Army life was rough. Would you believe it, they actually wanted me to pitch three times a week. |
Hell, if I didn't drink drink or smoke, I'd win twenty games every year. It's easy when you don't drink or smoke or horse around. |
I didn't begin cheating until late in my career, when I needed something to help me survive. I didn't cheat when I won the twenty-five games in 1961. I don't want anybody to get any ideas and take my Cy Young Award away. And I didn't cheat in 1963 when I won twenty-four games. Well, maybe a little. |
I know Koufax' weakness. He can't hit. |
I never threw the spitter, well maybe once or twice when I really needed to get a guy out real bad. |
I was going to pitch the first, fourth and seventh games. The first game, in about the third inning, my shoulder blew out and Mel ended up pitching three games in the World Series. He pitched great, but we lost in seven games. On the way back to New York after losing the seventh game, Yogi said to me, ?How did you like pitching and coaching?' I said, ?Fine.' He said, ?Would you do it again next year?' I said, ?Yeah.' The next day, Yogi was fired. |
Sooner or later the arm goes bad. It has to...Sooner or later you have to start pitching in pain. |
The players of today are in such tremendous shape. Look at the size of players like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens. They have such power behind everything they do. |
The way to make coaches think you're in shape in the spring is to get a tan. |
The way to make coaches think you're in shape in the spring is to get a tan. |
There's no easier pitch to hit than a splitter that doesn't do anything. |
When Mel came up in 1964 in the middle of the season, I was his pitching coach, but I was also pitching every fourth day besides. Yogi Berra was our manager. That's why it was all screwed up. |
You kind of took it for granted around the Yankees that there was always going to be baseball in October. |
You would be amazed how many important outs you can get by working the count down to where the hitter is sure you're going to throw to his weakness, and then throw to his power instead. |