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I'd rather play in front of a full house than an empty crowd.

Especially when you play at home, you need a good atmosphere behind you.

The crowds can be very loud, especially when you're playing in the evening.

You don't know what a rough crowd is. If all I have to do is go make people laugh, that's nothing. Let me tell you what a tough crowd is. A tough crowd is going to a morning service and you got six people there and you gotta pat your house payment. That's a tough crowd.

Some people play very, very well just so they won't get embarrassed.

I don't think enough players channel the energy of the crowd. If it's done properly, and you don't let anger overwhelm and distract you, it's like a shot of adrenaline in the arm, and it gets the crowd pumped up.

There is a special sensation in getting good wood on the ball and driving a double down the left-field line as the crowd in the ballpark rises to its feet and cheers. But, I also remember how much fun I had as a skinny barefoot kid hitting a tennis ball with a broomstick on a quiet, dusty street in Panama.

Fans feel they know me, so they want me to be on-the-spot funny, and it's hard to fulfil their expectations.