"I managed the field when I played. The other players played off me, like a quarterback. One, two, three. Fastball, breaking ball, change. [...] I set the defenses, infield and outfield, and I called the pitches. We had one rule: if you didn't follow what I said, you didn't play. [...] The catcher, Dick Dietz, would stand up. He'd look at me. I'd give the signal, then he'd crouch down and give it to the pitcher. The pitcher could turn to me and rub it off if he didn't like it. [...] When every guy came up to bat, I would set up a defense for that hitter and I would give one sign to the catcher. If I called for a fastball, it didn't mean the pitcher was going to throw all fastballs. That meant, Make this guy hit a fastball. Let him see a breaking ball, but make him hit a fastball. Then you set the defense according to how he pitches. With Gaylord or Marichal, if they say, "I'm going to make him hit a fastball," they make him hit a fastball. If I got a pitcher to play with me, 90 per cent of the time we could catch that ball. We all played together. Infield, outfield, together."
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As quoted in "Say Hey, He's the One Who Called the Shots" by Scott Ostler, in The Los Angeles Times (March 13, 1989), Pt. III, pp. 1, 7
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Willie_Mays
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Willie Mays
Willie Howard Mays, Jr. (May 6, 1931 – June 18, 2024) was a Major League Baseball player for 22 seasons, starting his career with the Giants in New York, remaining with the team during their relocation to San Francisco, and then ending his career with the New York Mets.
32 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Willie Mays →
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