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Title: The Long Ball, the Summer of '75-Spaceman, Catfish, Charlie Hustle, and the Greatest World Series Ever Played by Tom Adelman, Richard M. Davidson ISBN: 1-4025-4209-7 Publisher: Recorded Books Pub. Date: August, 2003 Format: Audio Cassette List Price(USD): $89.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (25 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: An Enjoyable Read on the 1975 Season
Comment: It has become popular during the last several years to have books published which are devoted to certain years during a baseball season. Some of them have been good while others have been found wanting. The Long Ball by Tom Adelman fits into the former category especially if you are old enough to remember the memorable 1975 season. There is a heavy emphasis on that year's World Series as it should, but it also includes a number of incidents and individuals that made headlines during that year such as the advent of free agency looming ominously on the horizon, and anecdotes on Casey Stengel, Billy Martin, Reggie Jackson, Bill Lee, Catfish Hunter, and Carl Yastrzemski, and many others. Half of the book is devoted to the post season playoffs and World Series. I like the author's use of humor in telling stories such as Bill Lee describing Bernie Carbo as "pure oxygen looking for a flame." The relationship between Sparky Anderson and Bernie Carbo is built up prior to that fantastic 6th game of the Series, and I thought Anderson's reaction to the ending of that game was precious as he felt betrayed by Carbo's 8th inning three run homer. I notice that this book has received mixed reviews, but I found the book to be enjoyable and it was fun to relive the '75 season through this book and be reunited with those individuals who were in the game during that time. Whether you were old enough to be a fan during this season or not, I think you will find this to be a very enjoyable book. It is worth the space on your bookcase.
Rating: 5
Summary: Different approach, excellent results
Comment: This book could have been overlooked on the shelf for the simple reason that the title states: The Greatest World Series Ever Played. As such, the '75 series has been written about several times, with varying interest and success. But anyone who passes over this book will miss an enjoyable, and enlightening, read. With this effort, Adelman goes beyond the playing field and gives the readers a look into private lives of the ballplayers. Johnny Bench's marriage is disintegrating, yet he seemingly doesn't care because he wants to win. Luis Tiant's parents have never seen him pitch in the majors until the World Series. This is stuff that you can't get out of stat books or reference manuals. These are stories, of the players, of the game, of the times. Adelman provides hints throughout of how Casey Stengel, Astroturf, the DH and Andy Messersmith and Dave McNally are all intertwined. Part history book, part narrative and part comedy, this book belongs on all baseball fans' shelf at home, especially fans of the Sox and Reds. And if you really want to know how long a batter has to decide to swing (which actually IS closer to 1/2 second than .15 seconds -- think about it, no one can decide to swing, swing and make contact, all within .15 second -- watch the next time Randy Johnson is on the hill -- the batter starts moving toward a swing before the pitch is even released, but I digress), go read Robert Adair's "Physics of Baseball." But if you want an entertaining look at baseball in one of the last pure years, pre-steroid inflated numbers, pre-record induced egos, don't miss Adelman's brilliant book.
Rating: 5
Summary: Grandly Grand
Comment: I never liked baseball nor sports for that matter. But reading this showed that there is more to the American game than at first glance. The interesting stories of the players and he descriptions keep me reading. For me it was weird to actually read a story about a sport, but this felt like a classic to me.
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Title: The Teammates by David Halberstam ISBN: 140130057X Publisher: Hyperion Press Pub. Date: 14 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $22.95 |
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Title: The Boys of October : How the 1975 Boston Red Sox Embodied Baseball's Ideals - and Restored Our Spirits by Doug Hornig ISBN: 0071402470 Publisher: McGraw-Hill/Contemporary Books Pub. Date: 21 March, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: October Men: Reggie Jackson, George Steinbrenner, Billy Martin, and the Yankees' Miraculous Finish in 1978 by Roger Kahn ISBN: 0151006288 Publisher: Harcourt Pub. Date: 01 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title: The Little Red (Sox) Book: A Revisionist Red Sox History by Bill Lee, Jim Prime ISBN: 1572435275 Publisher: Triumph Books Pub. Date: April, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Game Time: A Baseball Companion by Steve Kettmann, Roger Angell ISBN: 0151008248 Publisher: Harcourt Pub. Date: 01 April, 2003 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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