Monte Irvin Quotes

It would have been a helluva lot more fun if I had not hit those sixty-one home runs.

Do I want someone to get more hits than me? No. Do I want someone to hit more home runs than me? No. Do I want someone to have more RBI than me? No. I get a kick out of seeing the all-time leaders and my name's on top of every one, with the exception of strikeouts. I get a kick out of that.

I just try to get on anyway that I can, hit, hit-by-pitch, walk, home runs, anything.

The Mets are gonna be amazing.

Home run hitters strike out a lot.

Ted Williams is one of the best hitters ever to play the game, and I didn't get a chance to see him play, so all I could do was read books and look at pictures.

In New York, after that famous home run, they expected me to be up there every year. That homer raised me to a high level, with the top guys in the game.

Major league baseball has asked its players to stop tossing baseballs into the stands during games, because they say fans fight over them and they get hurt. In fact, the Florida Marlins said that's why they never hit any home runs. It's a safety issue.

I was a starter and did some good things there, and then I got a chance to prove myself as a closer. Because of that opportunity, I was blessed with the honor of being elected to the Hall of Fame.

The fans love the home runs, the home run competition between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa.

Everybody in the minor leagues - if you're a player, an announcer, whatever - wants to be in the big leagues.

When I hit a home run I usually didn't care where it went. So long as it was a home run was all that mattered.

Cobb is a prick. But he sure can hit. God Almighty, that man can hit.

In 2007, I hit 50 home runs. That was pretty cool. I never thought I'd be able to do that. At the time, I didn't even think it was that big of a deal for some reason. But now, looking back, I realize it was pretty cool.

Hey, I think it's easy for guys to hit .300 and stay in the big leagues. Hit .200 and try to stick around as long as I did; I think it's a much greater accomplishment. That's hard.

When you're a kid growing up, you say you want to make it to the Major Leagues, and when you reach that dream, that's what it's all about.

Willie Mays could throw better, and Hank Aaron could hit more home runs. But I've got enthusiasm. I've got desire. I've got hustle. Those are God-given talents, too.

I'm hoping someday that some kid, black or white, will hit more home runs than myself. Whoever it is, I'd be pulling for him.

David Ortiz is a genius. He's incredible to watch. Over and over, he hits home runs that are simply transcendent.

I'm proud of everything that I've accomplished since I was a little boy. That was my dream - to be a ballplayer. I didn't dream to win so many Gold Gloves, or Silver Bats or play in All-Star Games or World Series. I was just dreaming to play the game.

The first time I picked up a bat in a professional game, I hit a ball hard left-handed, and my first home run was so effortless, it surprised me.

St. Louis is still a special place for me. I still have my home there. I live there in the offseason. I enjoyed playing in front of 40,000 people every day. I tried to do my best to help the organization win. I had success there. We won two World Series. We went to three. That's something you can't take from me.

If I could do it over, I'd want to come up to the big leagues like Mike Trout. He's exciting and I like watching him.

Hitting is the most important part of the game. It is where the big money is, where much of the status is, and the fan interest.

What the hell has [Herbert] Hoover got to do with it? Besides, I had a better year than he did.