Ibanez: Age Ain't Nothing But A Number

Raul Ibanez was introduced to the media after finalizing his three-year, $31.5 million deal to play left field for the Phillies. Todd Zolecki has quotes, including this, about his age:

“Guys kept telling me, ‘Wait until you’re 30. You can’t train that hard when you’re 30.’ Then I heard, ‘When you hit 35, those day games after night games are going to be killers.’ So, finally, I talked to Edgar Martinez about it. I said, ‘Edgar, what is this thing about 35. Everyone talks about 35. What is this? At 35 I feel just as the same as I did when I was 30.’ — Edgar said to me in his super wise way — it’s like going to Yoda, you know? — he said, ‘That’s for the guys that don’t work as hard as we do.’ He told me his best years were after 35. His best year was when he was 37.”

Color me a slight more optimstic than most about Ibanez.