SunCityCarl
Hall of Famer
Courtesy ChicagoTribune.com
The little ex-Cub who's a big hit with the Cardinals talks with Steve Rosenbloom in the St. Louis clubhouse.
Career moment? It has little to do with on-the-field stuff. My career moments have to do with me being able to go out and play and play hard for almost the whole season after losing my father in April 2001. For me, that was the biggest accomplishment I could ever have.
My best friend? My father was my best friend.
I lost a lot of people. Let's see, in '99 I lost a grandmother. In 2000, a grandmother and a father-in-law. In 2001, my father.
Being the person I am came from losing my father. Doing all the things that I did in the playoffs and the World Series came from getting that inner strength from losing my father.
I looked at being traded as you've done something in this game and this team that wants you, they know what you can do.
The plan when I got traded (to the Cubs last season) was to push them to the next level. And then I got hurt.
They (the Cardinals) were looking for a leadoff/second baseman. I was looking for a job. I guess it was a good fit.
We joke about it (his 2001 NLCS-winning hit off Cardinals reliever Steve Kline that put Arizona in the World Series). I told him thanks for putting shoes on my kids' feet and a lot of clothes on their backs. We kid about it. Now we say he can stay in the league a little bit longer because the guy he can't get out is on his team.
Wrigley has history. St. Louis always has history. They're not equal, but you can't go wrong if you play in either place.
Intense (The Cubs-Cardinals rivalry). Nine innings, or however many it takes of hard-core baseball. It's good for the fans. As players, we try not to get caught up in the emotion. But sometimes you can't help yourself.
I paid my way through school. I played in the minor leagues and would leave the last three weeks of the season to go back and get my degree.
I got a B.A. in sports management. My wife and I will start going to get our master's within the next year or two. She's going for business, I'm going for sports management. I ain't going to be playing this game forever. I need something to fall back on just in case we have to get jobs.
I played football one year because I got bored with fall baseball.
I played basketball in high school and won a dunk contest in college. I was about 5-8, 5-9, right where I am now.
I always liked basketball, but I knew I wasn't tall enough. Unless you have somebody helping you get that foot in the door in the NBA, it's kind of hard.
I like playing with anybody who's a gamer. To pinpoint one, that's kind of hard for me. But I like gamers.
That whole team (the 2001 Diamondbacks), they had a bunch of gamers. Whether they were going good or going bad, they came ready to play.
There's always naysayers. Some of us take it and use it as fuel to get us to where we want to be. Some take it personally. I don't care what people think about me as long as I play hard between the white lines and play the best that I can.
I still got to steal bases. I got to hit the ball on the ground, bunt, go from first to third. I got to do what I got to do to stay in this league. I'm not going to hit homers. I won't try.
I try not to sign the sweet spot (when he autographs baseballs) because I think it's for managers and Hall-of-Famers. They deserve it and I have that respect for the game.
Just keep going.
The little ex-Cub who's a big hit with the Cardinals talks with Steve Rosenbloom in the St. Louis clubhouse.
Career moment? It has little to do with on-the-field stuff. My career moments have to do with me being able to go out and play and play hard for almost the whole season after losing my father in April 2001. For me, that was the biggest accomplishment I could ever have.
My best friend? My father was my best friend.
I lost a lot of people. Let's see, in '99 I lost a grandmother. In 2000, a grandmother and a father-in-law. In 2001, my father.
Being the person I am came from losing my father. Doing all the things that I did in the playoffs and the World Series came from getting that inner strength from losing my father.
I looked at being traded as you've done something in this game and this team that wants you, they know what you can do.
The plan when I got traded (to the Cubs last season) was to push them to the next level. And then I got hurt.
They (the Cardinals) were looking for a leadoff/second baseman. I was looking for a job. I guess it was a good fit.
We joke about it (his 2001 NLCS-winning hit off Cardinals reliever Steve Kline that put Arizona in the World Series). I told him thanks for putting shoes on my kids' feet and a lot of clothes on their backs. We kid about it. Now we say he can stay in the league a little bit longer because the guy he can't get out is on his team.
Wrigley has history. St. Louis always has history. They're not equal, but you can't go wrong if you play in either place.
Intense (The Cubs-Cardinals rivalry). Nine innings, or however many it takes of hard-core baseball. It's good for the fans. As players, we try not to get caught up in the emotion. But sometimes you can't help yourself.
I paid my way through school. I played in the minor leagues and would leave the last three weeks of the season to go back and get my degree.
I got a B.A. in sports management. My wife and I will start going to get our master's within the next year or two. She's going for business, I'm going for sports management. I ain't going to be playing this game forever. I need something to fall back on just in case we have to get jobs.
I played football one year because I got bored with fall baseball.
I played basketball in high school and won a dunk contest in college. I was about 5-8, 5-9, right where I am now.
I always liked basketball, but I knew I wasn't tall enough. Unless you have somebody helping you get that foot in the door in the NBA, it's kind of hard.
I like playing with anybody who's a gamer. To pinpoint one, that's kind of hard for me. But I like gamers.
That whole team (the 2001 Diamondbacks), they had a bunch of gamers. Whether they were going good or going bad, they came ready to play.
There's always naysayers. Some of us take it and use it as fuel to get us to where we want to be. Some take it personally. I don't care what people think about me as long as I play hard between the white lines and play the best that I can.
I still got to steal bases. I got to hit the ball on the ground, bunt, go from first to third. I got to do what I got to do to stay in this league. I'm not going to hit homers. I won't try.
I try not to sign the sweet spot (when he autographs baseballs) because I think it's for managers and Hall-of-Famers. They deserve it and I have that respect for the game.
Just keep going.
