The Home Run Game: An Anthology of Sportswriting on Baseball's Most Remarkable Home Runs from Babe Ruth to Mark McGwire - Hardcover

Wimmer, Dick

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1580800343 ISBN 13: 9781580800341

Publisher: Burford Books, 1999

Synopsis

Baseball was reunited with the affection of its fans in 1998. due largely to the neck-and-neck home run race staged by Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire. Dick Wimmer has captured the spirit of this exitement in The Home Run Game, an anthology dedicated to baseball's most dramatic home runs.

About this title

From Kirkus Reviews:

After Duke Snider hit a 300-foot home run, he teased Frank Howard, who earlier had blasted one over 500 feet, by saying, ``Yours didn't count any more than mine did.'' This anthology, partially succeeds in highlighting those home runs that do count more, whether in the history books or in the hearts of baseball fans. Compiled by Wimmer, a Hollywood screenwriter, novelist (Boyne's Lassie, 1998), and editor of sports anthologies (The Sandlot Game, not reviewed), this collection of 19 articles features some of baseball's most famous home runs, such as Babe Ruth's 60th, Reggie Jackson's three-in-a-row, and Carlton Fisk's dramatic homer in the World Series. Many players renowned for their home-run power are covered, including Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Ted Williams, Jimmie Foxx, Ralph Kiner, and Willie Stargell, and there are articles about Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, both of whom provided the home-run drama in the 1998 season. Also included are stories dealing with lesser-known players and incidents: Josh Gibson, who played 17 seasons in the Negro Leagues; Ron Jackson of the Chicago White Sox, who hit a tape-measure shot during spring training; Joe Hauser, who, in the minor leagues, twice blasted over 61 home runs. This anthology, however, is not definitive: The omission of Hank Aaron's historic 715th home run is glaring and would have been more significant than an excerpt from the movie The Natural, which is included. Plus, the book suffers by not providing background information about the contributors (readers may know who the legendary Red Smith and Roger Angell are, but may be unfamiliar with Peter Levine or Joe Gergen) and not informing when each article was written. While the collection's individual pieces do capture some of baseball's magical moments, The Home Run Game is not organized or comprehensive enough to do full justice to the writers and to the players' achievements. (20 b&w photos) -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From Library Journal:

This spring has been rich with books about the home run, primarily because of the slugging feats of Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire. This book brings together some of the best writing about the home run from a variety of sources. Many of the excerpts will be familiar to baseball fans, as they have appeared in other publications, but this is still a refreshing collection with something for everyone. For this reviewer, highlights were the chapters on minor league hitters; the essay by noted baseball writer Bill James on one of baseball's more overlooked power hitters, Ralph Kiner; and a longer excerpt about Roger Maris, the single-season home run leader before Sosa and McGwire obliterated his record last year. Also of particular note is Emil Rothe's description of Babe Ruth's last big-league game. While this is certainly not a required purchase for all libraries, it will be a valuable addition to popular baseball collections and is therefore recommended for public and school libraries.AWilliam O. Scheeren, Hempfield Area H.S. Lib., Greensburg, PA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Burford Books
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 1580800343
• ISBN 13: 9781580800341
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 192