I always tried to watch the pitcher and his complete windup from the moment he had the ball in his glove all the way through his motion, and tried to follow it all the way out of his hand, all the way to home plate.
There was a time when rival teams used a shift against me. They would put the second baseman on the shortstop's side of the bag, move the shortstop into the hole to his right, and have the third baseman hug the foul line. The idea was to build an infield wall against a known right-handed pull hitter.
Joe Mauer's the real deal. He is absolutely wonderful. Not only is he a great player, but he's a great human being. He's the kind of guy you'd like to see... be your son.
It must be nice for today's hitters when you don't have to worry about being thrown at. It's a whole different deal. When I played, getting knocked down was an accepted part of the game.
When I was 14, and for the next four years, I was lifting and hauling 10-gallon milk cans full of milk. That will put muscles on you even if you're not trying.
At Tiger Stadium, the dugouts are so low that you walk in and hit your head on the ceiling. People would say, 'Don't feel bad. Ty Cobb did the same thing.'
