Cobb lived off the field as though he wished to live forever. He lived on the field as though it was his last day.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
Cobb is a prick. But he sure can hit. God Almighty, that man can hit.
It hurt me a great deal. It put a lot of pressure on me because I was at a young age and the writers around here and throughout the league starting comparing me to Cobb. It put a lot of pressure on me.
I broke in with four hits, and the writers promptly declared they had seen the new Ty Cobb. It took me only a few days to correct that impression.
He really loved baseball and loved being on the field. But Mantle was lonely in a lot of ways. He had many great friends, and by all accounts was a good, generous and loyal friend. But there were a lot of people who wanted only a piece of him.
I'd rather be a good person off the field than a good baseball player on the field.
And when I retired, trust me, not only did Nolan Ryan, but the entire Ryan family had withdrawals from baseball. And it was tough.
He had decided to live forever or die in the attempt.
Cobb would have to play center field on my all time team. But where would that put Speaker? In left. If I had them both, I would certainly play them that way.
It was all I lived for, to play baseball.
At Tiger Stadium, the dugouts are so low that you walk in and hit your head on the ceiling. People would say, 'Don't feel bad. Ty Cobb did the same thing.'