Ben Zobrist
Outfield to infield is the most jarring because in the outfield, you have much more time to throw.
You want to be comfortable, but it's also good to stay on your toes, especially in the midst of a long season.
When I move to second after playing right field, I feel like my action has gotten too deliberate, and I have to switch back into that quicker, boom-boom infield mode.
When you get moved around, it can be jarring, but it helps to fine-tune your focus in the middle of the season, when other guys are getting a little lackadaisical.
Wiffle ball was my first experience hitting left-handed.
I'm not the most powerful. I'm not the fastest. I don't have the best arm. I don't have any of that, but put it all together and do the little details well, and you're going to be a very productive player.
I was never the star of my team, not even in my small town.
There were always kids better than me. Because of that, I had to learn to be a role player and do my part.
I love second base.
I've always loved the infield, because I came up as an infielder.
What I need as a player is just to get at-bats, I think.
Out in the field, I feel like I'm flexible enough to where I'm comfortable at different positions, wherever they want to put me.
I might have a great game hitting, but if I'm not having a great game fielding, if I feel like I let a guy get an extra base that I could have stopped, that's something I've got to do better, got to get better at.
I did the utility thing at first out of necessity to find a place on the team.
In the minor leagues, previous to 2008, I took a lot of pitches. I prided myself on on-base percentage. I made sure that I made the pitcher work.
One of my best friends, James Miller, managed to find the only Cubs hat that is all red.
Anytime you put your mind on the results, you lose something in the moment.
I played a lot of right field with Tampa.
We've got to win a championship and bring a World Series trophy back to Chicago.
I know what I need to do to prepare myself, and I try to do the best I can to take care of my body and prolong my peak years as a baseball player.
As I get older, I just need to continue to make sure I'm staying in peak shape and taking care of my body the best I can.
I just try to focus on one step at a time, what I have to do or what the team has to do to get here.
I just try to be the player I am.
You don't get a chance to go to the playoffs and World Series very often, but to be able to experience it with the people you love most in the world is really fun.
I'm a manager's player, in a way, because he can use me in a lot of different ways, and I'm willing to do that.
I spent so many years shuffled around. I'm used to it and can deal with it.
My favorite day is relaxing at home with family and friends.
When I'm at the plate, I'm not thinking about what I'm trying to do with the bat - I'm thinking about what the pitcher is trying to do with the ball.
If you're free of mechanical thoughts and free of knowing that your body and bat are going to be in the right position at the right time, you can freely focus on the ball. It's a great feeling.
I can't take 200 hacks in the cage before the game. Not because I'll get tired, but because I'll hurt myself! I can't do that. I might get injured.
I felt like in Tampa Bay a lot of people thought we were overachieving.
You just have to keep grinding.
You're not going to hit a bunch of three-run homers every game.
I'm not a cleanup hitter. I'm just batting fourth.
Sometimes, you just feel like you're just surviving for parts of the season.
I'm consistently making adjustments. You're going to have to do that in the postseason, too.
The one thing is the more I play second base, the more I can work on the intricate movements of that position.
I am a student of the game.
I want to try and get better in every facet of the game.
The more I spend at one position, the more I can dive into those details.
It's important to set a tone and get some momentum.
We don't even think about it out there. We just focus on doing our job. The ball is the same baseball, the game is the same game. We're going to just keep trying to do our jobs.
When I left Tampa Bay, I felt like if my career ended at that point, I'd be okay.
I love baseball history, and Wrigley Field is as good as it gets when it comes to that.
You just keep working and try to have quality at-bats.
I can tell there are times when my body's getting tired and I just need to take a day here or there and make sure I'm healthy.
I model my life after my Lord and Master Jesus Christ and his life. He has called me into God's family and I am a representative for him so I just try to be obedient to what He asks me to do.Collection: Jesus
Everything you do is measured by stats and it is difficult to keep your identity as a person out of the game. It can swallow you whole if you let yourself be engulfed by your statistics.Collection: Games
It is natural for me to ignore autograph seekers, but God wants me to share my testimony card with them and be loving. That power and initiative comes from him.Collection: Cards