And when I retired trust me not only did Nolan Ryan but the entire Ryan family had withdrawals from baseball. And it was tough.

I had the pleasure as Robin said to live a childhood dream as many young Americans and Puerto Rican children live that play youth baseball. And I feel honored and very thankful for that opportunity.

And I found out the other part of it is that I found out and in my desire to life successfully that baseball fit very well into my life. It's been a great teacher trainer mentor and you'll see what I mean in the next few minutes that I have to speak.

I'm a big sports guy - golf tennis baseball basketball snowboarding - and I love games.

I started playing baseball and soccer. Those were my sports on the streets and in school when I was growing up. I didn't even start playing basketball until I was 14.

One reason outfielders don't have stronger arms might be they don't practice as much as we did. Most teams today don't take outfield practice. Another reason is baseball has to compete with other sports now - basketball football soccer - for the better athletes that might have more skills and stronger arms.

I think everybody has something that takes them away or makes them happier. To some people it's baseball or sports or knitting or the movies.

People who think they know what they are talking about when they talk about baseball include the announcers and all of the sports press - no matter how much evidence you present them to the contrary they will continue to think that what they think is right.

I tried to get a baseball movie made a couple of years ago and I don't think it didn't happen because I was a woman but because sports movie don't sell internationally.

I think we have our sports within our own culture that are huge with baseball football basketball and hockey. Those are the sports in America that we grow up with and soccer isn't really there yet.

I also developed an interest in sports and played in informal games at a nearby school yard where the neighborhood children met to play touch football baseball basketball and occasionally ice hockey.

Baseball was the darling of all sports back then.

I grew up playing sports football basketball baseball everything and acting was such a different environment and different world for me.

In America we have three major sports - baseball football and basketball. They get the most coverage. Then there's things like golf which mop up most of what is left. But track and field? We are way at the bottom of the totem pole.

As a kid I was fascinated with sports and I loved sports more than anything else. The first books I read were about sports like books about Baseball Joe as one baseball hero was called.

I was a ballplayer but only for a limited time. I grew up playing in Wisconsin. It's a very sports-centric part of the country that I grew up in and I played a lot of sports but baseball first and foremost. I played through high school. I was a middle-infielder.

That's what Major League Baseball's steroid scandal was all about the hidden harm in competitive sports that sends the wrong message to the young.

Ethnic prejudice has no place in sports and baseball must recognize that truth if it is to maintain stature as a national game.

Baseball is only a game a game of inches and a lot of luck. During a time of all-out war sports are very insignificant.

Sport is a wonderful metaphor for life. Of all the sports that I played - skiing baseball fishing - there is no greater example than golf because you're playing against yourself and nature.

When I was a kid I was always an athlete. I played a lot of sports. I played football basketball baseball and soccer.

Now I know you expected me to say that well I just kick back in the rocking chair fished a little bit listened to Willie Nelson tapes and watched old baseball games on the Classic Sports network. And tell you the truth I have done that for maybe about five total minutes.

I was showing early symptoms of becoming a professional baseball man. I was lying to the press.

Baseball is a public trust. Players turn over owners turn over and certain commissioners turn over. But baseball goes on.