Famous quotes from the sport of baseball – who said it?

"Today… I consider myself… the luckiest man… on the face of the earth."If you are a serious baseball fan, you know who uttered those words. Faced with the diagnosis of a fatal disease that would later bear his name, Lou Gehrig found reason to be grateful.This is one of many quotes from baseball players, announcers or just plain fans that we tend to remember. Over the next couple of weeks, I will give you a quote. You can test your knowledge before I give you the author. The sayings may be funny, poignant or simply interesting. They may be familiar or something you have never heard before.Hopefully they will resonate and give you enjoyment. Are you ready?"It's a beautiful day for a ballgame… let's play two."This came from one of my favorite baseball players of all time. The comment showed his love for the game. The weather could be dreadfully cold or rainy, but it didn't dampen the enthusiasm of Mr. Cub himself, Ernie Banks."Because I only have a glove on one hand."A perfectly practical answer to a reporter's question. Amos Otis was a very good center fielder for the Kansas City Royals. He had a penchant for catching the baseball one-handed. One day he was asked why, and his response was both amusing and logical. "People ask me what I do in the winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring."You have to go back a ways to find the man who uttered these words. Rogers Hornsby was an infielder with the St. Louis Cardinals in the early 1900's. To suggest that he lived for baseball would be an understatement. He was pretty good too.He had a lifetime .358 batting average. He was also one of four players to win a Decade Triple Crown. During the 1920's he led all National League players in batting average, home runs and RBI's. He is one of four to achieve that trick, with Honus Wagner, Ted Williams and Albert Pujols being the others. It's no wonder he couldn't wait for spring!Rogers Hornsby also said "I don't want to play golf. When I hit a ball I want someone else to chase it.""There are only two seasons. Winter and baseball."Legendary owner Bill Veeck had similar feelings to Mr. Hornsby. You could play baseball from early spring until late fall. Only the cold winter months stopped the game that he was so passionate about."He just stood there like the house along the side of the road."I grew up listening to Cleveland Indians games on the radio. If they were not playing, I would tune into broadcasts of the Detroit Tigers.When you heard the folksy southern drawl of the legendary Ernie Harwell, it was like music to your ears. The above statement was one that he would frequently say when a batter took a called third strike. There was no sugar coating it. Harwell was apparently not a fan of being called out at the plate when the batter did not even try to put the ball in play.I also hate when that happens (to one of my team's players) and the thing I hate even more is when an announcer tries to justify the player's actions by saying "he must have been looking for something else." That bugs me worse.From Little League on, a player is taught to choke up with two strikes and swing at anything close. You don't look for a fast ball or a curve ball. You look for the baseball! And then you do what your were taught in Little League. As much as I loved Ernie Harwell's signature line, I despise a hitter taking one right down the middle."Hit 'em where they ain't." With apologies to my English teachers, I am only quoting here. Hit the ball where the fielders are not stationed doesn't have the same force as Wee Willie Keeler's famous quote.Keeler played in the late 1800's and early 1900's so this saying goes back well beyond Rogers Hornsby's. Willie Keeler had the handle "Wee" because he was the major league's smallest ever players. Standing 5-foot-4 and weighing a whopping 140 pounds, he was small in stature, but great at doing what he said was the key to hitting.Playing 19 seasons in the big leagues he hit over .300 for 16 of them. He hit over .400 once and had a career batting average of .341. Apparently he hit 'em where they ain't frequently."It took me over 20 seasons to collect 3,000 hits. I did it in one afternoon playing golf."If you are wracking your brain trying to figure out who is in the 3,000 hit club, I will save you some time. None other than the great Hank Aaron made the above quote. One of the greatest to ever play the game of baseball, Aaron was apparently not quite as adept at golf.I get it Hank. The golf part at least!Next week I will continue the list of quotes. If you'd like to look some up to see if you can improve your quiz score, be my guest. But I must warn you. Some of the people I will be quoting may not be all that familiar to you. Then again, who knows (well I do of course), there may be another quote from Lou Gehrig!