Tommy Lasorda Quotes

I had 12 years under my belt of baseball at the amateur level before I got to the big leagues.

I'd rather play in the major leagues and have some bad games than play consistently good ball in the minors.

I just wanted to go play in the big leagues. But possibly playing for the Yankees is very special.

I knew I'd never make it back to the major leagues as a player. Lee MacPhail came to me and asked if I wanted to manage the Yankees' Fort Lauderdale club. I thought about it for a day or two and decided to take the job. That was the turning point. I knew it was what I wanted to do.

The Oakland A's, I loved all my teammates there. I loved all the coaches. They gave me the opportunity to play in the big leagues. And for that, I thank them. I mean it was a dream come true for me.

Even though it feels like you are so far away from the big leagues, my love for the game kept me motivated to get through the hard times in the minors.

If you're in the minor leagues, you want to get to the majors.

I never forgot the four years I spent with the Phillies, my September call-ups and my big league Spring Trainings. I never forgot that.

I think all tennis players have to struggle through the early stages of their career. We start off playing tournaments and really just get by. I always had a dream to play in the big tournaments and never have doubted if it was worth it. Having to battle a little early on in my career makes it all the more worthwhile now.

No actor in the world started off at the top.

Looking back on those days and little leaguer, the Hall of Fame is not even a blinking star, but through baseball travels and moving up the ladder, that star begins to flicker.

You know, when you first come up, and you get called up to the big leagues, all you want to do is just, you just want to have a career, a nice career. You want to make a living at it.

And then 45 years later, as I finished my career in the great city of Cleveland, that was another great way to end my career, going to the World Series.

During the years I was still playing, I would go to Puerto Rico in the winter and manage. When the day came, I had the experience without having to go to the minor leagues for four or five years and then wait for an opportunity. Still, there's a double standard. Some whites, like Pete Rose, Joe Torre and Ted Williams, never had to go to the minors.

At the beginning of my career, it was very hard to go up. Now, it's very hard to stay on top. You have to stay there, and I want to stay there so badly. I'm still standing.

I wasn't ready for the majors when I joined the Pirates in 1955. I was too young and didn't know my way around.

Your first responsibility is to the organization, to teach and prepare players to get to the big leagues and have them ready when they get there, but everyone in the minors wants to be in the majors.

I never had a single big break - because few do online.

I played good ball in the minor leagues, and that's why they called me up to the major leagues.

This is something I've wanted to do my whole life is play baseball, and I think just the opportunity to put on a big-league uniform every day is just... you know, people dream of it, but not everybody gets to do it. I'm thankful every day I get to do it.

I want to finish my career in Cleveland. They gave me the opportunity to play in the big leagues.

I started as a working pupil in a yard, mucking out and doing all the duties... and I just never gave up on my dream.

If you look at the actual movies that I've done, the whole struggle is to get to that point, so it's not something that you just have so easy . . . But it's okay. It doesn't bother me. I've done okay so far.

Willpower is that thing CEOs and professional athletes tell us they used to make it to the top.

I'm not in the Lifetime Achievement area yet-I'm still battling it out in the trenches.