Anyone can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a dad, and that's why I call you dad, because you are so special to me. You taught me the game and you taught me how to play it right.
Humbled by the fact that never in a million years would I ever thought that I would be on the same stage with all these great Hall of Famers and enshrined to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
The owner of the New York Yankees, Mr. George Steinbrenner who I had the greatest respect for, I want to thank him for giving me the opportunity to win that special ring in 1996.
I felt that I'd rather be lucky than good. That's the aspect I kept bringing to baseball. The more superstitions I had, the better off I'd have of finding more luck.
In life, so many things are taken for granted, but one thing I can honestly say is that I took every day, enjoyed the game of putting on that uniform and playing the great game of baseball.
This journey started about 42 years ago in a little town of Brunswick, Georgia.
I have a message for the young kids. Life is about obstacles, endeavors in life are not to be overlooked.
Rod Carew told me once that for those that know you, no explanation is necessary, and for those that don't know you, none is possible. That's the philosophy I live by.
Looking back on those days and little leaguer, the Hall of Fame is not even a blinking star, but through baseball travels and moving up the ladder, that star begins to flicker.