Opening Day Ought to be a National Holiday, But Since it Isn't...

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The San Francisco Giants in the early 1970s had a scappy third baseman named Al Gallagher. He wasn't much of a ballplayer and only hung around for four years, but he sure had the right perspective about the game.

His immortal words: "God, my family, and basball. The only problem -- once baseball season begins, I change the order around a bit."

Then, of course, there's Harry Caray's ever-timely observation:

"What does a mamma bear and the pill have in common with the World Series? No cubs."

Here's some other classics:

"A hot dog at the ballpark is better than a steak at the Ritz."

--Humphrey Bogart

"I'm convinced that every boy, in his heart, would rather steal second base than an automobile."

--Tom Clark

"Good pitching will beat good hitting every time, and vice versa."

--Bob Veale

"I've come to the conclusion that the two most important things in life are good friends and a good bullpen."

--Bob Lemon

"There have been only two geniuses in the world. Willie Mays and Willie Shakespeare."

--Tullulah Bankhead

"I don't know why people like the home run so much. A home run is over as soon as it starts. The triple is the most exciting play of the game. A triple is like meeting a woman who excites you, spending the evening talking and getting more excited, then taking her home. It drags on and so. You're never sure how it's going to turn out."

--George Foster

"Ninety feet between home plate and first base may be the closet man has ever come to perfection."

--Red Smith

"Baseball, it is said, is only a game. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in the ground."

--George Will

And finally, this lovely gem from A. Bartlett Giamatti:

"It breaks you heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone."