Home
Authors
Tags
App
Get QuoteDark Inspirational Quotes App
" It's a sensitive thing, playing major league baseball. "
Tony La Russa
Sensitive
Major
Playing
Related Quotes:
" I think each negotiation should be based on what's the best decision - taking everything into account, not taking one thing into account. "
Tony La Russa
Best
Think
Negotiation
" There's a bigger difference now than when I first got into professional baseball because that was before guaranteed contracts, before there was a lot of money, so it was mostly survival. You had more competition. "
Tony La Russa
Survival
Baseball
Competition
" I had started law school at Florida State University as a part-timer. I would go two quarters, and they allowed me to drop out to play baseball, and then I'd get readmitted in September. I was convinced I was going to be a lawyer and was using my baseball salary to pay my way through school. "
Tony La Russa
School
Lawyer
Me
" If you seriously aspire to be a manager in the big leagues, there is a baseball 'book' that one must learn. Alongside that book, you must practice Spanish. Of 25 players on each roster, sometimes there are between eight and 15 players who speak Spanish. "
Tony La Russa
You
Speak
Practice
" Anything that disturbs your comfort factor is good for you. "
Tony La Russa
Your
Anything
Comfort
" There are always distractions, if you allow them. "
Tony La Russa
You
Allow
Always
" The arc of Ken Griffey Jr.'s swing has gotten bigger than when he hit line drives. Juan Gonzalez is a terrific power hitter, too. "
Tony La Russa
Power
Bigger
Hit
" You've got to acknowledge what you did wrong and see if you can fix it to the extent possible, and turn the page. "
Tony La Russa
Possible
Fix
Page
" I'm a great believer in the character of a club. To me, character has a lot to do with how you compete. That creates urgency and toughness. That elevates the talent that you have. "
Tony La Russa
Character
Great
Me
" My wife and I, we started a foundation about companion animal rescue, but there's a group called Performing Animal Welfare Society just outside of Sacramento... and they offered me a job as an elephant keeper. "
Tony La Russa
Society
Job
Elephant
" Just because you're down to your last strike, you're not out yet. You can always do more. You'll always have more at-bats to take. That's true in baseball, in rescuing animals, and in life, generally. "
Tony La Russa
Baseball
Animals
You
" You know, I think when you coach or you manage, you make decisions, and there's some that are really, really tough. "
Tony La Russa
You
Decisions
Some
" We're all men, not machines. We make mistakes. "
Tony La Russa
Machines
Mistakes
Men
" Ever since I managed with guaranteed contracts and all the media, you know, you can get distracted by fame and fortune. Your values can get distorted. And the way you break through is, you just keep it personal and keep it simple and basic. "
Tony La Russa
Simple
Know
Values
" If you like to run and the guys can't run, you don't run. If you like power, and you have guys that can't hit it out of the park, then you start moving guys around. "
Tony La Russa
Run
Moving
Start
" You can't manage by memo. You can't stand up there and just send out edicts. I think you just gotta really personalize your relationships. "
Tony La Russa
You
Just
Stand Up
" Winning in Oakland in '89 was distinguished because that was truly a great team on a mission to prove that '88 was not what we represented. I look at that team in awe. It was a push-button team. "
Tony La Russa
Winning
Awe
Great
" My mind is just a product of 50 years of being taught. I'm no smarter than anyone else, but I've been taught by some wonderful people. "
Tony La Russa
Mind
People
Product
" I think there's a growing number of pitchers who want to have a plan going into a game about how they're going to go after that lineup. I'd say 75 percent want to have an idea, and they plan their attack. I know that 75 percent of hitters do not have that same type of plan against a pitcher. "
Tony La Russa
Know
Plan
Say
" Clubs are taking away the steal of home. Not only are more pitchers throwing out of the stretch position, but more third basemen are playing closer to the bag. But another reason why nobody does it much anymore is that some guys, no matter how fast they are, just aren't comfortable trying to steal home. "
Tony La Russa
Fast
Trying
Nobody
" To me, there is no more conscientious umpire in the Major Leagues than Jim Joyce. He gives you a hellacious effort every time. "
Tony La Russa
Me
You
Effort
" I'm not going to manage again. I'm going to work for a team someday. But it won't be managing. "
Tony La Russa
Going
Work
Team
" I have coaching friends, and when we get together, we often talk more about what we're doing to get players' attention than we do about the fascinating X's and O's of our sport. "
Tony La Russa
Coaching
Together
Talk
" I was a lousy player with virtually no experience managing. "
Tony La Russa
Player
Managing
Experience
" If you try to give them a scheme, most hitters will rebel. "
Tony La Russa
Rebel
Give
You
" Losing sucks. I don't think most people understand how bad it feels. "
Tony La Russa
Think
Losing
Bad
" I was in the American League for 16, 17 years, and I think it's a really tough league to compete in. "
Tony La Russa
Think
Years
Tough
" I've said this: If Jim Leyland had been in my place, he'd have the 2,000 wins and I'd have 1,000. Leyland is the greatest. "
Tony La Russa
He
Had
Said
" I don't miss being in the dugout - I'll make that clear. "
Tony La Russa
Make
Dugout
Clear
" What you end up doing is you try to match your guy's strength against a place they can be successful. They're doing the same thing against us. Sometimes they have the edge, sometimes you have the edge. "
Tony La Russa
Strength
Place
End