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A humorous, candid and insightful memoir of Hayhurst's rookie season in the majors. . . Grade: Home Run. --Cleveland Plain… DealerAfter six years in the minors, pitcher Dirk Hayhurst hopes 2008 is the year he breaks into the big leagues. But every time Dirk looks up, the bases are loaded with challenges--a wedding balancing on a blind hope, a family in chaos, and paychecks that beg Dirk to answer, How long can I afford to keep doing this? Then it finally happens--Dirk gets called up to the Majors, to play for the San Diego Padres. A dream comes true when he takes the mound against the San Francisco Giants, kicking off forty insane days and nights in the Bigs. Like the classic games of baseball's history, Out of My League entertains from the first pitch to the last out, capturing the gritty realities of playing on the big stage, the comedy and camaraderie in the dugouts and locker rooms, and the hard-fought, personal journeys that drive our love of America's favorite pastime. A rare gem of a baseball book. --Tom Verducci, Sports IllustratedA fun read. . . This book shows why baseball is so often used as a metaphor for life. --Keith OlbermannEntertaining and engaging. . . reminiscent of Jim Bouton's Ball Four. --BooklistObservant, insightful, human, and hilarious. --Bob Costas
An authoritative biography of Hall of Fame pitching legend Tom Seaver, still the greatest player ever to wear a Mets… jersey, by a journalist who knows him well.He was called Tom Terrific for a reason. Tom Seaver was one of the most talented and popular players in the history of baseball. He is one of only two pitchers with 300 wins, 3,000 strikeouts, and an ERA under 3.00. He was a three-time Cy Young award winner, twelve-time All Star, and was elected to baseball&’s Hall of Fame with the highest percentage ever at the time. Popular among players and fans, Seaver was fiercely competitive but always put team success ahead of personal glory. Born in Fresno, California, Seaver signed with the New York Mets in 1967, leading them to their stunning 1969 World Series victory. After a legendarily lopsided trade, he joined the Cincinnati Reds, then later played for the White Sox and the Red Sox before ending his career following the 1986 season. After his playing days, Seaver retired back to California to establish a successful vineyard. Then in 2013, a recurrence of Lyme disease severely affected his memory, which Madden was the first to report. In 2019 Seaver&’s family announced that he had been diagnosed with dementia and was withdrawing from public life. Madden began following Seaver&’s career in the 1980s. Seaver came to trust Madden so completely that, eager to return to New York from Chicago, he asked Madden to explore a possible trade to the Yankees, which never materialized. Drawing in part on their long relationship, Madden offers a deeply personal and fascinating portrait of one of the greatest and most admired players of all time.
Benjamin C. Alamar founded the first journal dedicated to sports statistics, the Journal of Quantitative Analysis in Sports. He developed… and teaches a class on sports analytics for managers at the University of San Francisco and has published numerous cutting-edge studies on strategy and player evaluation. Today, he cochairs the sports statistics section of the International Statistics Institute and consults with several professional teams and businesses in sports analytics. There isn't a better representative of this emerging field to show diverse organizations how to implement analytics into their decision-making strategies, especially as analytic tools grow increasingly complex. Alamar provides a clear, easily digestible survey of the practice and a detailed understanding of analytics' vast possibilities. He explains how to evaluate different programs and put them to use. Using concrete examples from professional sports teams and case studies demonstrating the use and value of analytics in the field, Alamar designs a roadmap for managers, general managers, and other professionals as they build their own programs and teach their approach to others.
"From the moment he was born, Tex Rickard seemed to be wherever the action was. He entered the world as… a posse was riding by— the posse was after the James brothers. Rickard became a trail cowboy at eleven, and a town marshal in his early twenties. He was up in the Yukon Valley, working in gambling houses, two years before the Klondike gold rush started; there he prospected, made and lost several fortunes. As a sports promoter, he arranged title fights between Joe Gans and Battling Nelson in 1906 and Jack Johnson and Jim Jeffries in 1910. He gained fame by creating—with the collaboration of Jack Dempsey—the world's first ''million-dollar gate'' (Dempsey fought Carpentier in 1921 at Jersey City to a paid crowd of 77,328.) Rickard made more on the bout than either of the fighters."
Though Ross Youngs has been enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame since 1972, few have given his remarkable… career its due. Born in Shiner and raised in San Antonio, Youngs played his first game as a professional at the age of sixteen, and just three years later, his contract was purchased by the New York Giants, one of baseball's elite teams in the early twentieth century. Tragically, his promising career ended when he died from an illness at age thirty in 1927. Join author David King in a journey to discover the amazing Youngs as he was and the incredible legacy he left behind.
Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the Negro Leagues with updates and additions throughout! The Kansas City Monarchs, the Chicago American… Giants, the St. Louis Stars, the Birmingham Black Barons, the Homestead Grays, and the Indianapolis Clowns; for over fifty years, they were the Yankees, Cardinals, and Red Sox of black baseball in America. And for over a decade beginning in the late 1940s, umpire Bob Motley called balls and strikes for many of their games, working alongside such legends as Satchel Paige, Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, and Willie Mays. Today, Motley is the only living arbiter from the Negro Leagues. His personal account of the Negro Leagues is a revealing, humorous, and unforgettable memoir celebrating a long-lost league and a remarkable group of baseball players. In this brand new 100-year anniversary edition of Ruling Over Monarchs, Giants, and Stars, Motley and his son Byron share the characters, adventures, and challenges faced by these amazing men as they enthusiastically embraced America&’s pastime and made it their own. Filled with stories of talented heroes, small miracles, and downright fun, this unique memoir is a must-read for any baseball fan.
A fascinating and revealing look inside the lives of umpires, from the godfather of creative nonfictionIn 1974, Lee Gutkind walked… into Shea Stadium, then home of the New York Mets, with an unusual proposal. He wanted to chronicle one of the least celebrated cadres in professional baseball: the umpires. Gutkind spent one exhilarating season traveling with the officiating crew he found that day--Doug Harvey, Nick Colosi, Harry Wendelstedt, and Art Williams, the first African American umpire in National League history. Gutkind's narrative reveals much about the peculiarities of the men charged with the "thankless and impossible task of invoking order"--their work ethic, fallibility, and perhaps most strikingly, their pride.As resonant today as when it was first published, The Best Seat in Baseball, But You Have to Stand! is an engrossing story of the men who work on one of the nation's biggest stages, their victories and their failures, and their inner worlds that are rarely--if ever--explored.
The poignant and hilarious true story of a middle-aged pitcher's return to the mound a quarter-century after his big league… dreams went up in smoke One of baseball's original "bonus babies," Pat Jordan signed with the Milwaukee Braves in 1959--and then proceeded to struggle mightily in the minor leagues over the next three years. Depressed and frustrated, he gave up on baseball and eventually discovered his true calling as one of American's greatest sportswriters. But the unfulfilled promise of his youth continued to haunt Jordan, until, at the ripe old age of fifty-six, he resolved to get back into shape and rediscover his fastball. Come hell or high water, he would pitch again, this time for the Waterbury (Connecticut) Saints, an independent minor league team made up of players half his age. Eloquent, honest, and delightfully bawdy, A Nice Tuesday is the sequel to Jordan's acclaimed memoir, A False Spring, and the unforgettable chronicle of a sports comeback unlike any other.
A story about baseball, family, the American Dream, and the fight to turn Los Angeles into a big league city.Dodger… Stadium is an American icon. But the story of how it came to be goes far beyond baseball. The hills that cradle the stadium were once home to three vibrant Mexican American communities. In the early 1950s, those communities were condemned to make way for a utopian public housing project. Then, in a remarkable turn, public housing in the city was defeated amidst a Red Scare conspiracy.Instead of getting their homes back, the remaining residents saw the city sell their land to Walter O'Malley, the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Now LA would be getting a different sort of utopian fantasy -- a glittering, ultra-modern stadium.But before Dodger Stadium could be built, the city would have to face down the neighborhood's families -- including one, the Aréchigas, who refused to yield their home. The ensuing confrontation captivated the nation - and the divisive outcome still echoes through Los Angeles today.
Covering over 80 years of America's favorite pastime, Baseball in Detroit 1886-1968 takes fans back to the glory days of… Ty Cobb in the early 20th century and follows the progress of the Detroit Tigers. From the three-time pennant winners of this century's first decade to the last real championship team of 1968, Detroiters have flocked to see their team play, win or lose. The fact that they have played at the same intersection of town for over a century is a tribute to the pride and loyalty that each has shown for the other. It could be said that no other baseball franchise has such a close relationship with its constituency. This relationship is clearly shown in a fascinating photographic collection, and sports fans everywhere will appreciate this candid glimpse into our nation's favorite game. As we approach the next millennium, a new stadium is under construction for this historic team. It, too, will be the place of legends, where great players and fans will create another glorious 100 years of baseball history in Detroit. The American League, to which the Detroit Tigers belong as charter members, is fast approaching its own centennial.
Babe Ruth, incredible ballplayer. You might know that he was widely considered baseball&’s greatest hitter. But what about his feat… of pitching to himself and blasting 25 straight home runs? Or his knack for removing kids&’ spleens and kidneys despite not having any medical training? You&’re about to be treated to the Lieographical aspects of Babe Ruth&’s life, in this funny, lighthearted, &“all that didn&’t happen&” take on this larger than life man. The book ends with a short—but true—account of Babe&’s life—just enough to encourage kids to find out more on this important historical figure. But even if readers have already learned about the Babe, the wacky stories in this tall-tales book will be even more enjoyable.
The memoir from the last Mets captain, David Wright, one of the most admired players in recent MLB history, about… his inspiring and deep commitment to the game. David Wright played his entire fourteen-year Major League Baseball career for the New York Mets. And when he came back time and again from injury, he demonstrated the power of hard work, commitment, and love of the game. Wright was nicknamed "Captain America" after his performance in the 2013 World Baseball Classic. He is a seven-time All-Star, a two-time Gold Glove Award winner, a two-time Silver Slugger Award winner, and a member of the 30-30 club. He holds Mets franchise records for most career RBIs, doubles, total bases, runs scored, walks, sacrifice flies, times on base, extra base hits, strikeouts, double plays, and hits. He was named captain of the Mets in 2013, becoming the fourth captain in the team's history. Now the widely admired, beloved New York Mets third baseman and captain tells it from his perspective.
More than 6 years after his death David Halberstam remains one of this country's most respected journalists and revered authorities… on American life and history in the years since WWII. A Pulitzer Prize-winner for his ground-breaking reporting on the Vietnam War, Halberstam wrote more than 20 books, almost all of them bestsellers. His work has stood the test of time and has become the standard by which all journalists measure themselves.The Teammates is the profoundly moving story of four great baseball players who have made the passage from sports icons--when they were young and seemingly indestructible--to men dealing with the vulnerabilities of growing older. At the core of the book is the friendship of these four very different men--Boston Red Sox teammates Bobby Doerr, Dominic DiMaggio, Johnny Pesky, and Ted Williams--who remained close for more than sixty years.The book starts out in early October 2001, when Dominic DiMaggio and Johnny Pesky begin a 1,300-mile trip by car to visit their beloved friend Ted Williams, whom they know is dying. Bobby Doerr, the fourth member of this close group--"my guys," Williams used to call them--is unable to join them.This is a book--filled with historical details and first-hand accounts--about baseball and about something more: the richness of friendship.
On Feb. 13, 1920, a group of independent black baseball team owners held a meeting at a YMCA in Kansas… City, Missouri. While they couldn&’t have known at the time that they were about to change the course of American history, it was out of that meeting that the Negro National League was born. The league flourished throughout the 1920s and beyond, becoming the first successful, organized professional black baseball league in the country. By providing a playing field for African American and Hispanic baseball players to showcase their world-class baseball abilities, it became a force that provided cohesion and a source of pride in black communities. Among them were the legendary pitchers Smokey Joe Williams, whose fastball seemed to &“come off a mountain top,&” Satchel Paige, the ageless wonder who pitched for five decades, and such hitters as Josh Gibson, Buck Leonard, and Oscar Charleston, whose talents as players may have even been surpassed by their total commitment to their profession and hardiness. Leading the leagues were memorable characters like Gus Greenlee of the Pittsburgh Crawfords and Effa Manley of the Newark Eagles. Although their games were ignored by white-owned newspapers and radio stations, black ballplayers and their teams became folk heroes in cities such as Chicago, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New York, and Washington DC, where the teams drew large crowds and became major contributors to the local community life, with influence extending far beyond the baseball fields. This memorable narrative, filled with the memories of many surviving Negro League players, pulls the veil off these &“invisible men&” who were forced into the segregated leagues. What emerges is a glorious chapter in African American history and an often overlooked aspect of our American past.
A beautifully observed narrative of American sport: character, grit, tragedy, unremarked heroism, and, always, the illuminating story behind the story.… As a columnist for Time magazine, among many other publications, Tom Callahan witnessed an extraordinary number of defining moments in American sport across four decades. He takes us from Roberto Clemente clinching his 3,000th, and final, regular-season hit in Pittsburgh; to ringside for the Muhammad Ali–George Foreman fight in Zaire; and to Arthur Ashe announcing, at a news conference, that he’d tested positive for HIV. There are also little-known private moments: Joe Morgan whispering thank you to a virtually blind Jackie Robinson on the field at the 1972 World Series, or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar saying he was more interested in being a good man than in being the greatest basketball player. Brimming with colorful vignettes and enlivened by Callahan’s eye for detail, Gods at Play offers surprising portraits of the most celebrated names in sports. Roger Rosenblatt calls Callahan “the most complete sportswriter in America. He knows the most and writes the best."
Journey with prolific author and avid baseball fan Ethan Bryan on an exciting quest to play catch every day for… a year, and discover the lessons he learned about the sacredness of play, finding connections, and being fully present to the human experience. Ethan Bryan played and wrote about baseball for years. Then his daughters challenged him to set out on a yearlong experiment: to play catch with someone every day. This experience led him across 10 states and 12,000 miles on a quest both quixotic and inspiring.Taking you from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to the home of the Daytona Tortugas in Florida, Bryan played ball and swapped stories with public school teachers, veterans, journalists, nurses, musicians, entertainers, entrepreneurs, athletes from every level--amateur to pro--and members of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Plus, he visited famous destinations such as the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, Miracle League fields, and the original "Field of Dreams" in Iowa.But throughout the book, Bryan reveals it's about much more than who he played catch with: it's what he learned from their vastly different stories. Lessons include:How play can reignite a fire within you and transform your lifeHow to find joy in the simple thingsHow one life can impact a whole community. . . and more.For baseball fans and everyone who loves a good story, A Year of Playing Catch is an inspiring journey about finding joy in the simple things, and the power of play to transform our lives.
This newest edition to the long-running Everything Kids&’ Baseball series updated with current information on the 2018 and 2019 baseball… seasons, refreshed bios, and an expanded look at fantasy baseball is &“everything you want in a kid&’s book&” (Associated Press). Now you can introduce young fans to the fun, action, and excitement of America&’s favorite pastime with this all-inclusive, updated edition of The Everything Kids&’ Baseball Book. Featuring dozens of puzzles and games, this edition has up-to-date stats for all of your favorite players and teams. Get to know the best star players today, learn the rules and history of the game, and start to develop your own baseball skills—from t-ball to the World Series—with this comprehensive guide to the entertaining world of baseball. Covering everything you need to know, this book is sure to be a grand slam for kids and parents alike!
More than 6 years after his death David Halberstam remains one of this country's most respected journalists and revered authorities… on American life and history in the years since WWII. A Pulitzer Prize-winner for his ground-breaking reporting on the Vietnam War, Halberstam wrote more than 20 books, almost all of them bestsellers. His work has stood the test of time and has become the standard by which all journalists measure themselves.The Teammates is the profoundly moving story of four great baseball players who have made the passage from sports icons--when they were young and seemingly indestructible--to men dealing with the vulnerabilities of growing older. At the core of the book is the friendship of these four very different men--Boston Red Sox teammates Bobby Doerr, Dominic DiMaggio, Johnny Pesky, and Ted Williams--who remained close for more than sixty years.The book starts out in early October 2001, when Dominic DiMaggio and Johnny Pesky begin a 1,300-mile trip by car to visit their beloved friend Ted Williams, whom they know is dying. Bobby Doerr, the fourth member of this close group--"my guys," Williams used to call them--is unable to join them.This is a book--filled with historical details and first-hand accounts--about baseball and about something more: the richness of friendship.
Buzzie and the Bull chronicles a baseball year in the lives of two lifelong friends who couldn&’t be more different:… Buzzie Bavasi, the legendary general manager of the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers, and Al &“the Bull&” Ferrara, bon vivant, fountain of joy, and bench player. Their 1965 baseball journey encompassed a thrilling pennant race settled on the final day of the season, a city engulfed in flames, a perfect game, and a GM who extolled his friend the Bull as a hero in May and then banished him from the team to the depths of public purgatory in July. The partnership of these two characters—the general manager who valued fearlessness above all else and the crazy player who loved living on the edge—became the embodiment of champions who never choked in the clutch. Over seventeen years, Bavasi&’s teams won eight pennants and four World Series titles. His approach deserves review, and his friendship with Ferrara illustrates the ground on which he staked his baseball career. The summer of 1965 proved Bavasi&’s thesis that champions are built on players with one core characteristic: nerves of steel.Buzzie and the Bull offers a counterpoint to today&’s focus on advanced statistical analysis that may be crowding out the important work of discovering a player&’s unique human qualities: the intangibles. Gauge those intangibles correctly and you get an edge—and edges help win championships.
Hoosier Beginnings tells the story of Indiana University athletics from its founding in 1867 to the interwar period. Crammed full… of rare images and little-known anecdotes, it recounts how sport at IU developed from its very first baseball team, made up mostly of local Bloomington townsfolks, to the rich and powerful tradition that is the "Hoosier" legacy. Hoosier Beginnings uncovers fascinating stories that have been lost to time and showcases how Indiana University athletics built its foundation as a pivotal team in sports history. Learn about the fatal train collision that nearly stopped IU athletics in its tracks; IU's first African American football player; the infamous Baseball Riot of 1913; how a horde of students grabbed axes and chopped down 200 apple trees to make way for a new gymnasium; and the legendary 1910 football team that didn't allow a single touchdown all season—but still lost a game. Most importantly, it attempts to answer the burning question, where did the "Hoosiers" get their mysterious name?