In his book, “Hurdle-isms: Wit and Wisdom from a Lifetime in Baseball,” former Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle details 25 phrases he has used over the years — in other words, Hurdle-isms.
He said people “pause … and chuckle” when they hear No. 11:
“There are two kinds of people in this world: those who are humble and those who are about to be.”
Hurdle said it has personal meaning to him.
“We all can relate to maybe that time when we were younger or when we thought we were invincible,” he said. “We had a lot of answers. We had it all going on. All of a sudden, something changes and we don’t have anything going on.
“I don’t think I ever got so full of myself that I thought I was untouchable, but I definitely got full enough of myself that I thought I was pretty special. That doesn’t have a good shelf life, either. That spoils after a while.
“I’ve learned humility the hard way sometimes, as a player definitely, as a coach definitely, as a manager. I’ve learned that off the field through two failed marriages and the fact that I’m a recovering alcoholic. Humility has become a major staple of my life the past 26 years where it wasn’t in the top 10 probably in my earlier years.”
