George’s greatest hits (quotes!)

I don’t think that anybody should be suspended for life for anything, other than murder. How is it helping someone to say, ‘You’re done forever, your life’s over’?

I don’t want to be in the Hall of Fame. I don’t think owners should be.

I haven’t always done a good job, and I haven’t always been successful – but I know that I have tried.

I haven’t always made the right decisions.

I think about the next season right away.

I was often misquoted. I was supportive of my managers, even though they all may not think so.

I will never have a heart attack. I give them.

I’m really 95 percent Mr. Rogers, and only 5 percent Oscar the Grouch.’

In the end, I’ll put my good acts up against those of anybody in this country. Anybody.

Is it in the best interest of baseball to sell beer in the ninth inning? Probably not. The rule has got to be more clearly defined. And then some process should be set up where the judge is not also the appeals judge.

Let’s not talk punishment.

Owning the Yankees is like owning the Mona Lisa.

People keep coming up to me and asking, ‘How does it feel to be banned for life?’ Banned for life. I wasn’t banned for life. There was never a word of suspension, probation or ban in that agreement. It was never meant to be part of it.

Ruth was probably the greatest athlete to perform in any sport. Never has there been anybody like him.

We plan absentee ownership as far as running the Yankees is concerned.

Winning is the most important thing in my life, after breathing. Breathing first, winning next.

You shouldn’t have any betting in the locker room at all, whether it’s baseball or it’s horses. You can’t beat the horses. You can’t beat any kind of gambling because they have the odds.

Buster Olney has a nice recap:

Chris says:

July 13, 2010 at 4:27 pm

I often say we’ve been spoiled having the likes of Jeter and Rivera on our favorite team. What I think might get overlooked is how spoiled we are as Yankee fans to have had George Steinbrenner as our favorite team’s owner. Yes, the Yankees have the market and the financial resources to compete no matter who owned the team. And yes, every owner wants to win badly (even the cheapskate owners of certain smaller market clubs). What made George different was that he set the bar incredibly high. The Yankees don’t celebrate division titles or even American League titles. They celebrate World Series titles. As a fan, I want my favorite team’s owner to have that kind of expectation. There’s no rebuilding, no taking a step back to take two forward. THAT is what spoiled us, and created in us that sense of championship entitlement that so endears us to the fans of other teams (LOL).

I live in western NY, and I root for the Sabres (though not the Bills). Sure, Golisano and Wilson want to win. And sure, our market handicaps them to some degree. Green Bay and Pittsburgh also have small markets, but their owners have brought home titles in the past 20 years. Wilson lacks the Steinbrenner drive. Hockey’s a different animal than either MLB or the NFL, but you never see the Sabres ownership just ‘go for it’. Not this year, not even before Drury and Briere left town. Folks, we as fans are spoiled. The Mets and the Dodgers and the Cubs have similar market advantages and don’t have anywhere near the recent success to show for it. We are spoiled.