Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
Some of the best memories of my career have been with 'Sunday Night Baseball' and I will miss my time with our amazing crew, who have been like family.
I think we mixed a lot more curveballs than normal because they were either going after my drop or laying off of it and that's normally my go-to (pitch).
I'd had colleagues tell me, 'You should be calling games.' But to actually have a producer call me and say, 'We want you in the booth,' I was like, What?
The whole sexiness thing-I don't know if I'm comfortable with that. But it has helped the sport grow. I think it changes how people see women's athletics.
I try to squeeze in a workout whenever I can, even if it's doing squats with my 7-month-old in the kitchen or jumping on the trampoline with my 5-year-old.
Seeing women on television was very important to me. It opened my eyes to the possibilities of women's sports. It showed me what I could do and who I could be.
For softball, we need the Olympics. For young girls dreaming of that Olympic dream, that's where it's at, and that's where it all started in '96 for our sport.
Having a father as a football and a baseball coach, I grew up around college baseball players, college football players, like, I just knew sports my whole life.
If people criticize me because they don't like how I break down one of Giancarlo Stanton's at-bats, OK. If they criticize me because I'm a woman, that's not OK.
My husband actually quit his job as a civil engineer so that he could travel, so we could be together as a family while I played professionally, which was crazy.
I try not to think about it as much when I'm working, it's more just doing my job, but I realize I have more of a responsibility than probably your everyday analyst.
You're not going to get off the couch and be at some amazing fast pace or burn crazy amounts of calories, but you have to start somewhere Eventually, you'll get there.
But I wasn't getting in my pace, staying within myself, I was getting a little rushed. So I think I finally took a couple deep breaths and let myself get my timing back.
You're not going to get off the couch and be at some amazing fast pace or burn crazy amounts of calories, but you have to start somewhere... Eventually, you'll get there.
If I'm saying something with an intelligent background, then at least it is creating conversation. Whether that conversation is people agreeing or disagreeing, I'm happy.
And my dad drilled it in my head, you know, 'If you want it bad enough, and you're willing to make the sacrifices, you can do it. But first you have to believe in yourself.
I never realized how hurtful people can be. They hate me so much for being a female in a men's sport. And I'm just like, 'Really? It's 2016, people. Women can do anything.'
And my dad drilled it in my head, you know, 'If you want it bad enough, and you're willing to make the sacrifices, you can do it. But first you have to believe in yourself'.
The beauty of a game like softball is you're failing every day. You might have a .300 batting average, but you're still failing seven out of 10 times. But you're still good.
There have been so many pivotal moments throughout my career, and I look back and say I really craved big moments - when your heart's pounding and everything is on the line.
I don't care about Joe Schmo with two Twitter followers saying bad things to me, but if the guy I'm sitting next to on the telecast thinks that way, that matters a lot to me.
I didn't really get into boys until my junior year of high school, when I had my first boyfriend. But for the most part I was always playing sports, so I was too busy for them!
I didn't bring my headphones, I'd watched the two movies they had played and I was just like, 'Can we please find a donor that wants to give us a private jet? This is not Okay.'
From what I hear, it's a normal thing to feel guilty as a mother, especially when trying to fill the needs of a newborn along with maintaining what you had with your first child.
I've had moments where I realize my body isn't going to withstand many more seasons, but I am very satisfied with my career and I am trying not to look at retirement as a sad thing.
Embrace the fact that you are different, that your differences are what's going to make you great and your true friends are the ones who are going to love you for those differences.
My life has been centered around sports. It is where I have met my closest friends and shaped the values that have made me a successful athlete, student and role model for young people.
And they know I didn't hold expectations for them like I do for myself. But I also tell them I'm not going to lower the expectations I do have for them because we're playing Division II.
The athletes are still out competing the same as a Division I team, and I think we've done a good job of creating an atmosphere where they're responsible for their actions and their play.
A macho attitude is totally to my advantage. Guys try to hit it 400 feet out of the park, but in softball you have to use a short, quick swing. Big, huge swings equal big, huge strikeouts.
We're a role-reversal family in every way possible. And I love that our country has evolved to that. It doesn't matter who makes money, as long as something is rolling in and you're happy.
My parents were born and raised in Iowa and my two brothers were born in Iowa before my family moved to California where I was born so I still really feel like I have those Midwestern roots.
Growing up, I looked up to major league baseball players, and now these young women have amazing, incredible women all across the board, from swimming to gymnastics to softball to basketball.
Instead of just being the person that's like: 'Gosh, that's cool that people are doing stuff and good luck. Do you need me to write a check? I can do that,' I've always just been very hands-on.
It's always about wanting to one-up myself from the day before. There's never an absolute 100% perfect performance, but going out and striving for that perfect performance is what keeps me going.
I think this is a sport where we can really challenge all of ourselves as baseball fans, as baseball players, even the casual viewers. It's just good to think, What can we do that hasn't been done?
I love to run. I was challenged to run the New York marathon four months after having my youngest son, and since running isn't a big part of softball, the thought of a marathon was a stretch for me.
Doubt is what I see with a lot of women, we doubt ourselves. Whether it's because we think we're too fat or ugly or not smart enough, our gender puts ourselves down. But we need to own exactly who we are.
I've gotten a lot of comments about how I look and I can't help but think, Is anyone listening to what I'm saying? If I were a guy, no one would be saying, 'Wow, look at those pants' or 'Look at those legs.'
There is nothing better than to make it to the College World Series. All of the extra reps in the weight room, all of the early morning practices, and all the hard work spent the entire year makes it worth it.
I've learned to not forecast anything beyond the year, because when I went to Stanford, I originally wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon. So it's just hilarious to look back at all of the things I wanted to do.
The attention I get has been great. It has opened so many doors for me. It's nice that people are accepting beautiful women as athletes. It's encouraging to girls that muscles don't mean you can't be beautiful.
Stanford opened up a whole different perspective for me. I learned how to take my own passions and apply them to so many different topics, to open up the way I saw things and own the things that made me unique.
A miracle is really the only way to describe motherhood and giving birth. It's unbelievable how God has made us women and babies to endure and be able to do so much. A miracle, indeed. Such an incredible blessing.
We see women on the field; we see them interviewing players, we see them coming out of the dugout. But if you put them in the booth - like, hold up, wait a second - you haven't been there before. This is different.
When we are down in Mexico, I remember with my mom's help we caught a barracuda and then we ate it that night. And that, to me, was so cool, to be able to filet it, see the whole process. Especially a fish that big.
I got my masters in social sciences and education at Stanford, and initially - this is back in 2002 or 2003 when I graduated - I wanted to move to D.C. and work on education reform, specifically with No Child Left Behind.
If anyone knows women, we like a lot of different things and we're not predictable. We definitely don't fall into a cookie-cutter mold. And I think that's one of the coolest things about us. You never know what's coming next.
I had a baseball swing my whole life. When I was growing up, everyone had a different, very specific softball swing that was very short. And I had a big stride and I had, you know, a baseball swing, and people did not like it.
My older son, when things were at the peak of attention, comes up to me and says: 'Mom, I know people are saying you're doing stuff that's cool. But I listened, and all you did was talk. It was pretty boring.' Thanks for that.