Jennie Finch Quotes

There is nothing better than to make it to the College World Series. All of the extra reps in the weight room, all of the early morning practices, and all the hard work spent the entire year makes it worth it.

A miracle is really the only way to describe motherhood and giving birth. It's unbelievable how God has made us women and babies to endure and be able to do so much. A miracle, indeed. Such an incredible blessing.

I just feel like it gets harder and harder every year with Ace getting older and time away from my husband and even family events such as birthdays and friends' weddings and things that I've always just missed out on because of softball.

Our sports [softball] is a game of failure already so my dad always says to parents who he is a pitching coach and he's been my pitching coach since I was 11 years old is if they can be the best kid on the team, let them experience that and then obviously the challenge has to come later on but you don't get that opportunity very often and confidence is such a huge part of this game and in life in general.

My husband, after two weeks of dating, asked me, if our relationship were to work out, would I be OK with our first boy being named Ace.

The best compliment I've gotten was being compared to Randy Johnson. We're both hard-throwing.

We're [Avocado League] trying to just urge people to add avocado into their diet. It's healthy and full of vitamins and minerals.

Softball has given me so much in life. It's taught me the kind of person I want to be, and given me a sweet sisterhood. It even led me to my husband.

When I was 12, I had a coach tell me I would never be a championship pitcher. That devastated me. I was crushed.

Looking back, I've learned the most from the bad coaches, really, how not to act, how not to coach, how not to treat people. So I always say no matter what situations you're faced with, how bad it is, you can always walk away and learn. You can always rise above it.

I had the vision of creating my own camp to make sure I was teaching the campers what I wanted. Plus I picked other players that were good on the field and off so we could be great role models for these girls to look up to. I hope to inspire others and encourage them to go after their dreams.

I do my job on the mound and then do what I can at the plate, always working on helping the team anyway I can.

I may be wearing makeup, but I can throw a fastball by you at the same time.

I mean, I love winning, but losing is a much more intense feeling.

When you train six to seven hours a day to be the best in your sport, you don't want that to be overlooked. I don't train for my looks.

I can't tell you how much I respect all the single parents out there doing it all solo.

I try to not be too hard on myself regarding my diet. I've always been a workout-to-eat kind of a girl. I like to eat, to say the least.

And my dad drilled it in my head, you know, 'If you want it bad enough, and you're willing to make the sacrifices, you can do it. But first you have to believe in yourself'.

It is one thing to play for your university. It is another to play for your country.

I really like Dontrelle Willis' pitch; he's animated on the mound and is fun to watch - he gets into the game emotionally.

My goal is to never lose. That may not be realistic, but I'm going to try.

It is incredible how far women have come and women in sports have come.

Throwing a ball is not natural, whether it's overhand or underhand.

You're not going to get off the couch and be at some amazing fast pace or burn crazy amounts of calories, but you have to start somewhere Eventually, you'll get there.

I think that when young players really see their game rise next level, it's when practices are like competition and there's no separation there. Of course, there are adrenaline and the butterflies; you don't have that so much in practice. You want to fake yourself out and try to get them there because you want to be as close to that game mentality as you can when you step on that field every single day whether it's practice or in your backyard or down the street with your dad.

I didn't really get into boys until my junior year of high school, when I had my first boyfriend. But for the most part I was always playing sports, so I was too busy for them!

A macho attitude is totally to my advantage. Guys try to hit it 400 feet out of the park, but in softball you have to use a short, quick swing. Big, huge swings equal big, huge strikeouts.

My parents were born and raised in Iowa and my two brothers were born in Iowa before my family moved to California where I was born so I still really feel like I have those Midwestern roots.

The attention I get has been great. It has opened so many doors for me. It's nice that people are accepting beautiful women as athletes. It's encouraging to girls that muscles don't mean you can't be beautiful.

I love to run. I was challenged to run the New York marathon four months after having my youngest son, and since running isn't a big part of softball, the thought of a marathon was a stretch for me.

For softball, we need the Olympics. For young girls dreaming of that Olympic dream, that's where it's at, and that's where it all started in '96 for our sport.