Quotes By Rafael Palmeiro

I still feel like I can play defense at first base at a very high level.

But I think mainly, you know, just up in the East Coast, it's where it all originated. You know, Philadelphia. It goes back to the beginning. So, you know, fans have a lot of history, and they love their teams up here.

Well, you know, I left Cuba as a kid when I was 6 years old back in 1971.

I respect the Hall of Fame, and if they think that I'm worthy enough, I would be very honored. And if they don't, I gave it all that I had to this game.

I don't think that - you know, I'm sure that there's guys that are doing it, because I'm sure in every sport there's players who want to get the edge. But I think that it's been blown overly - way more than guys are using it in our game.

To snap my fingers and let it go away. Even if it takes the 3,000th hit with it, just let it all go away.

I wish that they had the freedoms like the Japanese and the Koreans and the Mexicans and everybody else that has that freedom to come over here and play the game, because I know Cuba has a very strong baseball history.

You just want to be able to have a nice career and make a living at it.

I wish that they could have more freedoms to be able to come and play. I know that the only way that they can get out is by, you know, defecting to another country or whatever, or getting on a boat.

You know, my family stood for something that they believed in, and I wasn't about to turn my back on them.

Three thousand, it's just a number. It's just a game.

My parents didn't agree with what was going on, you know, with the communists coming in, Fidel Castro. I didn't see the reason why I needed to go back there and be a part of that exhibition.

I don't see myself as someone that brings a lot of luggage.

You set your goals to a point where they're attainable, but far enough away that you have to really go get them. And every year I push my goals a little bit farther away, and every year I work a little bit harder to get them.

Baseball gets better for whatever reason.

I don't know who took what. That is pretty private with an individual.

I don't think anybody ever saw anybody taking anything.

You know, when you first come up, and you get called up to the big leagues, all you want to do is just, you just want to have a career, a nice career. You want to make a living at it.

There's a lot of history in Boston and a lot of history, obviously, in New York with all the championships.

I said what I said before Congress because I meant every word of it.

When I testified in front of Congress, I know that I was testifying under oath and I told the truth.

I love baseball, and the door remains open.

It was a hard time. It was something I would love to erase from my memory.

Yes, but I - you know, it's been such a long time, I'm sure that I've got cousins and uncles that I've never met before, you know, that I've left behind.

I'm not going to say what was being used in the clubhouse; whatever happens in the clubhouse stays in the clubhouse. But it was not like it was in your face.

The tragedy of all of this is that it happened to me and it shouldn't have happened. It ruined my life and my career. That's the tragedy of this.

I'm not sure. I did not set it up. I have never done a polygraph test in my life. I didn't know what to expect. I was just there to answer the questions that they put in front of me.

But as far as I'm concerned, I can still play defense.

They try to say this era was a tainted era. But so many great players played in the last 15 to 20 years. This is going to be the best era in the history of the game in my opinion.

My life was on the line here and my career and everything I worked for, it was hanging by a thread.