My Greatest Day in Baseball, 1946-1997: Baseball's Legends Recount Their Epic Moments - Hardcover

McCullough, Bob

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0878339892 ISBN 13: 9780878339891

Publisher: Taylor Trade Publishing, 1998

Synopsis

My Greatest Day in Baseball, 1946-1997 provides almost one hundred interviews with the greatest players of our time, including Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, Reggie Jackson, Orel Hershiser, Cal Ripken, Jr., and both Ken Griffey Senior and Junior. Each player reveals what he feels was his best moment in baseball and why.

About this title

Review

If you doubt that there's more to the National Pastime these days than dollar signs and contract disputes, My Greatest Day in Baseball will strike out that notion faster than a trio of Randy Johnson heaters. Bob McCullough's modernization of John P. Carmichael's 1945 classic does just what its title implies: it asks dugouts full of past and present stars to replay their best day in the game. The lineup is awesome. Among the 90 who step up are Hank Aaron, Roger Clemens, Whitey Ford, the Griffeys, Al Kaline, Reggie Jackson, Derek Jeter, Mark McGwire, Cal Ripken, Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson, Ozzie Smith, Joe Torre, and Bernie Williams. Some of the days are obvious: Jackson crows about his trio of Game-6 dingers against the Dodgers in the 1977 World Series; the Griffeys each recall the first day they played together in Seattle; and Ripken resurrects the evening he broke Lou Gehrig's consecutive-games streak. Other gems, such as David Cone rhapsodizing on his first trip to the ballpark with his father, are delightfully surprising. The Big Unit, Randy Johnson, offers several--not including his unforgettably hilarious whiff of John Kruk in the 1993 All-Star Game; then again, this is a book about greatest days, not funniest.

From Publishers Weekly

McCullough, a frequent contributor to PW, has compiled interviews with 90 ballplayers, managers, umpires and announcers. He has avoided such famous events as Bobby Thomson's 1951 home run and Don Larsen's perfect game in 1956 to concentrate on a ragtag group that ranges from Hank Aaron to Tom Lasorda to Mudcat Grant, and has come up with some surprising comments from his subjects. For instance, father-and-son tandem Ken Griffey, Junior and Senior, both say playing on the major-league level together was their greatest thrill, while another father-and-son team, Randy and Todd Hundley, differ?Randy recalling the day of Todd's birth and hitting a grand-slam home run and Todd telling how difficult it was to break Roy Campanella's home-run record for catchers. The recently deceased Hall-of-Fame announcer Harry Caray recalls Cardinal Stan Musial's 3000th hit as most memorable, while the late Richie Ashburn remembers throwing out Dodger Cal Abrams at the plate to save the pennant for the 1950's Phillies. Mets reliever Tug McGraw recalls that pitching in front of his father in the stands for the first time was his biggest thrill, while Joe Carter remembers dreaming about the number "3" the night before he hit a three-run home run to win the World Series for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1993. Henry Aaron calls the day he first put on a major-league uniform his greatest thrill, while Jerry Koosman reminisces about manager Gil Hodges and the miracle 1969 Mets. In an era when many ballplayers are perceived as over-paid and self-centered, McCullough has managed to present a portrait that is filled not with self-aggrandizing achievements, but with warm personal anecdotes to charm every baseball fan. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Taylor Trade Publishing
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0878339892
• ISBN 13: 9780878339891
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 336