140 Baseball Quotes For the Inner Child

By Halle Homel | Published April 3, 2023

We all know that baseball is America’s pastime.

Baseball quotes come from far and wide – from players, coaches, and fans – but the one clear thing is how impactful the game can be on everyone involved.

There’s a lot of nostalgia involved when people talk about the game, but the one thing that’s for sure is that whether you’re playing or watching, baseball is a life-changing experience.

What can we learn from baseball?

Many people compare baseball to life.

It’s a game of teamwork, motivation, and love.

It’s a timeless cultural icon, and people will be learning perseverance, respect, and team building from it for years to come.

These baseball quotes are here to bring the love of baseball into your life, make you feel like a kid again, and inspire you to keep running, hitting, and throwing, no matter what stage of life you’re in.

For more inspiration, and a few laughs, check out these famous Yogi Berra quotes as well.

If you enjoy this collection, check out our inspirational quotes category page.

Baseball Quotes to Inspire Your Life

1. “Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good, too.” – Yogi Berra

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2. “You could be a kid for as long as you want when you play baseball.” -Cal Ripken Jr.

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3. “Baseball is a man maker.” – Al Spalding

baseball quotes about Baseball is a man maker

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4. “The great thing about baseball is there’s a crisis every day.” – Gabe Paul

baseball quotes about baseball is there's a crisis every day

5. “If you have a bad day in baseball, and start thinking about it, you will have 10 more.” – Sammy Sosa

6. “Baseball is more than a game. It’s like life played out on a field.” – Juliana Hatfield

7. “Baseball is like driving, it’s the one who gets home safely that counts.” -Tommy Lasorda

8. “I stand by my belief that individual performances are the most important part of baseball.” – Earl Weaver

9. “In baseball, there’s always the next day.” – Ryne Sandberg

10. “Baseball is more than a game to me, it’s a religion.” – Bill Klem

Baseball Quotes to motivate you

11. “Baseball is about talent, hard work, and strategy. But at the deepest level, it’s about love, integrity, and respect.” – Pat Gillick

12. “There are three things you can do in a baseball game. You can win, or you can lose, or it can rain.” – Casey Stengel

13. “This is a great thing that’s happening in baseball. We don’t know if it will ever happen again.” – Mark McGwire

14. “I didn’t understand anything about playing baseball. I started playing, and it was enjoyable. Most of my life, I played with older people on my team, in my league. I learned a lot about life. Everyday in my life, I learned something new from somebody.” – Ernie Banks

15. “Every day is a new opportunity. You can build on yesterday’s success or put its failures behind and start over again. That’s the way life is, with a new game every day, and that’s the way baseball is.” – Bob Feller

16. “One of the beautiful things about baseball is that every once in a while you come into a situation where you want to, and where you have to, reach down and prove something.” – Nolan Ryan

17. “Doctors tell me I have the body of a thirty year old. I know I have the brain of a fifteen year old. If you’ve got both, you can play baseball.” – Pete Rose

18. “What you have to remember is that baseball isn’t a week or a month but a season—and a season is a long time.” – Chuck Tanner

19. “You can’t be afraid to make errors! You can’t be afraid to be naked before the crowd, because no one can ever master the game of baseball, or conquer it. You can only challenge it.” – Lou Brock

20. “Baseball gives every American boy a chance to excel, not just to be as good as someone else but to be better than someone else. This is the nature of man and the name of the game.” – Ted Williams

21. “I’m going to do my best to help the team play hard and help the team win… I’m just coming to play baseball.” – Asdrubal Cabrera

22. “Baseball is a lot like life. It’s day-to-day existence, full of ups and downs. You make the most of your opportunities in baseball as you do in life.” -Ernie Harwell

23. “Baseball is a universe as large as life itself, and therefore all things in life, whether good or bad, whether tragic or comic, fall within its domain.” -Paul Auster

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Baseball Quotes for the Love of the Game

24. “Baseball is ninety percent mental and the other half is physical.” – Yogi Berra

25. “There are only five things you can do in baseball—run, throw, catch, hit, and hit with power.” – Leo Durocher

26. “To me, baseball has always been a reflection of life. Like life, it adjusts. It survives everything.” – Willie Stargell

27. “Playing baseball for a living is like having a license to steal.” – Pete Rose

28. “I think about baseball when I wake up in the morning. I think about it all day and I dream about it at night. The only time I don’t think about it is when I’m playing it.” – Carl Yastrzemski

29. “Baseball is like church. Many attend, few understand.” – Leo Durocher

30. “Baseball can be slow in many ways. The action starts with when the pitcher delivers the ball. But the action really starts when the crack of the bat happens.” – Cal Ripken Jr.

31. “There’s nothing to it. Baseball isn’t that tough to play.” – Red Schoendienst

32. “You have to have a lot of little boy in you to play baseball for a living.” -Roy Campanella

33. “In this game of baseball, you live by the sword and die by it. You hit and get hit. Remember that.” – Alvin Dark

34. “People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.” – Rogers Hornsby

35. “In baseball, you don’t know nothing.” – Yogi Berra

36. “I chose baseball because to me baseball is the best game of all.” – Dave Winfield

37. “Baseball is one of the most beautiful games. It is. It is a very Zen-like game.” – Jim Jarmusch

38. “Baseball hasn’t forgotten me. I go to a lot of old-timers games and I haven’t lost a thing. I sit in the bullpen and let people throw things at me. Just like old times.” -Bob Uecker

39. “I owe baseball. Baseball don’t owe me a damn thing.” – Pete Rose

Baseball Quotes About Teamwork

40. “There are three types of baseball players: those who make it happen, those who watch it happen, and those who wonder what happens.” – Tommy Lasorda

41. “Baseball is not a sport you can achieve individually.” – Curt Schilling

42. “The key to winning baseball games is pitching, fundamentals, and three run homers.” – Earl Weaver

43. “There is no room in baseball for discrimination. It is our national pastime and a game for all.” – Lou Gehrig

44. “Baseball is a simple game. If you have good players and if you keep them in the right frame of mind then the manager is a success.” – Sparky Anderson

45. “No baseball pitcher would be worth a darn without a catcher who could handle the hot fastball.” – Casey Stengel

46. “My feeling is that when you’re managing a baseball team, you have to pick the right people to play and then pray a lot.” – Robin Roberts

47. “Baseball is a team game but, at the same time, it’s a very lonely game: unlike in soccer or basketball, where players roam around, in baseball everyone has their little plot of the field to tend. When the action comes to you, the spotlight is on you but no one can help you.” – Chad Harbach

48. “Baseball is an individual game, but it should never be a personal game.”- Pete Rose

49. “Baseball is like a poker game. Nobody wants to quit when he’s losing; nobody wants to quit when you’re ahead.” – Jackie Robinson

50. “In baseball, you can’t kill the clock. You’ve got to give the other man his chance. That’s why this is the greatest game.” – Earl Weaver

51. “Baseball is a team sport played by individuals for themselves.” – Joe Torre

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More baseball quotes and sayings

52. “Baseball really is a glorified game of throw and catch. And if you don’t have guys who throw it really well, you can’t compete for long.” – Tucker Elliot

53. “Baseball may be a religion full of magic, cosmic truth, and the fundamental ontological riddles of our time, but it’s also a job.” – Bull Durham

54. “Baseball is the only thing I can give you that might be worth something in your lives.” – Michael Dault

55. “Baseball is a good thing. Always was, always will be.” – Stephen King

56. “Worrying about things you can’t control is a waste both on the baseball field and in life.” – Tom Swyers

57. “Baseball is also a game of balance.” – Stephen King

58. “Baseball is to our everyday experience what poetry often is to common speech — a slightly elevated and concentrated form.” – Thomas Boswell

59. “Baseball has so much history and tradition. You can respect it, or you can exploit it for profit, but it’s still being made all over the place, all the time.” – Michael Lewis

60. “The great thing about baseball is, I’ve heard a hundred statements beginning, ‘The great thing about baseball is.” – Jon Sindell

61. “Real ballplayers pass the stuffing by rolling it up in a ball and batting it across the table with a turkey leg.” – Tom Swyers

Baseball quotes by famous baseball players

61. “Baseball was, is and always will be to me the best game in the world.” – Babe Ruth

62. “I’m not an athlete, I’m a baseball player.” – John Kruk

63. “That’s the beautiful thing about baseball. You can be any size and be successful.” – Andrew Benintendi

64. “When baseball is no longer fun, it’s no longer a game.” – Joe DiMaggio

65. “Baseball is not what I love. It’s my job.” – Eric Davis

66. “I always dreamed of making it in baseball, but life has moved pretty quickly for me.” – Mike Trout

67. “A catcher must want to catch. He must make up his mind that it isn’t the terrible job it is painted, and that he isn’t going to say every day, ‘Why, oh why with so many other positions in baseball did I take up this one.’” – Bill Dickey

68. “When you are away from the game and busy with other areas, you realize that the world does not revolve around baseball.” – Cal Ripken Jr.

69. “A baseball game is simply a nervous breakdown divided into nine innings.” – Earl Wilson

70. “Defense to me is the key to playing baseball.” – Willie Mays

Additional baseball quotes

71. “It’s fun; baseball is fun.” – Yogi Berra

72. “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.” – Babe Ruth

73. “The game of baseball isn’t over until it’s over.” – Yogi Berra

74. “Baseball is a universal language. Catch the ball, throw the ball, hit the ball.” – Pete Rose

75. “Never say never in this game because crazy stuff can happen.” – Mark Buehrle

76. “The formula for success is simple: practice and concentration then more practice and more concentration.” – Babe Didrikson Zaharias

77. “You can’t think and hit at the same time.” – Yogi Berra

78. “Why does everybody stand up and sing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” when they’re already there?” – Larry Anderson

79. “Baseball is a hard game to play, so no matter what uniform you wear, you have something in common with the guy in the other dugout: We all fail. The game is built that way.” – David Ortiz

80. “One of the great things about baseball is that it can be played almost anywhere.” – Josh Leventhal

Baseball quotes for the fans

81. “It was all I lived for, to play baseball.” -Mickey Mantle

82. “I see great things in baseball. It’s our game – the American game.” –Walt Whitman

83. “Bunting is usually a waste of time. The – generally, yeah, I mean, if you think about it, bunt is the only play in baseball that both sides applaud. The – if the home team bunts, you get a base. The home team applauds because they get an out, and the other team applauds because they get a base. So what does that tell you?” -Bill James

84. “Baseball is a game of inches.” -Branch Rickey

85. “A baseball swing is a very finely tuned instrument. It is repetition, and more repetition, then a little more after that.” -Reggie Jackson

86. “There’s nothing like Opening Day. There’s nothing like the start of a new season.” -George Brett

87. “The great thing about baseball is the causality is easy to determine and it always falls on the shoulders of one person. So there is absolute responsibility. That’s why baseball is psychologically the cruelest sport and why it really requires psychological resources to play baseball – because you have to learn to live with failure.” -Michael Mandelbaum

88. “The triple is the most exciting play in baseball. Home runs win a lot of games, but I never understood why fans are so obsessed with them.” –Hank Aaron

89. “Baseball is dull only to dull minds.” -Red Barber

90. “God knows I gave my best in baseball at all times and no man on earth can truthfully judge me otherwise.” -Shoeless Joe Jackson

Motivational Baseball Quotes

91. “Life is like a baseball game. When you think a fastball is coming, you gotta be ready to hit the curve” – Jaja Q

92. “I played my best every day. You never know when someone may be seeing you play for the first time.” – Joe DiMaggio

93. “Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.” – Babe Ruth

94. “You may not think you’re going to make it. You may want to quit. But if you keep your eye on the ball, you can accomplish anything.” – Hank Aaron

95. “Baseball is such a tough game, it really humbles you at times, you just have to try not to get too high or too low.” – Chase Utley

96. “You can’t get real happy or real depressed when you play baseball. Baseball is a great sport in that it offers a player a lot of opportunities for atonement.” – Mike Piazza

97. “Close don’t count in baseball. Close only counts in horseshoes and grenades.” – Frank Robinson

98. “When you’ve learned to believe in yourself, there’s no telling how good a player you can be. That’s because you have the mental edge.” – Rod Karew

99. “If my uniform doesn’t get dirty, I haven’t done anything in the baseball game.” – Rickey Henderson

100. “I don’t fraternize with players when it’s time to hit. I’m preparing for the game. It’s the most important time of the day.” – Albert Belle

Baseball Quotes For Baseball Moms

101. “Confidence is so big in baseball. This is one thing that makes a naturally good baseball player great, and moms are oftentimes the reason kids have confidence in themselves.” – Nick Rotola

102. “When they love the game, watching them play is a completely fulfilling feeling, and being a baseball mom gives you something to look forward to.” – Stef Daniel

103. “As a baseball mom, you have to ensure your children persevere, making sure that they don’t become quitters in life when things don’t go their way.” – Stef Daniel

104.“Moms have always been a major part of a child’s baseball experience.” – John Pinkman

105. “Being a baseball mom seems to come naturally during springtime and gives each of us a new opportunity to sprout deeper roots with our children that are soiled with respect, tolerance, sportsmanship, and pure and honest love for the game.” – Stef Daniel

106. “Being a baseball mom means that you allow the coach to work his magic, and even if you don’t agree with it, you hold your tongue, so your pessimism doesn’t wear off on your child.” – Stef Daniel

107.“Baseball moms can set the tone for much of the kid’s enjoyment when playing baseball.” – Stef Daniel

108. “Life as a baseball or softball mom isn’t easy, but most would say it’s worth it, even in the heart of All-Stars season.” – Brittany Gaines

109. “It is vital to understand that being a baseball mom doesn’t mean living through your child or undermining their efforts or abilities.” – Stef Daniel

110. “Life for a baseball or softball mom can easily mean spending between four and six days a week at the field.” – Brittany Gaines

Inspiring Baseball Quotes

111. “Love the game of baseball and baseball will love you.” — Babe Ruth

112. “If it wasn’t for baseball, I’d be in either the penitentiary or the cemetery.” — Babe Ruth

113. “Baseball is the greatest game in the world and deserves the best you can give it.” — Babe Ruth

114. “Little League baseball is a very good thing because it keeps the parents off the streets.” — Yogi Berra

115. “I think I was the best baseball player I ever saw.” — Willie Mays

116. “If there are any curses left in baseball, they are all on the north side of Chicago.” — Tucker Elliot

117. “Well, baseball was my whole life. Nothing’s ever been as fun as baseball.” — Mickey Mantle

119. “If you’re going to play at all, you’re out to win. Baseball, board games, Jeopardy, I hate to lose.” — Derek Jeter

120. “There are only two seasons – winter and baseball.” — Bill Veeck

Baseball Quotes To Play With Passion

121. “I can honestly say it took two full years for me to get over the fact that I was no longer a baseball player.” — Nolan Ryan

122. “I could have played baseball another year, but I would have been playing for the money, and baseball deserves better than that.” — George Brett

123. “It took me 17 years to get 3,000 hits in baseball. It took one afternoon on the golf course.” — Hank Aaron

124. “No matter what I talk about, I always get back to baseball.” — Connie Mack

125. “I’d walk through hell in a gasoline suit to play baseball.” — Pete Rose

126. “Whoever wants to know the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball.” — Jacques Barzun

127. “Baseball was 100% of my life.” — Ty Cobb

128. “To succeed in baseball, as in life, you must make adjustments.” — Ken Griffey Jr.

129. “Baseball is the only field of endeavor where a man can succeed 3 times out of 10 and be considered a good performer.” — Ted Williams

130. “I watch a lot of baseball on the radio.” — Gerald Ford

Baseball Quotes From Passionate Players

131. “I went through baseball as a player to be named later.” ― Joe Garagiola

132. “It never ceases to amaze me how many of baseball’s wounds are self-inflicted.” ― Bill Veeck

133. “I’ve got a wife, four kids, a business, and a baseball career.” ― Curt Schilling

134. “How can you not be romantic about baseball?” ― Billy Beane

135. “I ain’t ever had a job, I just always played baseball.” ― Satchel Paige

136. “The strongest thing that baseball has going for it today are its yesterdays.” ― Lawrence Ritter

137. “In baseball, I was always in control of everything until I let the ball go.” ― Curt Schilling

138. “I never ride just to ride. I ride to catch a fox. I play baseball to make the team.” ― Sargent Shriver

139. “When you step into the batter’s box, have nothing on your mind except baseball.” ― Pete Rose

140. “A baseball game is twice as much fun if you’re seeing it on the company’s time.” ― William Feather

Did you enjoy these baseball quotes?

Baseball is a sport that’s impacted more lives than just those who have played it.

The baseball quotes above encapsulate what the sport feels like for everyone involved.

Oftentimes, when someone plays baseball, they’ve played it their entire life.

It becomes a part of them just as a partner, pet, or child would.

Baseball is more than just America’s pastime—it’s life, and it’s symbolic of everything that’s significant, from teamwork to the importance of recreation.

How can baseball change a person’s life?

Whether you’re a player, fan, or coach, baseball can impact your life for the better, bringing your inner child out, no matter how many years have passed.