"Perhaps the truest axiom in baseball is that the toughest thing to do is repeat"
About this Quote
Alston managed in an era when the Dodgers were a perennial heavyweight, yet even dynastic teams were one bad bounce, one sore elbow, one slumping month away from looking ordinary. The intent here is practical: temper the intoxicating narrative of momentum. Fans want trends; front offices want formulas; the media wants “figured out.” Alston’s subtext is that baseball refuses those desires. The schedule is too long, the sample sizes too punishing, the margins too thin. A hitter can square up three balls and go 0-for-3; a pitcher can miss his spot by an inch and wear a loss. The game doesn’t reward repeatability so much as it tests it, daily.
It also doubles as leadership talk. By naming repetition as the hardest task, Alston reframes pressure: you’re not failing because you’re weak, you’re failing because the job is brutal. That’s stabilizing in a sport that turns confidence into a stat line. The quote works because it honors baseball’s romance while refusing its fairy tales.
Quote Details
| Topic | Sports |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Alston, Walt. (2026, January 16). Perhaps the truest axiom in baseball is that the toughest thing to do is repeat. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/perhaps-the-truest-axiom-in-baseball-is-that-the-133682/
Chicago Style
Alston, Walt. "Perhaps the truest axiom in baseball is that the toughest thing to do is repeat." FixQuotes. January 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/perhaps-the-truest-axiom-in-baseball-is-that-the-133682/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Perhaps the truest axiom in baseball is that the toughest thing to do is repeat." FixQuotes, 16 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/perhaps-the-truest-axiom-in-baseball-is-that-the-133682/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.

