Top 50 Willie Stargell Quotes (2025 Update)

1. “Life is one big transition.”

— Willie Stargell

2. “Helping someone is what life is all about.”

— Willie Stargell

3. “Be honest and work hard to get what you want. Don’t take shortcuts; you only cheat yourself in the long run. Success is not measured by money or fame, but by how you feel about your own goals and accomplishments and the time and effort you put into them.”

— Willie Stargell

4. “Don’t be sharp or flat; just be natural.”

— Willie Stargell

5. “That’s where the future lies, in the youth of today.”

— Willie Stargell

6. “I love September, especially when we’re in it.”

— Willie Stargell

7. “To be successful, one must take chances.”

— Willie Stargell

8. “It’s supposed to be fun, the man says ‘Play Ball’ not ‘Work Ball’ you know.”

— Willie Stargell

9. “When they start the game, they don’t yell, “Work ball.” They say, “Play ball.””

— Willie Stargell

10. “They give you a round bat and they throw you a round ball. And they tell you to hit it square.”

— Willie Stargell

11. “I eventually became proud of my strikeouts, because each one represented another learning experience.”

— Willie Stargell

12. “I flailed my arm in a throwing motion before I could even walk.”

— Willie Stargell

13. “Trying to hit Sandy Koufax was like trying to drink coffee with a fork.”

— Willie Stargell

14. “I’m a God-fearing man who worships with my heart and with my life.”

— Willie Stargell

15. “Throwing a knuckleball for a strike is like throwing a butterfly with hiccups across the street into your neighbor’s mailbox.”

— Willie Stargell

16. “Pittsburgh isn’t fancy, but it is real. It’s a working town and money doesn’t come easy. I feel as much a part of this city as the cobblestone streets and the steel mills, people in this town expect an honest day’s work, and I’ve it to them for a long, long time.”

— Willie Stargell

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

— Willie Stargell

18. “There’s nothing I value more than the closeness of friends and family, a smile as I pass someone on the street.”

— Willie Stargell

19. “People like us are afraid to leave ball. What else is there to do? When baseball has been your whole life, you can’t think about a future without it, so you hang on as long as you can.”

— Willie Stargell

20. “I never search for a reason why – I have faith in the Lord’s purpose.”

— Willie Stargell

21. “Vietnam helped me realize who the true heroes really are in this world. It’s not the home-run hitters.”

— Willie Stargell

22. “When we make a mistake, it becomes front-page news. We don’t need any reporter telling us how badly we played.”

— Willie Stargell

23. “I found myself in a race with Mother Nature to play as much baseball as I could before she forced me to stop.”

— Willie Stargell

24. “I’ve always been a slave to my heart.”

— Willie Stargell

25. “The bat is gone, but the smile remains.”

— Willie Stargell

26. “The Giants were a good team, but our biggest enemy was said to be Candlestick Park.”

— Willie Stargell

27. “Oakland revolved around Forbes Field. Nothing in the city could match that atmosphere.”

— Willie Stargell

28. “Simple pleasures were all the pleasures that I knew as a child.”

— Willie Stargell

29. “A World Series trophy is a wonderful thing to behold.”

— Willie Stargell

30. “My first job after my retirement from baseball was as a narrator for the Eastman Philharmonica.”

— Willie Stargell

31. “I’m always amazed when a pitcher becomes angry at a hitter for hitting a home run off him. When I strike out, I don’t get angry at the pitcher, I get angry at myself. I would think that if a pitcher threw up a home run ball, he should be angry at himself.”

— Willie Stargell

32. “We all wore a 21 patch that one season as a silent tribute to our deceased teammate Roberto.”

— Willie Stargell

33. “I would always reserve a special place in my heart for Pittsburgh.”

— Willie Stargell

34. “Love soothes wounds, while hatred and violence deepen them.”

— Willie Stargell

35. “I wasn’t out drinking and abusing my body. I simply loved to go out and dance.”

— Willie Stargell

36. “I was the most powerful left-handed hitter in the Alameda area.”

— Willie Stargell

37. “To middle-class parents, the project team may have seemed unfit for children, but it was exactly what I needed.”

— Willie Stargell

38. “Judgment traps you within the limitations of your comparisons. It inhibits freedom.”

— Willie Stargell

39. “I owe a large part of my success to Joe Brown, who helped me both as a player and a person.”

— Willie Stargell

40. “Baseball for me was instinctive, born within me, given to me as a gift from God.”

— Willie Stargell

41. “Human beings are pampered by the Lord. Their real tests don’t come until later in life.”

— Willie Stargell

42. “Reporters often forget that athletes are human beings.”

— Willie Stargell

43. “You only have a few years to play this game and you can’t play it if you’re all tied up in knots.”

— Willie Stargell

44. “Playing baseball was my dream, and no amount of money could sway my opinion.”

— Willie Stargell

45. “I never did allow anything to keep me from my kids. They’re the most important part of my life.”

— Willie Stargell

46. “Unfortunately, inner feelings and potential are often stunted by our parents, relatives or peers.”

— Willie Stargell

47. “I was always a self-proclaimed poor slider.”

— Willie Stargell

48. “I’m proud of the fact that I’m the only player to hit a ball completely out of Dodger Stadium.”

— Willie Stargell

49. “We devote our entire lives to becoming good ball players. We take batting practice until our hands bleed.”

— Willie Stargell

50. “I always said that when it was time to retire, I would know it, and I would just tip my hat to the crowds.”

— Willie Stargell