Baseball's Good Guys: The Real Heroes of the Game - Hardcover

Walsh, Jack; Cook, Marshall J

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1582617228 ISBN 13: 9781582617220

Publisher: Sports Publishing LLC, 2004

Synopsis

From Lou Gehrig to Derek Jeter, here are 26 players, including one woman, fans will want to get to know better because of their courage, determination, charity, and sacrifice.

About this title

From the Inside Flap

On these pages, you'll meet some of baseball's true good guys. With their courage and determination, their charity and sacrifice, these men—and one woman—are great role models on and off the field.

From Lou Gehrig to Derek Jeter, the 26 players you'll get to know better here are all worthy of respect and emulation. You can be proud to introduce them to your kids.

You already know many of them from the way they played or play the game: sluggers like Hank Greenberg, Ted Williams, Sammy Sosa and Carlos Delgado, glovemen like Jimmy Piersall and Roberto Clemente, hurlers like Sandy Koufax, Herb Score, Tommy John, and Catfish Hunter. But you may not know some of the stories behind their on-field performances, the obstacles they overcame and the sacrifices they made. And you may not know about their efforts off the field, through works of charity and service, to make our world a better place to live.

We've given the leadoff spot to baseball's beloved ambassador, Buck O'Neill. Because of racial discrimination, he never got his chance to play in the major leagues, but he always insisted he was "right on time" anyway. Now he tells the glorious story of the Negro Leagues and embodies the power of forgiveness and love.

The man who did break the color line, Jackie Robinson, is here, as are some of the men who came immediately after Jackie—Larry Doby, Monte Irvin, and Roy Campanella. Baseball's all-time home run leader, Henry Aaron, is also one of our good guys, as is baseball's Ironman, Cal Ripken Jr.

You'll find a few surprises in the lineup, too, men like Jim Eisenreich, Dave Dravecky, Ryne Duren and Jim Abbott. Their numbers don't qualify them for the Hall of Fame, but their lives can inspire and guide us.

Add in a couple of players-turned-politicians, Jim Bunning and Wilbur Mizell, umpire Dave Pallone , a coach, Rich Donnelly, and someone to call the action for us, Vin Scully, and our lineup of good guys is just about complete.

But we've saved a place in our rotation for a woman, the remarkable Ila Borders, the only woman to pitch, start and win in a men's professional baseball league.

You'll enjoy getting to know all these folks better, and their stories will inspire as well as delight you.

About the Author

Walsh is a longtime Red Sox fan.

About this edition

• Publisher: Sports Publishing LLC
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 1582617228
• ISBN 13: 9781582617220
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 261