I kept thinking, 'this must be the coolest job - I'd like to be a professional baseball player.' They were getting paid to play a game, and what a cool lifestyle that was.

A lot of people think I had such a rosy career, but I wanted to identify that one of the things that helps you have a long career is learning how to deal with adversity, how to get past it. Once I learned how to get through that, others things didn't seem so hard.

I have goals and ambitions, and I see myself as a lifelong baseball student. I have certain philosophies that I'd like to test at some point at the big league level. The job of manager appeals to me, a coach appeals to me, at a different time frame.

I think Nick Markakis is a perennial All-Star, and nobody knows about him. I think people are learning about how good he is.

I had a tough childhood after my father died when I was five, and I had a very difficult stepfather. I want to give my children what I didn't have - a good role model.

Thank goodness I had a great family growing up, a great foundation. But I will say my faith, my parents, my family, all that stuff is very, very important. And I'll say that until the day I die.

It is, of course, traditional in children's literature to get rid of the parents.

I still miss my parents every day; I adored them. And when you have no children, friends are even more important to you.