"As a first baseman, hitting home runs is what's expected of me. But I don't really try to hit home runs."

"Defense is something I take pride in. I feel it's just as important as offense."

"Growing up, you're in the backyard and every time you're playing, you're imagining you're in the World Series, Game 7, 3-2 count. And then you're actually out there in Yankee Stadium trying to win it, and it's amazing."

"I felt I was good in basketball but I wasn't a blue-chip prospect."

"If they watch me play, people will say I'm not into it or whatever. That's okay. I kind of like it. People don't know how much work I'm putting into it. They don't need to know."

"If you write in the paper 'Lee stinks,' that's not gong to affect me. I'll just laugh. And if you write 'Derrek Lee is the best player in the league,' that won't affect me either. I'll laugh."

"I'm a quiet guy. I'm not going to come in here yelling or screaming. That's not me. I just try to play the game as hard as I can, and if people want to follow that lead, great."

"I miss basketball every now and then."

"I'm not doing anything different-just hitting the ball well, seeing the ball well, and having good at-bats pretty much every time up there. I feel like I'm taking a good approach, and I'm sticking to my approach."

"It's not like I'm an introvert. You get to know me, I can have a conversation with you. But in front of the media, I'm probably more of a quiet guy."

"They should have RBIs for defensive plays."

"You just get better with age. You learn yourself and the league. I'm starting to understand more about hitting every year."

"Derrek Lee is one of the finest young men I have ever met. He's a classy young man and a credit to his game." - Jeffrey Loria

He has a very consistent personality. I've seen a lot of guys' performances dictate a change in personality. He's not one of them." - Dusty Baker

"He's a big ol' man with big ol' shoulders." - Dusty Baker

"He's a good defender as well as a good fielder. He's very athletic, a tremendous first baseman, has power, can hit for average and has great plate coverage. He could be the next superstar in our game." - Kevin Towers

"He's been unbelievable. It's indescribable how many clutch hits and big plays he's made for us." - Glendon Rusch

"He's like a shortstop playing first base. I love him." - Ozzie Guillen

"He's one of those guys who does things very easily. One of those natural guys, like Ken Griffey, like Barry Bonds." - Kevin Towers

"How do you put a ceiling on a guy that has his ability? You've got to let it evolve into what it's going to be." - Dusty Baker

"In high school, he fell in love with basketball. But it didn't last long." - Leon Lee

"This guy is Gold Glove, he's 6-6 and he can reach from here to Tucson." - Dusty Baker

"This man is a great, great ballplayer. I don't see anybody at first base better than that kid. Grace, Galarraga, Mattingly-I've never seen anyone better than this kid." - Ozzie Guillen

"We thought we were getting a player who was entering the peak years of his career. We thought he would bloom into a big offensive hitter in Chicago." - Jim Hendry

"We're eyeball-to-eyeball with greatness." - Rick Morrissey

"What he's doing offensively is incredible. Defensively and around the clubhouse, he's such a great guy. He continuously picks guys up on the defensive end." - Ryan Dempster