Ernie Banks Quotes

The measure of a man is in the lives he’s touched.

Work? I never worked a day in my life. I always loved what I was doing, had a passion for it.

It's a great day for a ball game; let's play two!

You must try to generate happiness within yourself. If you aren't happy in one place, chances are you won't be happy anyplace.

Loyalty and friendship, which is to me the same, created all the wealth that I've ever thought I'd have.

The only way to prove that you're a good sport is to lose.

People ask me a lot about the values I got from playing for the Cubs for so many years. The value I got out of it was patience. A lot of people these days are not very patient.

Baseball reveals character; golf exposes it.

I learned from Mr. Wrigley, early in my career, that loyalty wins and it creates friendships. I saw it work for him in his business.

Spring training means flowers, people coming outdoors, sunshine, optimism and baseball. Spring training is a time to think about being young again.

The riches of the game are in the thrills, not the money.

It's a kind of philosophy of my own life, to create the energy enough to keep on going.

But it all comes down to friendship, treating people right.

Awards mean a lot, but they don't say it all. The people in baseball mean more to me than statistics.

Mr. Wrigley believed in this: Put all your eggs in one basket and watch the basket. They don't do that today. This is the old-fashioned way I'm talking about. He carried it on to his business. Do one thing and stay with it.

I was thinking (when he hit his 500th home run) about my mother and dad, about all the people in the Chicago Cubs organization that helped me and about the wonderful Chicago fans who have come out all these years to cheer me on. They've been a great inspiration to me.

When I wake up in the morning, I feel like a billionaire without paying taxes.

I like my players to be married and in debt. That's the way you motivate them.

That's a real void in my life. I see a lot of people who struggled and went to jail and the dogs were after them. I'd look them in the eyes and say, 'God almighty, I wish I'd have been there.'

It would be a lot different for me because there is a lot of information that you need to know about as a player. How pitchers are pitching you, how defenses are playing, certain situations about certain pitchers.

The Cubs are gonna shine in sixty-nine.

During my time, there might have been one pitcher or two that were top pitchers on a team. Teams that won maybe had three, but today they have a lot of depth. They have a lot of long relievers, short relievers, and the strategy is different.

I own stock, and I also insure my car with Geico.

Did you hear that? I didn't hear anything. Put that question another way.

No, I think the pitching today has more depth.