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Believeniks!: 2005: The Year We Wrote a Book About the Mets
By Ivan Felt, Harris Conklin. 2006
Critic Ivan Felt and poet Harris Conklin are the Don Quixote and Sancho Panza of baseball fandom. Or, perhaps, the…
Felix and Oscar of baseball fandom. Or the Pollock and de Kooning. Or the Bugs and Daffy. The New York Mets are, of course, the New York Mets of baseball. In 2005, Felt and Conklin, lifelong friends and lifelong fans, determined to change the course of their own careers and of baseball history by doing what had never been done: writing their beloved team to a World Championship. The 2005 Mets, with a new manager and some of the spiffiest free agents on the market, seemed ready to take the world by storm. Felt and Conklin believed themselves up to the task. It is, after all, Belief (and free agents) that makes such dreams come true. Believeniks!is the record of a journey. Felt and Conklin would, alas, fail to see their team attain that golden pinnacle in the clouds of baseball glory. AsBelieveniks!reveals, however, the season’s unfolding drama would leave two of baseball’s most erudite and excitable fans forever changed.Class A: Baseball in the Middle of Everywhere
By Lucas Mann. 2013
An unforgettable chronicle of a year of minor-league baseball in a small Iowa town that follows not only the travails…
of the players of the Clinton LumberKings but also the lives of their dedicated fans and of the town itself. Award-winning essayist Lucas Mann delivers a powerful debut in his telling of the story of the 2010 season of the Clinton LumberKings. Along the Mississippi River, in a Depression-era stadium, young prospects from all over the world compete for a chance to move up through the baseball ranks to the major leagues. Their coaches, some of whom have spent nearly half a century in the game, watch from the dugout. In the bleachers, local fans call out from the same seats they've occupied year after year. And in the distance, smoke rises from the largest remaining factory in a town that once had more millionaires per capita than any other in America. Mann turns his eye on the players, the coaches, the fans, the radio announcer, the town, and finally on himself, a young man raised on baseball, driven to know what still draws him to the stadium. His voice is as fresh and funny as it is poignant, illuminating both the small triumphs and the harsh realities of minor-league ball. Part sports story, part cultural exploration, part memoir, Class A is a moving and unique study of why we play, why we watch, and why we remember.From the Hardcover edition.Mount Rushmore, located in the Black Hills of Keystone, South Dakota, is one of the most iconic landmarks in the…
United States. The face of the mountain features 60-foot heads of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. It depicts four of the greatest men our country has ever known. In recent years, it has become fashionable for sports fans to select the Mount Rushmore of their franchise&’s history. For some franchise&’s, which have been around for 100+ years, it can be a daunting task. Even for younger franchises, such as the New York Mets, picking a Mount Rushmore can be a challenge. Mostly because fans always seem to favor players that they have seen play—leading older and younger fans to differ on who belongs carved on that fictional mountain in Queens. In 2015, Major League Baseball announced its decision for each team&’s Mount Rushmore. For the Mets, voters chose Keith Hernandez, Mike Piazza, Tom Seaver, and David Wright. No one would argue that Tom Seaver is on the franchise&’s Mount Rushmore. He was, after all, &“The Franchise.&” Some might even argue that the Mets&’ Mount Rushmore is Tom Seaver four times! However, that not-withstanding, when it comes to rounding out the other three players, did MLB get it right?? Thankfully, Mount Rushmore of the New York Mets tackles such a question. Covering the team by decade, author Brett Topel share the best players from the team&’s almost sixty-year history. From Jerry Koosman and Ed Kranepool, Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry, to Edgardo Alfonzo and Jose Reyes, each decade is covered, reliving the highs and lows of the Metropolitans. So whether you remember the Miracle Mets, the Amazin&’ run of 1986, or the almost of the 2000s, Mount Rushmore of the New York Mets breaks down the fan favorites who earned their prominence in the Polo Grounds, Shea Stadium, and Citi Field.Forty Years a Giant: The Life of Horace Stoneham
By Steven Treder. 2021
When New York Giants owner Charles A. Stoneham came home one night in 1918 and told his teenage son, Horace,…
&“Horrie, I bought you a ballclub,&” he set in motion a family legacy. Horace Stoneham would become one of baseball&’s greatest figures, an owner who played an essential role in integrating the game, and who was a major force in making our pastime truly national by bringing Major League Baseball to the West Coast. Horace Stoneham began his tenure with the Giants in 1924, learning all sides of the operation until he moved into the front office. In 1936, when his father died of kidney disease, Horace assumed control of the Giants at age thirty-two, becoming one of the youngest owners in baseball history. Stoneham played a pivotal role in not just his team&’s history but the game itself. In the mid-1940s when the Pacific Coast League sought to gain Major League status, few but Stoneham and Branch Rickey took it seriously, and twelve years later the Giants and Dodgers were the first two teams to relocate west. Stoneham signed former Negro Leaguers Monte Irvin and Hank Thompson, making the Giants the second National League franchise to racially integrate. In the late 1940s, the Giants hired their first Spanish-speaking scout and soon became the leading team in developing Latin American players. Stoneham was shy and self-effacing and avoided the spotlight. His relationships with players were almost always strong, yet for all his leadership skills and baseball acumen, sustained success eluded most of his teams. In forty seasons his Giants won just five National League pennants and only one World Series. The Stoneham family business struggled, and the team was forced to sell off its beloved stars, first Willie Mays, then Willie McCovey, and finally Juan Marichal. Then Stoneham had no choice but to sell the club in 1975. While his tenure came to an unfortunate end, he is heralded as a pioneer and leader whose story tells much of baseball history from the 1930s through the 1970s.Faithful: Two Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season
By Stephen King, Stewart O'Nan. 2004
Stephen King and Stewart O'Nan, lifelong Boston Red Sox addicts, chronicle the 2004 baseball season from spring training to the…
last dramatic game, in their dramatic World Series-winning season.Who better to follow the fortunes of a 'cursed' team like the Boston Red Sox than two renowned horror writers and lifelong Red Sox addicts? Red Sox fans have seen it all since 1918... except that elusive World Championship. The memory of 2003's devastating ALCS Game 7 loss and the anticipation of new ace Curt Schilling's impact made this season that much more compelling. Stephen King and Stewart O'Nan joined the rest of the Red Sox Nation to cheer on the Olde Town Team, with the eternal hope that this might be their year. On 27th October 2004, the Red Sox finally prevailed, taking an unassailable 4-0 lead over the St. Louis Cardinals in the best of seven World Series. Stephen King and Stewart O'Nan's email correspondence about the dramatic and ultimately heartbreaking 2003 season inspired the idea for FAITHFUL, a book that records the Sox's 2004 baseball season from start to spectacular finish.Josh Gibson: The Power and the Darkness
By Mark Ribowsky. 2004
It is said that Josh Gibson is the only man ever to have hit a fair ball out of Yankee…
Stadium. Some claim he hit as many as seventy-five home runs in a season. All agreed he was a frightening hitter to face. What Satchel Paige was to pitching in the Negro leagues, Gibson was to hitting: their greatest star, biggest gate attraction, and most important symbol. Though Gibson is best remembered as "the black Babe Ruth," Ruth became a beloved symbol of the national pastime, while Gibson lived a life veiled in the darkness that came both from the shadow world of the Negro leagues and from within his own tortured soul. Mark Ribowsky, the widely acclaimed biographer of Satchel Paige, pulls no punches in his portrait of this magnificent, troubled athlete. This is the most complete, thorough, and authoritative account of the life of black ball's greatest hitter, and one of its most important stars.The Classic Mantle
By Buzz Bissinger. 2012
Filled with stunning photos, this book by the #1 New York Times–bestselling sportswriter tells the story of Mickey Mantle’s legendary…
career.Mickey Mantle has long been considered one of baseball's most memorable figures—playing his entire eighteen-year baseball career for the New York Yankees (1951-68), winning three American League MVP titles, playing in twenty All-Star games, and winning seven World Series. Today, decades after his retirement, he still holds six World Series records, including most home runs (18). Buzz Bissinger, Pulitzer Prize winner and acclaimed author of Friday Night Lights and Three Nights in August, goes beyond the statistics to bring Mantle to life, and striking photographs by Marvin E. Newman make this book a fitting tribute to Mantle’s career and his lasting impact on the sport of baseball.Lou Gehrig: The Luckiest Man
By David A. Adler. 1997
CenterStage: My Most Fascinating Interviews—from A-Rod to Jay-Z
By Michael Kay. 2021
From the longtime host of the New York Yankees&’ television broadcasts, ESPN Radio&’s The Michael Kay Show, and YES Network&’s…
Emmy Award–winning CenterStage comes a selection of his most memorable interviews with the most intriguing personalities in sports and entertainment—ranging from Jay-Z to Mike Tyson to Serena Williams to Adam Sandler to Bon Jovi to Larry David. Emmy Award–winning television announcer and interviewer Michael Kay&’s eighteen years as host of CenterStage have given him access to many remarkable figures in sports and entertainment. Now, this absorbing selection of the best, most revealing—and often surprising—interviews are available in one amazing collection, including some of the behind-the-scenes stories that didn&’t appear on camera. From Kay&’s very first CenterStage interview in 2001 with quarterback Steve Young, the show&’s creators knew they had something special. Kay&’s ability to get celebrities and otherwise private personalities to open up and share candid insights has become his trademark. Among the interviews featured in the book are those with Red Auerbach, Charles Barkley, Mike Tyson, Bobby Orr, Sly Stallone, Jay-Z, Lorne Michaels, Paul Simon, John McEnroe, Rob Reiner, Seth Meyers, Serena Williams, Alan Alda, David Halberstam, Larry David, Bob Costas, Billy Crystal, Lindsey Vonn, Chris Evert, and Quentin Tarantino. For any pop culture fan or sports enthusiast, this prized collection is one to cherish for generations.In the summer of 1932, with the Cubs in the thick of the pennant race, Billy Jurges broke off his…
relationship with Violet Popovich to focus on baseball. The famously beautiful showgirl took it poorly, marching into his hotel room with a revolver in her purse. Both were wounded in the ensuing struggle, but Jurges refused to press charges. Even without their star shortstop, Chicago made it to the World Series, only to be on the wrong end of Babe Ruth's legendary Called Shot. Using hundreds of original sources, Jack Bales profiles the lives of the ill-fated couple and traces the ripple effects of the shooting on the Cubs' tumultuous season.Hidden History of Cleveland Sports (Sports)
By Marc Bona. 2021
Cleveland sports history goes well beyond The Shot, The Fumble, The Drive and so many other ignoble moments. Many of…
the city's most illustrious sports tales are long-forgotten chapters of tribulations and tragedy, of fleeting fame and enduring milestones. There are forgotten firsts, such as football's first pass and the invention of baseball's slider having ties to Cleveland. There are overshadowed tragedies like a fatal crash involving an Indians pitcher occurring the same year two of the team's hurlers were killed in a high-profile boating accident. And then there are the near misses--like George Steinbrenner coming within seconds of owning the Indians and a famous musician who almost became a Cleveland Brown. From basketball to boxing, hockey to Heisman, journalist Marc Bona chronicles more than a century of unremembered tales.Till the End
By Chris Smith, Cc Sabathia. 2021
A raw, compelling memoir of baseball, family, fame, addiction, and recovery, by one of the most beloved baseball players of…
his generation How does it feel to be born with enormous gifts, in a life shadowed by tragedy? What does it mean when the gift that opens the world for us is not enough to stop us from losing the things we love? And what new gifts do we find in that loss? Baseball had been CC Sabathia&’s life since he was a kid in gritty, baseball-obsessed Vallejo, California. He was a star by the time he was a preteen and a professional athlete when he was still a teenager. Everything he knew about how to be a person—an adult, a husband and father, a leader—he learned in rhythm with the baseball season, the every-fifth-day high-intensity spotlight of a starting pitcher, all while dealing with one of the sport&’s most turbulent eras: racism in a sport with diminishing black presence; the era of performance-enhancing drugs; and the increasing tension between high-value contracts and sports owners who moved players around like game pieces. But his biggest struggle was with his own body and mind: Buoyed his whole life by talent and a fiery competitive spirit, CC found himself dealing with the steady and eventually alarming breakdown of his own body and his growing addiction in a world that encouraged and enabled it.Till the End is the thrilling memoir of one of the most beloved players in the game, a veteran star of the sport&’s marquee team during its latest championship era. It&’s also a book about baseball—about the ins and outs of its most important and technical position and its evolution in this volatile era. But woven within it is the moving, universal story of resilience and mortality and discovering what matters.Why does a football spiral? How do some athletes jump so high? The answer is science! The Secret Science of…
Sports helps kids better understand concepts of science, technology, engineering, and math through the sports they love to play and watch. Every sport -- from baseball to basketball, to football and soccer, to wrestling, tennis, and lacrosse -- involves a bit of science, technology, engineering, and math. You can't throw a ball without Newton's Law of Motion, and you can't calculate a player's stats without math. And every type of sports equipment -- a helmet, cleats, shoulder or knee pads -- were designed with the latest engineering and technology. The Secret Science of Sports breaks down normally difficult STEM concepts like forces of motion, gravity, algebra, and even neuroscience, in a language kids can -- and will want to -- understand. Divided into sections like chemistry, biology, physics, technology, and more, this handy guide uses examples from sports like soccer, baseball, softball, football, hockey, lacrosse, tennis, and others to explain important STEM concepts for kids ages 8 to 12. They'll learn how to use math to calculate a batter's average, why a tennis racket is shaped the way it is, how biology affects athletic performance, the aerodynamics behind competitive swimsuits, and much more. With dozens of original, captivating illustrations to engage young readers, kids will have fun while learning about key STEM ideas that will prepare them for years of schooling to come.Great Moments in Baseball History
By Matt Christopher. 1996
Capturing the suspense and play-by-play action of nine major league plays and the personalities of the athletes that made them,…
a fan's treasury includes Willie May's 1954 World Series catch and Jim Abbott's no-hitter.The Closer: Young Readers Edition
By Wayne Coffey, Sue Corbett, Mariano Rivera. 2014
Mariano Rivera never dreamed of becoming a professional athlete. He didn't grow up collecting baseball cards, playing Little League, or…
cheering on his home team at the World Series. He had never heard of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, or Mickey Mantle.One day, that all changed.From a childhood playing pickup games in Panama to an epic career with the New York Yankees, Mariano's rise to greatness has been anything but ordinary. He's the guy on the mound who doesn't hear the crowd, just the sound of the ump calling, Strike! The teammate you can rely on, even when the bases are loaded in the bottom of the ninth. Whether you know him as Mo or as the Sandman, Mariano is The Closer, and this is his story.Full of tips for young athletes and tales from the Yankee clubhouse, The Closer: Young Readers Edition is an inspiring story of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication that have defined the life of a baseball legend.The Rotation: A Season with the Phillies and the Greatest Pitching Staff Ever Assembled
By Jim Salisbury, Todd Zolecki. 2012
Not since 1957 has one major league team's pitching staff boasted three pitchers (Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, and Roy Oswalt)…
in the Top Ten in career winning-percentage. Plus, the Philadelphia Phillies' 2011 rotation also happens to include Cole Hamels-the 2008 NLCS and World Series MVP-and an alternating fifth starter. This awe-inducing rotation has been the talk of baseball since coming together in December 2010. They were featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated's 2011 baseball- preview edition, interviewed on the MLB Network on opening day of spring training, covered in the New York Times Magazine, and mentioned in numerous newspapers and magazines nationwide. Authored by two of the most knowledgable and connected Phillies beat writers, The Rotation is a remarkably detailed day-in-the-life story of one complete season with a Major League Baseball starting-pitching staff. The authors offer deep daily access to the Phillies players, coaches, and front-office staff, as well as the players and staff of other major league teams and the national baseball media. With firsthand reporting and extensive interviews, plus two full-color photo inserts, this is a fascinating and detailed look into the day-to-day operation of what is arguably the greatest pitching rotation ever assembled. It is a must-read for Phillies fans and general baseball fans alike.Never in baseball history had a last place team rebounded to take the pennant the following season. Yet in 1991,…
lightning struck twice as the Minnesota Twins and the Atlanta Braves, a pair of cellar dwellers the year before, faced each other in an unforgettable World Series. For both clubs, the turnaround was one for the ages. Minnesota and Atlanta rallied throughout the 1991 season around a crop of rising stars--Kirby Puckett, Kent Hrbek, Tom Glavine, John Smoltz--who each spirited their team’s unlikely run all the way to the World Series. And what a Fall Classic it proved to be, with five of the seven games decided by a single run, four decided on the final pitch, and three--including game seven--ending in extra innings. When the final out was recorded, the cover headline in Baseball Weekly read: "Best World Series Ever. ” In Down to the Last Pitch, Tim Wendel delivers all the hopes, dreams, and drama in a season--and a Series--touched by magic.Closer: Major League Players Reveal the Inside Pitch on Saving the Game
By Leigh A. Tobin, Brad Lidge, Kevin Neary. 2013
The closer is the ace reliever who specializes in closing out the game without surrendering the lead. Facing a power…
hitter in the ninth inning with a man on base and no outs takes nerves of steel. The pressure on the mound is intense. It takes a special breed to hold it together in these situations. Legendary manager Tony LaRusso said Sure, games can get away from you in the seventh and eighth, but those last three outs in the ninth are the toughest. ” It wasn’t until the creation of the save,” the successful maintenance of a lead by a relief pitcher, in 1960 that the position of closer began to rise in prominence. Today, closers are seen as some of the most intense athletes in all of sports. Neary and Tobin explore the unique personalities of major leagues’ most prominent relief pitchers from Bruce Sutter (Cubs, Cardinals, and Braves) to Mariano Rivera (Yankees). Closer is an insider’s look into the role of the closing pitcher, how the position has evolved, and how legendsTrevor Hoffman, Rollie Fingers, Dennis Eckersley, John Smoltz, Rich Goose” Gossage, Mariano Rivera, Brian Fuentes, and many morecoped with the stress on the mound such as when facing the . 340 batter in the bottom of the ninth with only a one run lead.El cerrador: Mi vida
By Wayne Coffey, Mariano Rivera. 2014
The greatest relief pitcher of all time shares his extraordinary story of survival, love, and baseball.Mariano Rivera, the man who…
intimidated thousands of batters merely by opening a bullpen door, began his incredible journey as the son of a poor Panamanian fisherman. When first scouted by the Yankees, he didn't even own his own glove. He thought he might make a good mechanic. When discovered, he had never flown in an airplane, had never heard of Babe Ruth, spoke no English, and couldn't imagine Tampa, the city where he was headed to begin a career that would become one of baseball's most iconic. What he did know: that he loved his family and his then girlfriend, Clara, that he could trust in the Lord to guide him, and that he could throw a baseball exactly where he wanted to, every time.With astonishing candor, Rivera tells the story of the championships, the bosses (including The Boss), the rivalries, and the struggles of being a Latino baseball player in the United States and of maintaining Christian values in professional athletics. The thirteen-time All-Star discusses his drive to win; the secrets behind his legendary composure; the story of how he discovered his cut fastball; the untold, pitch-by-pitch account of the ninth inning of Game 7 in the 2001 World Series; and why the lowest moment of his career became one of his greatest blessings.In The Closer, Rivera takes readers into the Yankee clubhouse, where his teammates are his brothers. But he also takes us on that jog from the bullpen to the mound, where the game -- or the season -- rests squarely on his shoulders. We come to understand the laserlike focus that is his hallmark, and how his faith and his family kept his feet firmly on the pitching rubber. Many of the tools he used so consistently and gracefully came from what was inside him for a very long time -- his deep passion for life; his enduring commitment to Clara, whom he met in kindergarten; and his innate sense for getting out of a jam.When Rivera retired, the whole world watched -- and cheered. In The Closer, we come to an even greater appreciation of a legend built from the ground up.Former Major League pitcher and mental skills coach for two of baseball's legendary franchises (the Boston Red Sox and San…
Francisco Giants) Bob Tewksbury takes fans inside the psychology of baseball.In Ninety Percent Mental, Bob Tewksbury shows readers a side of the game only he can provide, given his singular background as both a longtime MLB pitcher and a mental skills coach for two of the sport's most fabled franchises, the Boston Red Sox and San Francisco Giants. Fans watching the game on television or even at the stadium don't have access to the mind games a pitcher must play in order to get through an at-bat, an inning, a game. Tewksbury explores the fascinating psychology behind baseball, such as how players use techniques of imagery, self-awareness, and strategic thinking to maximize performance, and how a pitcher's strategy changes throughout a game. He also offers an in-depth look into some of baseball's most monumental moments and intimate anecdotes from a "who's who" of the game, including legendary players who Tewksbury played with and against (such as Mark McGwire, Craig Biggio, and Greg Maddux), game-changing managers and executives (Joe Torre, Bruce Bochy, Brian Sabean), and current star players (Jon Lester, Anthony Rizzo, Andrew Miller, Rich Hill).With Tewksbury's esoteric knowledge as a thinking-fan's player and his expertise as a "baseball whisperer", this entertaining book is perfect for any fan who wants to see the game in a way he or she has never seen it before. Ninety Percent Mental will deliver an unprecedented look at the mound games and mind games of Major League Baseball.