Nelson Briles on Roberto Clemente

“Clemente’s death made a tremendous difference, because he carried a big load by producing consistently. Everything other guys used to do was gravy. They were the icing on the cake. Their runs didn’t count in a situation; they just put the game out of reach. This year, those guys could not be the icing. They mean the game. The pressure is on them to produce in key situations time after time after time. That is a far greater mental discipline than having to produce when it doesn’t count.”

“Roberto used to say, "People pay to see me perform. If I go out there 75 percent, I’m not giving them the performance they paid to see." What Roberto didn’t understand was that his 75 percent was better than other guys’ 100 percent.”