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.

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.

It takes a lot of dedication to quit smoking, and whether you give up for good on your first try or have to give it a couple of tries - just keep swinging at it and you will succeed.

Look for the seams (on a knuckleball) and then hit in-between them.

I found out early in life that I could hit a baseball farther than most players and that's what I tried to do.

I spent twenty-two seasons playing professional baseball. Naturally, success in that field is measured by batting averages, number of home runs and RBIs, fielding averages, ERAs and other statistics. Fame, notoriety and the bright lights fade quickly. To me, true success in life would be to develop both physically and spiritually to our fullest and to endure to the end!

I was set to go to Oregon to play college baseball and football.