Tony Gwynn

“Ted Williams is one of the best hitters ever to play the game, and I didn't get a chance to see him play, so all I could do was read books and look at pictures.”

“I think the ability to hit - some guys have it and some guys don't - but I think how dedicated you are to trying to get the most out of yourself, I think kind of determines how good you are and for how long. I was born with the ability to hit, but my work ethic has taken it to the next level.”

“I was a contact hitter my whole career but I learned how to handle the ball inside. And Ted Williams played a big part in that. He gave me the advice on how to handle inside pitches.”

“Knowing the strike zone is very important, but I think the first thing is knowing yourself, knowing what things you do well.”

“When you sign your name on the dotted line, it's more than just playing baseball. You have a responsibility to make good decisions and show people how things are supposed to be done.”

“I hate to say it, but, yeah, I'm a tobacco junkie.”

“It's about getting in position and taking a swing. I don't care if you're taking steroids or not; if you don't do those two things, it's not going to matter anyway.”

“Steroids do not guarantee you're going to have success. I think a lot of people think that they will, but they don't.”

“Either you have the ability to hit or not. But I also think you have to work at it.”

“I'm a chemistry guy. I believe you've got to play together to have a chance to win.”

“What drives me is trying to be perfect.”

“Sometimes technique works better than a whole lot of other things.”

“I think if you enjoy teaching, if you enjoy talking about your craft, that's probably the best way to do it... because once a player starts to get it, once he figures it out, he'll never forget it.”

“The only thing I do to my bat is put some tape around the handle to build it up a little bit because I broke my finger about six years ago and can't really close it the way I want to. Other than that, the same bat, same Louisville Sluggers.”

“Remember these two things: play hard and have fun.”

“Nobody talked about my defense or that I used to steal bases, too.”

“I'm coaching 'swing at this, don't swing at that,' and in the middle of it, a kid looks at me and says, 'Coach, I think I'm going to fail history.' Or maybe their girlfriend just dumped them. These are kids, and once I embraced that, this became a lot more fun.”

“I try to keep it real simple. I try not to add a lot of frosting on what I'm doing. Just take the swing and don't muscle the swing, because if you get in the hitting position and you take the swing, I generate a lot more bat speed, and that works for me.”

“When I was a kid, man, my dad used to buy me the Ted Williams glove at Sears with the Ted Williams shoes with the eight stripes on 'em. I used to play Little League, and I was Ted Williams-ed out.”

“Like a lot of kids, you kind of think baseball's boring - that's the perception.”