Sport Books

Book SynopsisA wild bull on the field, a fly ball caught by a train conductor, a pitcher taking the mound barefoot—Minor League Baseball has been played across the country in cities large and small for more than a century, and there are thousands of entertaining and improbable stories to tell from it.Join professional baseball broadcaster Tim Hagerty for a journey through the zaniest Minor League stories in Tales from the Dugout. Given its long history, it is no surprise that the game has encountered some bizarre things over the years. This humorous and outlandish collection of stories is sourced from newspaper archives and the Baseball Hall of Fame Library in Cooperstown, New York, and includes a foreword by former MLB All-Star Billy Butler. Whether you're a baseball fanatic or just a fan of sports history, this book captures the spirit of the game.This compendium of minor league shenanigans includes: HOLE IN ONE: In 1942, a Milwaukee Brewers batter hit a low line drive that bounced down the right field line. He rounded the bases while confused Louisville Colonels fielders searched for the ball. They eventually found it inside a gopher hole. MONKEYING AROUND: A chimp's escape turned a Southern Association game into pandemonium on July 17, 1909. "Henry the Chimpanzee," the New Orleans Pelicans' official mascot, busted from his cage and chased players around the field. The chimp then went after fans, who ran from him screaming. The game was delayed a few minutes while Henry was restrained. HEADLESS CRUSHER: A police department in Ohio got a call about a missing head. The Lake Erie Crushers' mascot's head was stolen in 2011, forcing the mascot to miss a few home games. After learning through media reports that police were investigating, the thief returned the head by inconspicuously placing it under the ballpark's tarp. Trade Review'[A] relentlessly entertaining collection of vignettes of strange and sometimes surprising moments in the minors.' * -Milwaukee Journal Sentinel *'A collection of memorable stories . . . the minors are fertile ground for good tales.' * -Boston Globe *'A great, easy to digest read. It's a lot of fun.' * -Matt Vasgersian, MLB Network *'Go get this book!' * -Bill Ripken, 12-year major league player and current MLB Network analyst *'I devoured Tim's book over the course of a couple of days. It's fantastic... I love the illustrations. For anyone out there who has a child in their life who loves baseball, this is a book for all ages.' * -Rob Neyer, former ESPN and Fox Sports baseball writer and the author of the CASEY Award winning book Powerball: Anatomy of a Modern Baseball Game *'I love the format. It's bite-sized stories with lots of cool cartoon drawings. It would make a great gift for a baseball lover or anyone who enjoys humor.' * -Amy Lawrence, CBS Sports Radio host *'I love this book. It's fantastic because of the short length of the stories and how much fun they all are.' * -Matt Pauley, KMOX Radio *'It's like a minor-league Weird and Wild column. Full of amazing and hilarious tidbits. Great stuff from Tim Hagerty!' * -Jayson Stark *'The ideal bedside reading book for any good baseball fan. It is a phenomenally researched compendium of all sorts of amazing anecdotes tumbling out of minor league ball dating from the 1880s to the current day.' * -Bob Ryan, The Boston Globe and ESPN's Around the Horn *'Tim Hagerty's collection of anecdotes is a must-read for fans of Minor League Baseball.' * -Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune *'We received six baseball books in July and the absolute favorite was Tales from the Dugout: 1,001 Humorous, Inspirational and Wild Anecdotes from Minor League Baseball. Hundreds of stories we wish we had on Baseball Almanac. Great work.' * -Baseball Almanac *'Filled with wonderful stories that could only come from the world of Minor League Baseball. It's a joy!' * -Jesse Agler, San Diego Padres broadcaster *

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Book SynopsisMelanie Gibson was an independent woman with a good job, multiple college degrees, and a condo in the trendy part of town. She also had a few mental illnesses, a minor substance abuse problem, and rotten relationship skills. She was a high-functioning crazy who needed a good kick in the pants, literally and metaphorically. In early 2013, as a last desperate means to save her sanity, Melanie turned to a nearly forgotten childhood activity: the Korean martial art of taekwondo. As if the universe were listening, she discovered her West Texas childhood taekwondo instructors’ Grandmaster operated a taekwondo school a few miles from her home in Fort Worth, Texas—and she decided to start her training over as a white belt. In taekwondo, Melanie felt like she had a fresh start in more ways than one. She found an inner peace she’d never known before, a sense of community, a newfound confidence, and a positive outlook on life. The kicking and screaming she was doing in class quieted the long-term kicking and screaming in her mind. Funny and frank, Kicking and Screaming: A Memoir of Madness and Marital Arts is the story of Melanie’s life-changing journey from troubled, lost soul to confident taekwondo black belt.Trade Review“Melanie’s story proves that mental illness can be overcome. That alone would be enough, but that fact that she rekindled her love of taekwondo and used it for its true purpose (inner peace) made it that much more compelling. A must-read for anyone looking to get out of a rut!” —Grayson Berry, actor on Cobra Kai “Gibson’s sharp-witted, tenacious personality radiates throughout this spirited book, and her determination should prove contagious, spurring readers to discover a pathway through which they can combat mental illness and discover their true selves. . . . An inspirational, sharp, and disarmingly humorous account about taekwondo and mental health.” —Kirkus Reviews “I am left in awe of Melanie’s courage to reveal her darkest struggles in the hope of helping others. Her fight to find the light inside herself and share it with the world is a tale of inspiration for anyone–martial artist or not. Let the breakthrough in these pages be a call to us all to transform from our own worst enemy to our own best friend.” —Ando Mierzwa, Happy Life Martial Arts

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