I'll just hit the dry side of the ball.
Used to be bats had thick handles and a big barrel. Then they found it's not the size of the bat that gets home runs - it's the speed with which you can swing it.
I think I had the smallest handle around. When I got my bats, I even trimmed them down. I used to scrape them. Some years later when I started getting older, I used to start with a 33 and in the summer it got down to 31 and then probably in September got down to 30.
When we played the Dodgers in St. Louis, they had to come through our dugout, and our bat rack was right there where they had to walk. My bats kept disappearing, and I couldn't figure it out. Turns out, Pee Wee Reese was stealing my bats. I found that out later, after we got out of baseball. He and Rube Walker stole my bats.
I'm proud to be a Cardinal.
Back in my day, we didn't think about money as much. We enjoyed playing the game. We loved baseball. I didn't think about anybody else but the Cardinals.
I'm a musician. I play harmonica for relaxation. A good way to relax and entertain people. An excellent way to have fun.
I consciously memorized the speed at which every pitcher in the league threw his fastball, curve, and slider. Then, I'd pick up the speed of the ball in the first 30 feet of its flight and knew how it would move once it has crossed the plate.
I have no hesitation to say that St. Louis is a great place in which to live and work.
A lot of hitters stay away from the plate, some are close up, some are forward, some are back. The thing about hitting is this: You have to know the strike zone. That's the most important thing. Hit strikes and put the bat on the ball.
There was never a day when I was as good as Joe DiMaggio at his best. Joe was the best, the very best I ever saw.
Always wanted to be a Major League player. Loved baseball. Followed it. Loved to play. Plus, I could always hit.
The first principle of contract negotiations is don't remind them of what you did in the past - tell them what you're going to do in the future.
