Description
Book SynopsisThis collection of timeless baseball stories can be read again and again for its poignancy, humor, and celebration of the national pastime, whether it be John Roseboro forgiving Juan Marichal for clubbing him in the head with a bat, Elston Howard integrating the Yankees, or baseball played on snowshoes in a remote Wisconsin town.
Trade ReviewJohn Rosengren finds both the quiet heroism and the quirky theatrics - and always the humanity - in his cast of baseball greats, near-greats, and guys who just love the game. Rosengren loves the game as well, and that passion brings to life every page in this collection of superb articles.
-- James S. Hirsch, author of Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend
Table of ContentsIntroduction
CHAPTER ONE: Immortal Moments
The Reconciliation of Juan Marichal and John Roseboro
On the Way to 714
Harvey Haddix’s Heartbreak
CHAPTER TWO: Baseball during Wartime
Terror in the Trenches
Equal Opportunity
The Greatest Comeback of All-Time
Opening Day: 1946
CHAPTER THREE: Personalities
The Legend of La Tortuga
Hank Greenberg: Superstar and Scapegoat
The Great Josh Gibson
Tony O
The Shining of Mark Hamburger
They Call him Killer
CHAPTER FOUR: Baltimore Chops
Chasing A-Rod’s Three-Thousandth Hit
The Irreverent Relics of the Baseball Reliquary
A Game of Their Own
Take Me Out to the Old Ball Game
CHAPTER FIVE: For Love of the Game
Cooperstown or Bust
My Father's Glove
Field of Dreams
Walter Mitty Meets Bert Blyleven
CHAPTER SIX: In Jackie's Memory
The Day the Klan Played Ball
Enter Elston Howard, the Yankees' Jackie Robinson Eight Years Late
Crossing the Line
Pioneers of the Negro Leagues
CHAPTER SEVEN: The World Series
Kirby Puckett Carries the Twins
A Fall Classic Comedy
Sandy Koufax's Yom Kippur Decision
About the author
