Al Leiter
Al Leiter
Alois "Al" Terry Leiteris a former Major League Baseball left-handed starting pitcher. Leiter pitched 19 seasons in the Major Leagues for New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays, Florida Marlins, and New York Mets. He is now a studio analyst for MLB Network and a color commentator for the YES Network and Fox Sports Florida...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionBaseball Player
Date of Birth23 October 1965
CityToms River, NJ
CountryUnited States of America
I think Joe's thing is going to be he's going to be a very Type-A kind of guy that's going to have it all covered, ... He's going to be well prepared. As a player, especially as a starting pitcher, you want your club as a whole to always feel that this game is the most important game tonight. Not only in rhetoric, but also preparation.
Announcers don't do enough of the cat-and-mouse strategy and all the work that goes into it. You watch a broadcast and guys get the pitches wrong.
He was a rock star. The little bit of attention other guys or I would usually get would suddenly be zero. He'd be miserable but we'd be left alone.
He is a guy modern players can relate to and respect because he actually played at the major-league level. He will understand the ups and downs of a major-league player and know when the time is appropriate to jump on someone and when to give a pat on the back.
The guys on his team are going to know that the manager at the end of the bench has done a lot of homework on the opposing team and should translate into many wins,
Believe me, I saw my numbers last year. I'm grateful to be on the team. I know I can help.
Who knows after this is up what happens.
It feels good to be able to go out on your own terms. I love the game very much, but when you were a certain type of player for a few years, being a front-end starter, that's the way I still think I can pitch. But the body tells you no. It feels right. Family, kids, I'm constantly being asked when I'm coming home.
Having been part of a few playoffs, this definitely has that feeling.
For seven years, I was in this fishbowl with this intensity, with all the stuff that went on with the Mets.
Tom and Shirley were like Julie McCoy on the Love Boat. We'd go to their room every night for a cocktail party before dinner.
We didn't get it done, ... That was a big surprise and a feeling of shock.
For me, I found working with Rick fascinating. I want as much data as I can get -- then break it down and decide what I want to use.
It's just wrong. He's a good guy. Anybody who thinks that doesn't know him. If you sit with him, hang out, go to lunch with him, you can't think that. He's really fun to be around.