The key to me was the ground ball that Gonzalez booted. That’s the key to the ballgame, not Bartman. If you make that play, it’s a 3-1 game, and we’re done.
I love pressure.
I dreamed that if I was ever lucky enough to get to the World Series, I’d like to be able to play it against the Yankees. Thirty years after I first managed, I finally get a chance to go into the World Series in Yankee Stadium and beat them in six games. It was special because I grew up going to Yankee Stadium, watching the Phil Rizzutos, the Joe DiMaggios, the Bill Dickeys, all those guys.
The picture that flashes through my mind is when Beckett made that play. He tagged that guy and threw his arms in the air. That was it. The lights flashed on. I couldn’t leave my seat. I couldn’t move. Honest. I said, “I can’t believe this. We’re world’s champs.” I couldn’t believe it. I finally went out there. I thanked the good Lord for giving me one more chance.
I’m a church-going guy. I’m not a Billy Graham. I don’t preach to my guys. This is me. I go to church every day.
I felt so proud for her (1) and my family. For the first time in all our years of baseball, we finally had a chance to celebrate at the big dance. I felt more happy for them than I did for myself.
I owe baseball something. They don’t owe me anything.
When I first took this job, people said, “The old goat come out of retirement,” which I never did. I was just between jobs.
When I get to the park in Florida every morning about 9:30, I go 3-5 miles around, either walking or jogging, go in and smoke me a couple cigars, relax.
I’ll go through 8-10 cigars a day. At least.
We had holes at catcher, we had holes at first base, we had holes in right field. With the trades, he (2) plugged those holes. Look at the difference in our club from Aug. 1 on. If we had these guys June 1, there’d be no competition for the wild card. We’d have a pretty good lead.
If something gets out of line, I might file it, and when I have enough of them, the roof falls in. I think they know where I stand, and that’s the biggest thing.
My dad was a tough Irishman, a workaholic, really cared about having all the good things for his family. He died at age 59, and I think the only reason the guy died was he worked his tail off, worked so hard, 18 hours a day.
The game has changed. You’ve got agents now who, if you’re having a great year, say, “Hey, you’re 15-2, back off a little bit. Don’t take the ball every third day. We’ll get a better contract if you get a better record. Don’t matter if the club wins.”
I traded my son-in-law. (3) In that business, you have to operate with your head, not your heart.
You had to be on your toes with him. (4) You had to have Option A, Option B, Option C, Option D. You had to go through all those options before you ever made a move because you’re going to be wrong no matter which one you used.
I have an autographed ball from Sadaharu Oh and Hank Aaron. That’s kind of special.
I haven’t changed a bit. I don’t think the glamor of being a big-league manager for 14 or 15 years has put me in a position where I think I’m better than anybody. I’m just the same guy who loves to have fun.
(1): Carol, his wife of nearly 50 years.
(2): Marlins GM Larry Beinfest.
(3): Pitcher Greg Booker when McKeon was Padres GM.
(4): Late A’s owner Charlie Finley.
