There ought to be some other means of reckoning quality in this the best and loveliest of games; the scoreboard is an ass. – Neville Cardus, A Fourth Innings with Cardus, 1981, referring to cricket

During my 18 years I came to bat almost 10,000 times. I struck out about 1,700 times and walked maybe 1,800 times. You figure a ballplayer will average about 500 at bats a season. That means I played seven years without ever hitting the ball. – Mickey Mantle, 1970

Rooting for the Yankees is like rooting for the house in blackjack. – Adam Morrow, quoted in Bill Simmons, “Letters from the Nation,” 20 October 2003