Earl Weaver

“The easiest way around the bases is with one swing of the bat.”

“I used to be a pretty good hit-and-run man when I played in the minors. I handled the bat well and could hit the ball to the right side of the infield. Nevertheless, I know that you often give the opposition an out on the hit-and-run play.”

“If you want to steal a base, steal a base. Don't make the hitter swing at a bad pitch trying to protect the runner.”

“You win pennants in the off season when you build your teams with trades and free agents.”

“Your most precious possessions on offense are your twenty-seven outs.”

“If an umpire misses a called third strike and the other side ends up scoring because of it, I'm not going to forget it. If there are runners on second and third and two out, and if the umpire has just given the hitter an extra strike and the next pitch goes into the hole and both runs score, I've got to say something to the guy.”

“I had a successful career: not necessarily a Hall of Fame career, but a successful one.”

“Playing baseball is fun. If I could play, I'd never retire. But managing is work. It's constant decisions of whose feelings you want to hurt all the time.”

“There ain't no genius here. Strategy in baseball is overrated. People say, 'That Weaver, he plays for the long ball too much.' You bet I do. Hit 'em out. Then I got no worry about somebody lousing up a bunt, I got no worry about the hit and run - and that's really overrated - I got no worry about base-running errors. And I can't screw it up myself.”

“There are only three outs an inning, and they should be treasured. Give one away, and you're making everything harder for yourself.”

“The only thing I'd ever wanted in my life was to be a major-league ballplayer, but I had to admit to myself that I wasn't good enough. It broke my heart.”

“Momentum? Momentum is the next day's starting pitcher.”

“The only thing that matters is what happens on the little hump out in the middle of the field.”

“I think there should be bad blood between all clubs.”

“Don't worry, the fans don't start booing until July.”

“The worst thing about being on the road is all you want to do when you get home is to stay home, but as soon as you get back, all the wife wants to do is go out because she's been stuck home all the time you've been stuck on the road.”

“A manager should stay as far away as possible from his players. I don't know if I said ten words to Frank Robinson while he played for me.”

“People always make a lot about how I don't carry grudges. That's my religious upbringing. I went nine years without missing Sunday school. Lutheran. I can't live with hatred inside of me. That's what I learned. I ain't scared of dying, either.”

“In my mind, the home run is paramount because it means instant runs.”

“On my tombstone just write, 'The sorest loser that ever lived.'”