I'm hoping someday that some kid, black or white, will hit more home runs than myself. Whoever it is, I'd be pulling for him.

[Not only will he break Hank Aaron 's record of 755 career home runs, he will blow it away. No less an authority than Aaron himself called him] the greatest ballplayer that has ever played the game -- bar none. ... I'm serious about this. I've watched him play and, quite naturally, people are going to start assuming that he's doing certain things. Let's forget about that. This guy is in a world of his own. They try to compare Babe Ruth and say Babe Ruth was this. There's no comparison.

I'm hoping someday that some kid, black or white, will hit more home runs than myself. Whoever it is, I'd be pulling for him.

The thing I like about baseball is that it's one-on-one. You stand up there alone, and if you make a mistake, it's your mistake. If you hit a home run, it's your home run.

I hope those players in Cuba will have a chance to compete in it. I hope politics don't get involved in this thing like it does everything else.

I am very proud to be an American. This country has so much potential, I'd just like to see things better, or whatever, and I think it will be.