Johnny Damon Quotes (197 Quotes)

I've been excited the whole time. It's something we have to take great pride in, and hopefully the guys will show up and be ready to play. I know I am.

During the game, you hear that garbage, but you know what They're booing me because I stir their emotions. They loved me, and now they hate me because I'm wearing a Yankee jersey. That's actually a huge compliment, because I matter in this game. I matter to those guys. They wouldn't be booing me if I was a nobody.

Everyone, when they talk about our team they talk about your offense. Our pitchers are capable of going out there and throwing good games.

It's frustrating any time you lose, but to lose in that fashion, it's on the offense. Our pitching staff did a great job, we just couldn't help them out.

Wake is one of our most reliable starters and he has been over the years. It's a good thing there is no break, but he's going to be very sore.

I'm looking for five plus (years). And I'm looking for a lot (of money).

I'm glad Bernie Williams is back here. He's one of my favorites. He's going to get some playing time out there.

We are rolling pretty good. Our offense seems to have found something. This is the type of lineup where anybody can step up and hurt you.

I understand how the world works, how the fans work. They may have booed me, but they appreciated the way I played the game.

So many times, you see guys getting hurt whether they're just fooling around or not playing very hard. For me, I have to keep up with the routine, play like every game may be my last.

They're a team that's going to be very scary. If their pitching stays healthy, they're going to be very, very good.

Hopefully, they cheer. If not, I understand because I'm wearing the Yankees uniform.

It's pretty magical. The fact is, you go out there and play hard and the fans always respect that, they cheer you. They welcome the Red Sox into their homes every single night. You just don't do that. Boston fans, from kids to grandparents and housewives, we're a part of their family. That they welcome us like that is pretty awesome.

We are definitely bridging the gap, ... It could get ugly.

I think the guys were pretty much teasing him saying he should have did that last year. He's the best. I thought he threw the ball well. It was good to see the best right out the chute. I know exactly what I need to work on. Get my timing down. It was a good day.

I'm excited about playing in front of the fans who, over the years, have come to know me as a player on another team. Now they get to see me for 81 days at Yankee Stadium, they get to see how I approach the game, my love for the game and the way I'm going to help this team win.

I'm excited for the country. I'm excited for my father, who fought. I'm excited for this game of baseball. This game is a lot more than the steroid scandals, it's a lot more than juiced-ball theories. It's stood the test of time, and this is just another way to help it along.

It's just an exhibition game in spring training. I think by now everybody understands what happened. I'm not going to go crazy over one game in March when we play them 19 times during the year.

We'd be kidding ourselves if we didn't think this weekend was going to dictate the outcome of the season. We know it's going to come down to this weekend. It's the master plan. God's way. Yankees-Red Sox. We know it's going to come down to it. We just need to try to win some games before that series starts.

We thought he had the first two guys struck out. Unfortunately, things didn't go our way.

I don't think too many people give us credit because of that Dominican team. The U.S. team will be well represented.

It's weird, because we need to learn how to win these close games. We need to learn how to push across runs. It just shows how good a pitcher can be when he's around the strike zone and doesn't walk anybody.

I think that's just part of my character. I just feel like injuries will happen if you don't play hard. That's the least I can do is always go out there and give it my all.

There's no breathing easy now, ... We're the defending champs. We have a title we're trying to defend.

It's such a great thing, it's something that needed to be done. There has been so much negative stuff going on with baseball. We need to represent our country proudly and with respect. This tournament is a playoff atmosphere, except it has people being proud of their heritage. It's awesome.

He's a guy who is always going to be associated with this team, which is why it's right that they gave him a lifetime contract,

We understand the sign, but we also understand that the U.S. is counting on us to win this tournament. Yankee fans do expect to see Jeter, A-Rod, myself and Bernie Williams there, but with the Classic going on they had to lose some players for some time.

The only way to avoid that is to go out and win. We caught a break the first time around. We know it's going to be tough.

You know, a lot of people say they didn't want to die until the Red Sox won the World Series. Well, there could be a lot of busy ambulances tomorrow.

Sad to say bye to some of the greatest fans in the world.

I'm here to play baseball. The contract stuff, that's something that may have and could have been taken care of a long time ago. But I'm out to win right now. Everybody wants to know about my contract status. All I want to know about is reaching the playoffs. That's about it.

I was thinking about cutting my hair right after the season. I knew if I came here it would be a big deal.

Seeing him a lot of times definitely helps. But he still has some overpowering stuff.

I knew when it was hit they were definitely going to be in trouble unless somebody called the ball. Those guys are so important to our team, we need them to get healthy as quick as possible.

They're going to keep me from throwing for a couple days. I felt pretty good, but I think they're going to wait until after the off-day on Tuesday. It's a temporary setback, nothing major.

I thought we'd find a way to win. It's hard to lose when you put that many men on base.

We did make a big comeback, but a loss is a loss. We competed and that was good to see because we haven't really come back at all this year.

I'm excited Boston is where I've had my greatest memories of playing baseball. To me, it's just playing baseball games. I'm looking forward to going there and getting it over with.

This place has been very good to our team. A bunch of our fans cannot get tickets in Boston. For them to come down on a weekend and take part in this, that says a lot.

We thought there was going to be a clear-cut winner and a clear-cut loser. This tiebreaking stuff - you got to go so school for it.

Everyone's excited about playing deep into October, but you can't play deep into October if you don't play well now.

It caught me by surprise. I kind of heard stories that him and Boston had agreed on a contract and what not, and I hear today that he declined and he might just take some time off. Theo is a very bright guy. I'll always wish him the best. He was always honest with me and was great for the Red Sox.

Yankees fans do expect to see Jeter, A-Rod, myself and Bernie Williams. But with this Classic going on, we had to lose some players for some time. I understand the sign, but hopefully we'll put on a showing for the U.S. team.

If we don't play well, we're not going to get to the playoffs and we won't play deep into October. It's ours to lose. There's a lot of teams fighting for spots.

Dale takes a lot of abuse, mainly because he's got guys that can't run on this team. He's in a tough situation. With me, he knows he can bring me around. But in that situation, I thought for sure he was going to stop me. ... Terrence Long has a pretty good arm. The throw was off a bit, but I know there's no way in heck I can run into John Buck. The guy's big and strong. He's able to put me in the hospital.

The guy's been amazing for them. He's a competitor. He wants the ball. He knows how to get the job done. He's not afraid of anyone. He's their MVP.

I don't know where all these anonymous sources come from. Unfortunately we're in Boston, so there's stuff being thrown out there, ... Schilling's been hurt and it's taken him time to get ready. I even said after the season, in my book, that Schilling risked his career to go out there and pitch against the Yankees. He could have been done after last year. He wanted to come back and fight again and try to get us back to where we were last year.

My teammates know that that stuff's not going to bother me. It just really doesn't. I had them prepare me before the game. I told them to start calling me every name in the book.

It's getting better and better. You know, guys are feeling more comfortable and they are not afraid to speak up and be a leader. I mean, our team, we have 25 players, we have about 25 leaders, too. So whatever someone says, people listen.

Manny is a great person. I love him, and he doesn't have a mean bone in his body. But he's been there five years, and sometimes it is too much for him.