Baseball is like driving, it's the one who gets home safely that

In the lively and enduring words of Tommy Lasorda, the legendary manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers, there lies a wisdom that reaches beyond the diamond: “Baseball is like driving, it’s the one who gets home safely that counts.” At first, these words sound like the playful humor of a man who loved the game—but beneath their lightness beats the heart of a philosopher of perseverance. Lasorda, who lived and breathed baseball, saw in it a reflection of life itself: a journey filled with detours, obstacles, and moments of risk, where success belongs not to the one who starts fastest, but to the one who finishes well, who makes it home safely in the end.

Tommy Lasorda was no ordinary coach. A man of relentless optimism and unshakable will, he led the Dodgers with the passion of a general and the heart of a father. He understood that baseball, like life, is a game of endurance, not of instant triumph. A batter may swing a thousand times and fail, a pitcher may face defeat on one day and redemption on the next, but the ultimate measure is not in the swings or the pitches—it is in the return home, in crossing that final plate where effort becomes reward. For Lasorda, the diamond was a world in miniature, where courage, patience, and teamwork revealed the greater truths of human endeavor.

When he said that the one who “gets home safely” is the one who counts, he spoke not only of the literal goal in baseball, but of the deeper journey of life itself. Each base represents progress, each inning a season of existence. To run from first to second, from second to third, is to struggle, to risk, to persist through uncertainty. But the final test is always the same—can you reach home without faltering? Can you endure the trials, avoid the pitfalls, and complete your path with dignity and grace? In both baseball and life, the glory is not in motion alone, but in completion, in returning to where you belong having given your all.

There is a story from Lasorda’s own career that captures this truth. In the 1988 World Series, his Dodgers faced the mighty Oakland Athletics. They were outmatched in strength, their star players injured, their odds dim. Yet in the first game, the limping Kirk Gibson, barely able to walk, stepped up to bat in the final inning. With two outs and defeat all but certain, he swung—and sent the ball into the night sky, a home run that turned despair into triumph. As Gibson rounded the bases, hobbling in pain, the stadium erupted. It was not simply a victory of muscle, but of spirit—a moment that embodied Lasorda’s creed. For Gibson, getting home was not easy, nor graceful—but he made it. And in that, he became immortal.

In the ancient way, Lasorda’s quote recalls the teachings of the philosophers who saw virtue as the measure of life’s journey. The Stoics, like Seneca and Marcus Aurelius, taught that the goal of life is not the pursuit of pleasure or speed, but the cultivation of endurance—the safe arrival of the soul after the trials of existence. The finish, not the flash, defines the man. Likewise, in Lasorda’s baseball, it is not the batter’s swagger or the runner’s speed that matters most, but the steady discipline that brings him home. The applause of the crowd fades, but the one who completes his journey remains written in the book of memory.

There is, too, a moral warning hidden in Lasorda’s jest. In both driving and living, haste without mindfulness leads to disaster. The one who recklessly speeds forward may appear bold for a moment, but if he crashes before he reaches home, his effort is lost. Success, therefore, demands wisdom and patience, the ability to pace oneself through the innings of life. Many begin their journeys with fire and promise, but only those who combine courage with care, passion with prudence, will reach the end unbroken.

So, my children of the future, learn from this parable of the field: do not measure your life by the speed of your advance, but by the strength of your arrival. Whether in sport, in work, or in love, strive not merely to begin well, but to finish well. Be like the runner who rounds each base with focus and humility, knowing that every step is sacred. For the true glory is not in the crowd’s roar or the fleeting fame of a single play—it is in standing at home, heart steady, spirit whole, having made the full journey of your life with honor.

Thus, as Tommy Lasorda taught in his earthy, joyful wisdom, whether you play baseball or simply live your days upon this vast field of existence, remember always: what matters most is getting home safely. For the bases of life are many, the innings uncertain—but the one who endures, who keeps faith through struggle, and reaches the end with peace and purpose—that is the one who truly wins the game.