The Greatest Summer in Baseball History

The Greatest Summer in Baseball History PDF

Author: John Rosengren

Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc.

Published: 2023-04-01

Total Pages: 212

ISBN-13: 1728271916

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"The vivid story of a young Reggie Jackson on Charlie Finley's A's and the veteran Willie Mays on Yogi's Mets, both destined for the '73 series." —Library Journal A rousing chronicle of one of the most defining years in baseball history that changed the sport forever. In 1973, baseball was in crisis. The first strike in pro sports had soured fans, American League attendance had fallen, and America's team—the Yankees—had lost more games and money than ever. Yet that season, five of the game's greatest figures rescued the national pastime. Hank Aaron riveted the nation with his pursuit of Babe Ruth's landmark home run record in the face of racist threats. George Steinbrenner purchased the Yankees at a bargain basement price and began buying back their faded glory. The American League broke ranks with the National League and introduced the designated hitter, extending the careers of aging stars such as Orlando Cepeda. An elderly and ailing Willie Mays—the icon of an earlier generation—nearly helped the Mets pull off a miracle with the final hit of his career. Reggie Jackson, the MVP of a tense World Series, became the prototype of the modern superstar. The season itself provided plenty of drama served up by a colorful cast of characters, including the Mets rise from last place to win the division under Yogi Berra's leadership, Pete Rose edging out Willie Stargell as the MVP in a controversial vote, Hank Aaron chasing Babe Ruth's landmark record in the face of racial threats, Reggie Jackson solidifying his reputation as Mr. October, Willie Mays hitting the final home run of his career, and future Hall of Famers Dave Winfield and George Brett playing in their first major league games. That one memorable summer changed baseball forever. Originally published as Hammerin' Hank, George Almighty and the Say Hey Kid. "It's a season-ticket to one of the greatest years in baseball history. John Rosengren has given us one of the most enjoyable baseball books to come along in years." –Jonathan Eig, author of Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig and Opening Day: The Story of Jackie Robinson's First Season

Greatest Summer in Baseball History

Greatest Summer in Baseball History PDF

Author: John Rosengren

Publisher:

Published: 2023

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781728271903

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"In 1973, baseball was in crisis. The first strike in pro sports had soured fans, game attendance had fallen, and America's team the Yankees had lost more games and money than ever. Baseball was facing a bust. Yet, five of baseball's greatest figures saved the sport and returned it to its pedestal as America's pastime. Powerhouse Hank Aaron surprised the nation by beating Babe Ruth's home run record in the face of racist threats. George Steinbrenner purchased the Yankees at a bargain and bought back their faded glory. The introduction of the designated hitter divided the American League and the National leagued but extended the careers of senior players such as Orlando Cepeda. An elderly and ailing Willie Mays nearly helped the Mets pulls off a miracle with the final swing of his career. And, Reggie Jackson, the MVP of a tense World Series game, became the prototype for the modern superstar. They changed baseball forever"--

Baseball Dynasties

Baseball Dynasties PDF

Author: Rob Neyer

Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Published: 2000

Total Pages: 398

ISBN-13: 9780393320084

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Assesses the top fifteen baseball teams of the twentieth century, including such legendary squads as the 1927 Yankees and the 1970 Orioles, to determine which team was the greatest of the modern era.

Memories of Summer

Memories of Summer PDF

Author: Roger Kahn

Publisher: Diversion Publishing Corp.

Published: 2012-10-28

Total Pages: 359

ISBN-13: 1938120477

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The legendary sportswriter’s memoir of Brooklyn, baseball, and a life in journalism: “Simply put, this is a marvelous book” (Kirkus Reviews). In this book, the bestselling author of The Boys of Summer shares stories of his Depression-era Brooklyn childhood, his career during a golden era of sports, and his personal acquaintances with a wide range of great ballplayers. His father had a passion for the Dodgers; his mother’s passion was for poetry. Young Roger managed to blend both loves in a career that encompassed writing about sports for the New York Herald Tribune, Sports Illustrated, the Saturday Evening Post, Esquire, and Time. Kahn recalls the great personalities—Leo Durocher, Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Jackie Robinson, Red Smith, Dick Young, and many more—and recollects the wittiest lines from forty years in dugouts, press boxes, and newsrooms. “A master at evoking a sense of the past . . . A pleasing potpourri of autobiography, professional memoir, and anecdotal baseball history . . . Of special note to journalism buffs is Kahn’s account of his role in the inception of Sports Illustrated.” —Booklist “As a kid, I loved sports first and writing second, and loved everything Roger Kahn wrote. As an adult, I love writing first and sports second, and love Roger Kahn even more.” —David Maraniss, Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and author “Roger Kahn is the best baseball writer in the business.” —Stephen Jay Gould, New York Review of Books

Summer of '68

Summer of '68 PDF

Author: Tim Wendel

Publisher: Da Capo Press, Incorporated

Published: 2012-03-13

Total Pages: 306

ISBN-13: 0306820188

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In a year shaped by national tragedy, baseball was shaped by amazing pitching--culminating in a victory by a Detroit Tigers team that faced off against Bob Gibson's St. Louis Cardinals, the 1967 World Series defending champions.

The Boys of Summer

The Boys of Summer PDF

Author: Roger Kahn

Publisher: Aurum

Published: 2013-08-01

Total Pages: 560

ISBN-13: 1781312079

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This is a book about young men who learned to play baseball during the 1930s and 1940s, and then went on to play for one of the most exciting major-league ball clubs ever fielded, the team that broke the colour barrier with Jackie Robinson. It is a book by and about a sportswriter who grew up near Ebbets Field, and who had the good fortune in the 1950s to cover the Dodgers for the Herald Tribune. This is a book about what happened to Jackie, Carl Erskine, Pee Wee Reese, and the others when their glory days were behind them. In short, it is a book fathers and sons and about the making of modern America. 'At a point in life when one is through with boyhood, but has not yet discovered how to be a man, it was my fortune to travel with the most marvelously appealing of teams.' Sentimental because it holds such promise, and bittersweet because that promise is past, the first sentence of this masterpiece of sporting literature, first published in the early '70s, sets its tone. The team is the mid-20th-century Brooklyn Dodgers, the team of Robinson and Snyder and Hodges and Reese, a team of great triumph and historical import composed of men whose fragile lives were filled with dignity and pathos. Roger Kahn, who covered that team for the New York Herald Tribune, makes understandable humans of his heroes as he chronicles the dreams and exploits of their young lives, beautifully intertwining them with his own, then recounts how so many of those sweet dreams curdled as the body of these once shining stars grew rusty with age and battered by experience.

Voices of Summer

Voices of Summer PDF

Author: Curt Smith

Publisher: Da Capo Press

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 420

ISBN-13: 9780786714469

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The author compiles a list of the top 101 sports announcers, focusing on their coverage of the greatest moments in the game, from the Bobby Thompson "Shot Heard 'Round the World" to the 1988 World Series, covering Dick Enberg, Harry Caray, Mel Allen, and Ernie Harwell, among other announcers. Original.

Crazy '08

Crazy '08 PDF

Author: Cait N. Murphy

Publisher: Harper Collins

Published: 2009-10-13

Total Pages: 620

ISBN-13: 0061844322

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Crazy ’08 is simply a delight, required reading for all fans of baseball in Chicago. — --Chicago Tribune “If you are any kind of fan, you ought to relish and revel in this wonderful book” — --Washington Times A penetrating look at the dead-ball era, when the game truly was the national pastime. A- — --Entertainment Weekly “picturesque details are what make...Crazy ‘08 such a fun and revealing journey through the early days of baseball.” — --Sports Illustrated “Entertaining and meticulously researched.” — Wall Street Journal “Beguiling” — Raleigh News & Observer “[A] rollicking tour... will fascinate students of baseball... cause today’s Cub fans to experience an unaccustomed feeling---pride...” — New York Times Book Review “[W]orthy to stand alongside The Glory of Their Times..., out in front.” — Raleigh News & Observer

Swinging '73

Swinging '73 PDF

Author: Matthew Silverman

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2013-03-21

Total Pages: 275

ISBN-13: 0762793236

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Interest and attendance were dropping, and football was ascending. Stuck in a rut, baseball was dying. Then Steinbrenner bought the Yankees, a second-division club with wife-swapping pitchers, leaving the House That Ruth Built not with a slam but a simper. He vowed not to interfere—before soon changing his mind. Across town, Tom Seaver led the Mets’ stellar pitching line-up, and iconic outfielder Willie Mays was preparing to say goodbye. For months, the Mets, under Yogi Berra, couldn’t get it right. Meanwhile, the A’s were breaking a ban on facial hair while maverick owner Charlie Finley was fighting to keep them underpaid. But beneath the muttonchops and mayhem, lay another world. Elvis commanded a larger audience than the Apollo landings. A Dodge Dart cost $2,800, gas was a quarter per gallon. A fiscal crisis loomed; Vietnam had ended, the vice president resigned, and Watergate had taken over. It was one of the most exciting years in the game’s history, the first with the designated hitter and the last before arbitration and free agency. The two World Series opponents went head-to-head above the baby steps of a dynasty that soon dwarfed both league champions. It was a turbulent time for the country and the game, neither of which would ever be the same again.

Seasons in Hell

Seasons in Hell PDF

Author: Mike Shropshire

Publisher: Diversion Books

Published: 2014-03-25

Total Pages: 286

ISBN-13: 1626812616

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“A funny, revealing, Ball Four–like romp through mid-seventies baseball” from the longtime sports columnist and author of The Last Real Season (Booklist). You think your team is bad? In this “disastrously hilarious” work on one of the most tortured franchises in baseball, one reporter discovers that nine innings can feel like an eternity (USA Today). In early 1973, gonzo sportswriter Mike Shropshire agreed to cover the Texas Rangers for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, not realizing that the Rangers were arguably the worst team in baseball history. Seasons in Hell is a riotous, candid, irreverent behind-the-scenes account in the tradition of The Bronx Zoo and Ball Four, following the Texas Rangers from Whitey Herzog’s reign in 1973 through Billy Martin’s tumultuous tenure. Offering wonderful perspectives on dozens of unique (and likely never-to-be-seen-again) baseball personalities, Seasons in Hell recounts some of the most extreme characters ever to play the game and brings to life the no-holds-barred culture of major league baseball in the mid-seventies. “The single funniest sports book I have ever read.”—Don Imus “The locker-room shenanigans of a lousy team of the 1970s.”—Publishers Weekly