I miss the guys, and I miss playing baseball. Just being able to swing the bat, or run, or dive for a ball, or slide into second.

Obviously, I think this [162 games a year four times] caused my early retirement, but I couldn't do it any other way. Just for the record, I never asked for any of the days off in my career.

It was pretty hard to actually have to say the words with my teammates, my wife and my boys there. I realized it was going to happen before that day [I announce retirement], but to have to announce it and talk about in front of a lot of people was tougher than I expected. I'm glad that feeling has kind of gone away. That sadness hasn't lingered.

Coming up through high school, coaches would tell me not to swing so hard. It's the only way I know. It just happens.

If I could even do that [playing] in a softball league, I would never miss anything about baseball.

When I was playing, my wife and kids would go on the road with me, and we would go to different lunch spots that we saw on "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives."

I'm still working out. It keeps me feeling good about things.