"A curve ball is not something you can pick up overnight. It took my years to perfect mine." Source: From Ghetto to Glory (Bob Gibson)

"A great catch (this one was by Curt Flood) is like watching girls go by; the last one you see is always the prettiest." Source: Sports Illustrated (June 1, 1964)

"Have you ever thrown a ball 100 miles an hour? Everything hurts. Even your ass hurts. I see pictures of my face and say, 'Holy shit', but that's the strain you feel when you throw. I had one of those faces you look at it, man, and say, 'Man he's an ass-hole.' Could be, depends on if you pissed me off or not."

"I guess I was never much in awe of anybody. I think you have to have that attitude if you're going to go far in this game." Source: Late Innings (Roger Angell)

"I heard he (John Milner) could hit." (Reply to Hank Aaron when asked why he hit Milner)

"In a world filled with hate, prejudice, and protest, I find that I too am filled with hate, prejudice, and protest."

"It is not something I earned or acquired or bought (the ability to pitch). It is a gift. It is something that was given to me - just like the color of my skin." Source: From Ghetto to Glory (Bob Gibson)

"I owe the public just one thing - a good performance."

"I've played a couple of hundred games of tic-tac-toe with my little daughter and she hasn't beaten me yet. I've always had to win. I've got to win." Source: The Summer Game (Roger Angell)

"My pitching philosophy is simple. I believe in getting the ball over the plate and not walking a lot of men." Source: From Ghetto to Glory (Bob Gibson)

"Rules or no rules, pitchers are going to throw spitters. It's a matter of survival." Source: From Ghetto to Glory (Bob Gibson)

"The two most important things in life: good friends and a strong bullpen."

"You've got to have an attitude if your going to go far in this game."

"When I gave up a grand slam to Pete LaCock, I knew it was time to quit."

"When I knocked a guy down, there was no second part to the story."

"Why do I have to be an example for your kid? You be an example for your own kid."

"Barry Bonds? I'll tell you what, if he hit a home run off (Bob) Gibson or (Don) Drysdale and stood and admired it, they'd knock that earring out of his ear the next time up." - National League Umpire Doug Harvey

"Bob Gibson is the luckiest pitcher in baseball. He is always pitching when the other team doesn't score any runs." - Tim McCarver

"Bob Gibson pitches as though he's double parked." - Vin Scully

"He (Bob Gibson) couldn't pitch today because they wouldn't let him. The way he'd throw inside, he'd be kicked out of the game in the first inning, along with guys like Don Drysdale and Sandy Koufax." - Red Schoendienst

"He (Bob Gibson) pitched the last three innings (of the 1964 World Series) on guts." - Manager Johnny Keane

"I asked all my pitchers to wear a choker around their necks and also to warm up an extra five minutes (due to the weather at Candlestick Park). I told them that I didn't care how loose they were, and instructed them to warm up seventeen minutes if they normally would warm up twelve minutes. One very cold night, Bob Gibson of the Cardinals came in and made me look like a monkey. In those days, they didn't have to go to the bullpen to warm up, they could loosen up around home plate. Gibson came out and started warming up, and after about twenty pitches said to heck with it, and walked into the dugout. For the first six innings of the game, he went out there and dinked around with slow junk, and I'll be a son-of-a-gun if he doesn't end up the last three innings getting loose, and ends up beating us! Did my pitchers ever give me a going-over!" - Larry Jansen

"I caught Bob Gibson there Triple-A Omaha) and he was terrific. He was great. You could tell he was gonna be big. He had great stuff, was always around the plate, a great competitor, everything you've ever heard about him - and more." - Nick Testa

National Baseball Hall of Fame Plaque Inscription

FIVE TIME 20-GAME WINNER. HIS 3,117
STRIKEOUTS MADE HIM ONLY 2ND PITCHER TO
REACH 3,000. FIRST TO FAN 200 OR MORE IN
A SEASON 9 TIMES. SET N.L. MARK WITH 1.12
ERA IN 1968, HURLING 13 SHUTOUTS. TWICE
WORLD SERIES MVP, SETTING RECORDS FOR
CONSECUTIVE VICTORIES (7), CONSECUTIVE
COMPLETE GAMES (8), AND STRIKEOUTS IN A
GAME (17) AND A SERIES (35). VOTED N.L.
MVP IN 1968 AND CY YOUNG AWARD WINNER IN
1968 AND 1970. WON NINE GOLD GLOVE AWARDS.

"When it came to winning 'the big game,' there were few pitchers who compared with Bob Gibson. As outstanding as the St. Louis Cardinals' scowling right-hander was at other times, he was at his most ferocious when the spotlight shined brightest." - Larry Schwartz (ESPN.com)