View From the Booth: ; Four Decades with the Phillies, Updated and Expanded

As Tim McCarver points out in the Foreword, Chris Wheeler is accomplished at telling stories Wheels can paint word pictures like few broadcasters in any sport. His View from the Booth encompasses memorable portraits of people and places, all the highs and lows of four decades with the never-boring Philadelphia Phillies. Reflecting his style behind the mike, Chris writing is conversational. Some familiar anecdotes he retells in his own unique way. But many more are original, the personal memories of a career that has realized childhood dreams.

It s all here, from the triumphs of 1980 and 2008 to far less successful seasons. How a whim of the irrepressible Whitey Ashburn first put Chris behind a Phillies mike; how Paul Owens celebrated a memorable birthday in Lancaster; why Eric Gregg had to back off the field; how John Vukovich learned to eat like a gentleman. You ll learn about how a few words can define a manager s career, when our super scout imitated a lion, how Terry Francona actually made Nolan Ryan smile, and what it was really like behind the Vet s scoreboard. You ll relive all the Opening Day extravaganzas of that master showman, Bill Giles, and get a float-top view of both parades. And you ll join in the spontaneous celebration that came to be called The Wheeler. In the final chapter, you ll relive with Chris his own reaction to losing his longtime partner in the booth, Harry Kalas.

What is not here is mean-spiritedness. Any inevitable foibles are recounted with insight, honesty, and often self-deprecating humor. That s life, in or out of baseball. If it sometimes seems too good to be true, well, that pretty much sums up Wheels career. We all have our disappointments, but these are the authentic memories of a man who has had the good fortune to do what he loves. You re invited to share them.

CHRIS WHEELER is in his fourth decade of working for the Philadelphia Phillies, more than three as a widely recognized television and radio broadcaster. He is one of the few people to have participated in both championship seasons 1980 and 2008. Nicknamed Wheels by Larry Shenk, his first boss with the Phillies, Chris often represents the team in appearances throughout the region. He lives in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, with his longtime companion, Renée Gosik, and their dog, Nittany.

HAL GULLAN is a noted author of books on politics, the presidency, and sports. His sports books include Jumping Through Hoops, on Penn basketball, and a collaboration with Saint Joseph s basketball coach Phil Martelli, Don t Call Me Coach: A Lesson Plan for Life. Hal lives in the Mount Airy section of Philadelphia with his wife, Elizabeth.