I was only a gun captain on the battleship Alabama for 34 months. People have called me a hero for that, but I'll tell you this - heroes don't come home. Survivors come home.

The soldiers that didn't come back were the heroes. It's a roll of the dice. If a bullet has your name on it, you're a hero. If you hear a bullet go by, you're a survivor.

Nobody lives forever and I've had a blessed life.

I just reared back and let them go.

Ted Williams was the greatest hitter I ever saw, but DiMaggio was the greatest all around player.

Baseball in the Navy always was much more fun than it had been in the major leagues.

Trying to sneak a fastball by Ted Williams was like trying to sneak a sunbeam by a rooster in the morning.