I threw a lot of balls and walked a lot of batters. Not something I'm proud of, but something I learned from.

I expect to win. I've never been content with anything I've ever done.

I've refined my mechanics, refined my pitches. I've gotten more confidence, and I've gotten more determination. I've got a better idea what I'm doing out there.

Maybe I've lost a little, but I think everyone does over time. People have been writing that I'm getting old every year, and eventually they're going to be right. There's nobody in this game that's doing the same things they once did in the peak years of their career.

When you win, you want more of it. You can't win enough.

I learned a lot from not having success, and realizing when you do have success, how hard it is to maintain it, and what you have to do to maintain it.

The word 'potential' used to hang over me like a cloud.

I'm tired of people questioning me because of my age. If you looked at my numbers and watched me throw and covered my birthdate, would age be an issue?

I threw a lot of balls and walked a lot of batters. Not something I'm proud of, but something I learned from.

I had a long conversation with Steve Carlton. He told me that on the days he pitched, he felt it was his responsibility to make everyone around him better, to lift his teammates. That's what I try to do.

When you can throw 97 miles an hour and put the ball over the plate anytime you want, it's fun.

I listened to all types of music, and obviously when I got to Seattle I was very much aware of the music scene there.

I would think flying would be pretty cool. You would be able to fly away from all your enemies and get where you're going much faster. But being invisible? You probably wouldn't use that for the good of man.

It's hard to mix with a crowd when you're walking down the hallway and everybody else is a foot shorter. I remember hanging out with my friends, like at the mall, and thinking people were staring at me and talking about me. It made me turn inside myself. I became more shy and quiet.

People who say they're not nervous - I would be kind of curious to see how successful you are at what you do and how long you've done it. And what is success in your eyes? Have you separated yourself from everyone else in that craft? Or have you settled amongst the pack?

Tiger Woods, Larry Bird, Wayne Gretzky, a pitcher just before a game, I would imagine they all have nervous energy. But as you perform, the nervous energy dissipates and you start to relax and you start to do what you do best.

Work hard. And have patience. Because no matter who you are, you're going to get hurt in your career and you have to be patient to get through the injuries.

Were at the crossroads where we need to win to stay alive.

Change and growth is so painful. But it's so necessary for us to evolve.

Free time is the enemy of progress.

A breeding sow spends most of her life in a tiny cage. It's usually about seven feet long and two feet wide. She cannot turn around. She cannot scratch herself. She must urinate and defecate where she stands. Simply put, I believe she is tortured, day in and day out.

I find it hard to act other than the way I feel.

I'm not afraid to have no make-up on and no hair. I just want to be stripped back.

I am such a bad liar. I would like to lie, though.

When you write about faith, people will be upset with you no matter what. I've heard from readers who were disgusted with the depiction of monotheistic religion. I've also heard from readers who were upset because my portrayal of faith did not adhere to their specific doctrines. Fortunately, I have high risk tolerance.

I don't believe there is any point in holding on to too many things in life.

My interests are not really with television, per se.

Through style, you can communicate to the world who you are and what you stand for.

There is something deep within us that sobs at endings. Why, God, does everything have to end? Why does all nature grow old? Why do spring and summer have to go?

I would rather talk to a face than a camera.

We should learn to take genuine pride in a job well done and not expect praise for one simply carried out.

I'm continuing to produce and will start a new record soon, as well.

The wages of sin is death

America's moved so much of its production and manufacturing offshore, it's become a nation of middlemen.

I'll be the first one to admit that if I have conclusions based on faulty premises, then let me know about that, and I'll be the first one to change it.

What separates two people most profoundly is a different sense and degree of cleanliness.

Theres small choice in rotten apples.

It should be said upfront that I totally dig people who work in bookstores and libraries. They love books, and I love books, and that is all I really need to know. If they are friendly to me, then we are clearly soul mates.

If you feel uncomfortable on stage, you can very easily descend into a sort of abyss, convinced you're the worst actor ever, that you're a disgrace to the profession, that you're a disgrace to yourself. It's an awful feeling.

There are so many people that use "following your dreams" as an excuse to not work. When in reality, following your dreams, successfully, is nothing but work.

My charity is in the business of helping firefighters in any way that we can. For instance, after 9/11 we were the second-fastest charity to raise and distribute money to the widows and surviving family members of the 343 firefighters who died that day.

I never wanted to be one of those 'Where are they now?' kids.