Baseball is a ballet without music. Drama without words.
Ernie HarwellRead
Baseball is a tongue-tied kid from Georgia growing up to be an announcer and praising the Lord for showing him the way to Cooperstown. This is a game for America. Still a game for America, this baseball!
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote celebrates baseball as an integral part of American culture and personal identity.
Ernie Harwell uses this quote to illustrate the journey of a young boy from Georgia who finds his calling in baseball, ultimately becoming an announcer and expressing gratitude for the opportunities that have come his way. It highlights the profound connection between the sport and American identity, depicting baseball as more than just a game—it's a significant part of the nation's fabric and personal stories.
Themes
BaseballAmericaIdentityCultureJourney
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech at a community event about sports' role in shaping youth identities.
More from Ernie Harwell
All quotes →The best thing anyone can do is be himself. Everyone was made different by God, and that's the way it should be. And if I were a writer or an announcer starting out, I don't think I'd imitate anybody. I'd try to be whatever I am.
Ernie HarwellRead
Baseball is just a game, as simple as a ball and bat, yet as complex as the American spirit it symbolizes. A sport, a business and sometimes almost even a religion.
Ernie HarwellRead
Why the fairy tale of Willie Mays making a brilliant World Series catch, and then dashing off to play stickball in the street with his teenage pals. That’s baseball. So is the husky voice of a doomed Lou Gehrig saying, ‘I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth.’
Ernie HarwellRead
Everybody in the minor leagues - if you're a player, an announcer, whatever - wants to be in the big leagues.
Ernie HarwellRead
Baseball is a lot like life. It's a day-to-day existence, full of ups and downs. You make the most of your opportunities in baseball as you do in life.
Ernie HarwellRead
Similar quotes
Swimming is normal for me. I'm relaxed. I'm comfortable, and I know my surroundings. It's my home.
Michael PhelpsRead
Golf has become so manicured, so perfect. The greens, the fairways. I don't like golf carts. I like walking. Some clubs won't let you in unless you have a caddy and a cart.
Robert RedfordRead
Golf is deceptively simple and endlessly complicated; it satisfies the soul and frustrates the intellect. It is at the same time rewarding and maddening - and it is without a doubt the greatest game mankind has ever invented.
Arnold PalmerRead
The essence of football was blocking, tackling, and execution based on timing, rhythm and deception.
Knute RockneRead
We know that hockey is where we live, where we can best meet and overcome pain and wrong and death. Life is just a place where we spend time between games.
Fred SheroRead
Conversation is the blood of baseball. It flows through the game, an invigorating system of anecdotes. Ballplayers are tale tellers who have polished their malarkey and winnowed their wisdom for years.
Thomas BoswellRead