“If you play well on the field, everything will take care of itself.”

There may be people who have more talent than you, but there’s no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do – and I believe that.

That’s how you win – pitching and defense.

I think everyone is ticklish. You just gotta find the right spots.

I think it comes easy to work hard. I was always taught, don’t short-change yourself. Keep working to get better.

I like to hit the gym early in the morning. I feel better throughout the day when I get in a workout first thing in the morning.

When it was time for parent-teacher conferences, I remember that I was always embarrassed about what my parents would hear about me!

Your image isn’t your character. Character is what you are as a person.

I can see how people work out to feel better.

So many people are insanely busy nowadays, and it’s easy to say, ‘Ah, I’ll workout tomorrow.’ But you have to set aside a time and stick to that schedule.

I get nervous watching teammates. I get nervous for them. Late in the game, pressure situation, I’m nervous for them.

Everyone fears rejection.

If you’re going to play at all, you’re out to win. Baseball, board games, playing Jeopardy, I hate to lose.

When I was younger, I was always taught not to make excuses.

You have to take the good with the bad. Some players only talk to the press when they are doing good. When you’re doing bad you shouldn’t shy away from them and when doing good, don’t run up to them.

I think sometimes people need to get used to an idea.

My grandmother asks me to race down the street, I’m going to try to beat her. And I’ll probably enjoy it. Competitive to a fault, sometimes.