tool athlete with incredible makeup. When you go and watch him, it's really apparent — he's a leader on the field, he's a leader in the dugout, he's incredibly passionate, he's all about winning.
"He's exactly what we're looking to bring into the organization."
MLB
Hoerner was the star of a Stanford team that went 46-12 overall this season and finished atop the Pac 12 conference.
He spent most of the spring focusing on his team at Stanford instead of the Draft.
"Honestly with the Cubs, I really had no idea," Hoerner said. "I asked my advisors throughout the whole process to give me really limited information and just let me focus on the season.
"I was lucky to be on a really successful team this year and I was focused on winning. The draft process was pretty smooth."
Hoerner only hit 3 homers in 164 career college games, but collected 42 doubles and 9 triples while slugging .406 overall.
After a rough start to his collegiate career in 2016 (.254 average, .609 OPS), Hoerner turned it on and hit .307 his sophomore year and then .349 his junior season.
In between seasons at Stanford, Hoerner — an Oakland native — played for the Madison, Wisc., team in the Northwoods League in 2016, where he got a taste of the Midwest life and caught a glimpse into the world of Cubs fans.
He also played in the Cape Cod League in 2017, an experience he credited with helping him take huge strides before his junior season in college.
As the Cubs prepared for the Draft, they were holding out hope Hoerner would still be available at pick No. 24. They fell in love with his "exceptional makeup" and unique "natural hitting ability."
The Cubs think more power will come eventually, as he continues to fill out his 5-foot-11, 190-pound frame.
"He's just so skilled at barreling the ball up around the zone," McLeod said. "He has strong hands. I know this year when I went to see him, I was actually surprised just the strength of his body. Because you read the bio and you might see 5-11ish or 6-feet and you kinda expect him to be more of a medium frame guy, but this is a guy that's very strong, has very strong hands, high contact and he hits balls really hard.
"We do think that will translate really well because of what he already does well — which is really elite hand-eye coordination and ability to get the barrel to the ball and hit it hard."
Hoerner also fits the Cubs' mold in recent years as a player who can play all over the diamond. He has no qualms about moving if asked, but for now, he and the Cubs are content with sticking at shortstop.
"I'm gonna play shortstop as long as that's OK with them," Hoerner said. "That's what I love to do; I think I can do it at a really high level.
"But at the same time, I think I can play every position on the field if need be. Just want to win ballgames."
There's that "winning" concept again...