Jackie Robinson changed the game of baseball forever and in that changed the lives of all of us. Some of what Jackie Robinson had to say follows
“I’m not concerned with your liking or disliking me… All I ask is that you respect me as a human being.”
“It kills me to lose. If I’m a troublemaker, and I don’t think that my temper makes me one, then it’s because I can’t stand losing. That’s the way I am about winning, all I ever wanted to do was finish first.”
“I’ve been riding on cloud nine since the election (HOF), and I don’t think I’ll ever come down. Today, everything is complete.”
“Life is not a spectator sport. If you’re going to spend your whole life in the grandstand just watching what goes on, in my opinion you’re wasting your life.”
“Pop flies, in a sense, are just a diversion for a second baseman. Grounders are his stock trade.”
“There’s not an American in this country free until every one of us is free.”
“The right of every American to first-class citizenship is the most important issue of our time.”
“The way I figured it, I was even with baseball and baseball with me. The game had done much for me, and I had done much for it.”
“You’re going to be a great player, kid (to Mickey Mantle).”
“When he (Richard Nixon) took the oath of office, he pledged to be the president for 100% of the people, and I challenge the president to prove that he is being the president for 100% of the people.”
“Above anything else, I hate to lose.”
“A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.”
“Baseball is like a poker game. Nobody wants to quit when he’s losing; nobody wants you to quit when you’re ahead.” Source: I Never Had it Made
“But, when he (Willie Mays) was in California, whites refused to sell him a house in their community. They loved his talent, but they didn’t want him for a neighbor.” Source: I Never Had it Made
“How you played in yesterday’s game is all that counts.”
“I guess you’d call me an independent, since I’ve never identified myself with one party or another in politics. I always decide my vote by taking as careful a look as I can at the actual candidates and issues themselves, no matter what the party label.”