Mickey Mantle

"It's unbelievable how much you don't know about the game you've been playing all your life."

- Mickey Mantle

"A team is where a boy can prove his courage on his own. A gang is where a coward goes to hide."

- Mickey Mantle

"In a team setting a boy can demonstrate his bravery independently. The cowardly find refuge within the membership of a gang."

- Mickey Mantle

"During my 18 years I came to bat almost 10,000 times. I struck out about 1,700 times and walked maybe 1,800 times. You figure a ballplayer will average about 500 at bats a season. That means I played seven years without ever hitting the ball."

- Mickey Mantle

"If I had known I was going to live this long, I’d have taken better care of myself."

- Mickey Mantle

"Somebody once asked me if I ever went up to the plate trying to hit a home run. I said, 'Sure, every time.'"

- Mickey Mantle

"If I knew I was going to live this long, I'd have taken better care of myself."

- Mickey Mantle

"During my 18 years, I came to bat almost 10,000 times. I struck out about 1,700 times and walked maybe 1,800 times. You figure a ballplayer will average about 500 at-bats a season. That means I played 7 years without ever hitting the ball."

- Mickey Mantle

"My dad taught me to switch-hit. He and my grandfather, who was left-handed, pitched to me everyday after school in the back yard. I batted lefty against my dad and righty against my granddad."

- Mickey Mantle