There may be people who have more talent than you, but there's no excuse for anyone to work harder than you do - and I believe that.

I'm not perfect; no one is perfect. Everyone makes mistakes. I think you try to learn from those mistakes.

I love it when people doubt me. It makes me work harder to prove them wrong.

Surround yourself with good people. People who are going to be honest with you and look out for your best interests.

When you put a lot of hard work into one goal and you achieve it, that's a really good feeling.

I looked up to my parents because they were very successful in what they wanted to do. I was lucky; I didn't have to look far for role models.

Your image isn't your character. Character is what you are as a person.

If you're going to play at all, you're out to win. Baseball, board games, playing Jeopardy, I hate to lose.

You gotta have fun. Regardless of how you look at it, we're playing a game. It's a business, it's our job, but I don't think you can do well unless you're having fun.

The last thing you want to do is finish playing or doing anything and wish you would have worked harder.

Walking around sometimes, I would love to just be able to watch people, see how they act. Sometimes I would love to be invisible.

God, I hope I wear this jersey forever.

My best vacation is somewhere I could hide, somewhere warm and not a lot of people around.

We just want to win. That's the bottom line. I think a lot of times people may become content with one championship or a little bit of success, but we don't really reflect on what we've done in the past. We focus on the present.

It's never over. You don't want to be in the position to be down four runs in the ninth inning, but it's not over until the last out.

I like to hit the gym early in the morning. I feel better throughout the day when I get in a workout first thing in the morning.

I wish I trusted people more. But when I meet someone, the first thing is, 'What does this person want?' And I put up a defense mechanism. But I've always been that way.

The Yankees have strict rules. You can have a mustache but no other facial hair.

When I was younger, I was always taught not to make excuses.

You don't just accidentally show up in the World Series.

What kind of influence did my parents have on my life? Well, they had the most influence. These are the people who are closest to me. My parents are very positive people. They've been supportive. They're always there.

That's how you win - pitching and defense.

My heroes, my dreams, and my future lay in Yankee Stadium. And they can't take that away from me.

I think when things linger, that's when they become a distraction. I don't want any distractions.

I've been asked to sign a forehead.

I've always had an interest in business, and my interest in business has really expanded over the years.

My office is at Yankee stadium. Yes, dreams do come true.

I'm not a hermit, but I definitely stay in a lot more than I used to. There's more attention now then there ever was. You walk down the street with someone and it's a story. It becomes national news, you know what I mean? So, I still do things, but I stay home a lot more.

I want to own a team one day. You know, that's my next goal.

You have to assume that everything you do is public knowledge. Everything. Because now everyone is a reporter. Everyone is a photographer.

I hate the treadmill. I hate it. You really don't have to be on it that long, something like 20 or 30 minutes. It's all about getting your heart rate up.

Obviously, you're known for what you do. But you still want to be known as a good person. You're a person a lot longer before and after you're a professional athlete.

You forget about it whether it was 15-2 or 3-2. It's still a loss. It doesn't matter what the score was if we win tomorrow.

I have the greatest job in the world. Only one person can have it. You have shortstops on other teams - I'm not knocking other teams - but there's only one shortstop on the Yankees.

I remember going from rookie ball to A, to double A, then to triple A. At every level it seemed like the game was faster. The bigger the situation, the more the game speeds up. That's all mental. It messes people up.

I think there's something wrong with me - I like to win in everything I do, regardless of what it is. You want to race down the street, I want to beat you. If we're playing checkers, I want to win. You beat me, it's going to bother me. I just enjoy competition.

I went to school on Senior Skip Day.

I attribute much of my success in New York to my ability to understand and avoid unnecessary distractions.

Sometimes people complicate things by thinking too much about what someone might think of what they said or did.

You know what I want to do? Wake up one weekend and not have to go anywhere and do nothing.

I've always been very cautious with what I do. You know, that started at a young age. I always had the approach or the mentality I never wanted to embarrass my parents.

Don't get me wrong; it's not like I didn't go out and have fun. But there's been a lot of players that come to New York and get caught up in the lifestyle, and before you know it, they're sent away to another team because it affected their performance.

I've been playing baseball since I was 5 or 6 years old. I've been on a schedule, pretty much, since I was in eighth, ninth grade. I look forward to not doing that.

I get nervous watching teammates. I get nervous for them. Late in the game, pressure situation, I'm nervous for them.

I always used to get in trouble for talking too much. When it was time for parent-teacher conferences, I remember that I was always embarrassed about what my parents would hear about me!

I can have fun anywhere, as long as I'm with good people. But in the offseason, I like to go somewhere warm, a nice spot in the Caribbean.

I think everyone is ticklish. You just gotta find the right spots.

The thing that means the most to me is being remembered as a Yankee, because that's what I've always wanted to be, was to be a Yankee.

I'm very, very competitive. If my grandmother asks to race me down the street, I'm going to try to beat her. And I'll probably enjoy it!

Everyone fears rejection.