Satchel Paige

They said I was the greatest pitcher they ever sawI couldnt understand why they couldnt give me no justice.

My pitching philosophy is simple - keep the ball way from the bat.

How old would you be if you didn't know how old you are?

Work like you don't need the money. Love like you've never been hurt. Dance like nobody's watching.

NO MAN CAN AVOID BEING BORN AVERAGE, BUT NO MAN HAS TO STAY AVERAGE.

The only change is that baseball has turned Paige from a second class citizen to a second class immortal.

You gotta keep the ball off the fat part of the bat.

My feet ain't got nothing to do with my nickname, but when folks get it in their heads that a feller's got big feet, soon the feet start looking big.

I never threw an illegal pitch. The trouble is, once in a while I toss one that ain't never been seen by this generation.

If your stomach disputes you, lie down and pacify it with cool thoughts.

Just take the ball and throw it where you want to. Throw strikes. Home plate don't move.

I ain't ever had a job, I just always played baseball.

If you want to live a long time, don't fool with nothing old but money, nothing big but a bank roll, nothing black but a Cadillac, nothing over twenty-two years, nothing that weighs over 130. If you do, you're in trouble. 'Cause when you're getting old and your cells gettin' low, you'll need a Delco battery to boost ya.

One time I snuck a ball on with me and when I went to winding up, I threw one of them balls to first and one to second. I was so smooth I picked off both runners and fanned the batter without that ump or the other team even knowing it.

There never was a man on earth who pitched as much as me. But the more I pitched, the stronger my arm would get.

I use my single windup, my double windup, my triple windup, my hesitation windup, my no windup. I also use my step-n-pitch-it, my submariner, my sidearmer and my bat dodger. Man's got to do what he's got to do.

Smile well and often, it makes people wonder what you've been up to.

The Crawfords played everywhere, in every ballpark. And we won, won like we invented the game.