You're Out and You're Ugly, Too!: Confessions Of An Umpire With An Attitude - Hardcover

Merrill, Durwood; Dent, Jim

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0312182376 ISBN 13: 9780312182373

Publisher: St. Martin's Press, 1998

Synopsis

For twenty-one major league seasons, Durwood Merrill has been one of the most colorful characters in baseball. Part John Wayne, part Will Rogers, part Elmer Gantry, this performer has made baseball his stage since he broke into the major leagues in 1976. Like on Luciano in his best-seller, The Umpire Strikes Back, Durwood will share more than two decades of laugh-out loud anecdotes, controversial opinions, and sage advice. He'll make calls on:

Managers: From Lou Pinella to Earl Weaver to Joe Torre, Durwood related tales of his often explosive relationships with top managers of yesterday and today, and the vicious and often hilarious barbs they trade during on-field tirades.

The Setting Behind the Diamond: Durwood opens the door on baseball's most private places, from the clubhouse to the umpire's room to conferences at the mound and the banter at the plate.

America's Pastime: Durwood offers up his sage advice and controversial opinion on how to get fans back to the ballpark--including how to speed up the games--and insight into the current labor issues.

The Players: From Reggie Jackson to Ken Griffey Jr., Durwood rates all the top players he's seen in his career.

But You're Out and You're Ugly, Too! is also the warm and wholesome story of a man who loved baseball and decided to give up his job as principal of a small Texas high school and follow his dream of becoming a major league umpire. Durwood shares all of his experiences as he journeys through umpire school, the minor leagues, Puerto Rico, and into the majors.

No one has been closer to American League players and managers than Durwood Merrill. He has a keen sense of what makes baseball work, and no one can lay claim to a better perspective on America's pastime--and the politics that control it. Durwood has witnessed most of the key moments in modern baseball history--from players' strikes to free agency to wild pennant races--and he's going to share all of his thoughts on these issues and more.

So take your seat behind home plate and watch as baseball's most outrageous umpire rips the cover off the ball.

About this title

Review:

After decades of abuse and spittle, Major League umpire Durwood Merrill strikes back with some pretty incisive, funny, and no-holds-barred anecdotes. When his book stays in the game, it's a real hoot, light and folksy; how can you not laugh with a guy who can admit that "Folks around the American League say I've sent a few pitchers to the Hall of Fame before their time because my strike zone tends to swell like George Steinbrenner's ego"? It's his own ego, though, that has him swinging for the seats and coming up short; he's not much of a memoirist. Thankfully, like a good umpire, he keeps his personal interference to a minimum and mostly sticks to business, offering some tough prescriptions for what ails the game, and some solid dissection of the intricacies of his craft. His thoughts on Pete Rose might lead you to believe that Charlie Hustle is the book's title character. -- Jeff Silverman, Sports editor

From the Publisher:

"By nature, umpires aren't a particularly lovable breed, but it'll be hard to dislike Merrill after reading this funny and candid memoir of his career." --USA Today Baseball Weekly

About this edition

• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0312182376
• ISBN 13: 9780312182373
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 270