Charlie Gehringer was the best second baseman of his era. He is regarded by many as the best two-strike hitter of all time and his seemingly effortless fielding ability earned him the nickname of "The Mechanical Man." Sports writers groused that he was too quiet to be a star. Charlie replied that he didn't hit with his mouth. This work follows Gehringer's career from the day a scout spotted him on the sandlots of Michigan in 1923 to his induction into the Hall of Fame in 1949 and into his life after baseball.
A New York Times Bestseller Detroit, mid-1930s: In a city abuzz over its unrivaled sports success, gun-loving baseball fan Dayton Dean became ensnared in the nefarious and deadly Black Legion. The secretive, Klan-like group was executing a wicked plan of terror, murdering enemies, flogging associates, and contemplating armed rebellion. The Legion boasted tens of thousands of members across the Midwest, among them politicians and prominent citizens—even, possibly, a beloved athlete. Terror in the City of Champions opens with the arrival of Mickey Cochrane, a fiery baseball star who roused the Great Depression’s hardest-hit city by leading the Tigers to the 1934 pennant. A year later he guided the team to its first championship. Within seven months the Lions and Red Wings follow in football and hockey—all while Joe Louis chased boxing’s heavyweight crown. Amidst such glory, the Legion’s dreadful toll grew unchecked: staged “suicides,” bodies dumped along roadsides, high-profile assassination plots. Talkative Dayton Dean’s involvement would deepen as heroic Mickey’s Cochrane’s reputation would rise. But the ballplayer had his own demons, including a close friendship with Harry Bennett, Henry Ford’s brutal union buster. Award-winning author Tom Stanton weaves a stunning tale of history, crime, and sports. Richly portraying 1930s America, Terror in the City of Champions features a pageant of colorful figures: iconic athletes, sanctimonious criminals, scheming industrial titans, a bigoted radio priest, a love-smitten celebrity couple, J. Edgar Hoover, and two future presidents, Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan. It is a rollicking true story set at the confluence of hard luck, hope, victory, and violence. .
Honig interviewed former big-league players across the country to compile this nostalgic book packed with statistics, action, revelations, and an extraordinary oral history of the halcyon days of baseball between the world wars. Includes comments by Ted Williams, Bucky Waters, Lou Gehrig, and others. Photos.
Once in a great while there appears a baseball player who transcends the game and earns universal admiration from his fellow players, from fans, and from the American people. Such a man was Hank Greenberg, whose dynamic life and legendary career are among baseball's most inspiring stories. The Story of My Life tells the story of this extraordinary man in his own words, describing his childhood as the son of Eastern European immigrants in New York; his spectacular baseball career as one of the greatest home-run hitters of all time and later as a manager and owner; his heroic service in World War II; and his courageous struggle with cancer. Tall, handsome, and uncommonly good-natured, Greenberg was a secular Jew who, during a time of widespread religious bigotry in America, stood up for his beliefs. Throughout a lifetime of anti-Semitic abuse he maintained his dignity, becoming in the process a hero for Jews throughout America and the first Jewish ballplayer elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
The Ultimate Major League Baseball book series brings you the Detroit Tigers: Michigan’s favorite sports team. A book that chronicles the history of the Detroit Tiger major-league baseball franchise. Relive the past through yearly reviews that recap each season month by month, including information on hitting, pitching, and defense. There are player and pitcher of the year selections, break out boxes for decade hitting and pitching leaders. Each decade has player and pitcher of the decade selections, with all-decade teams and pitching staffs presented. The new analytical evaluations Most Effective Hitter (MEH) and Most Effective Pitcher (MEP) are introduced. They compare position players and pitchers from all eras based upon fourteen areas of on-the-field performance for each. MEH evaluates the offensive proficiency of a player or team. You will see where your favorite Tiger ranks for the Top-150 All-Time, the Top five All-Time Teams, and the Top-10 by position. MEP weighs pitching proficiency for a player or team, with the lists of Top-50 All-Time Starters and Top-50 All-Time Relievers revealed for the first time. The Yearly and decade hitting and pitching leaders from 1901 through 2021 are included. The top-100 all-time leaders in over one hundred hitting and fifty pitching categories are listed. From Cobb to Cabrera, it is all there, as the Detroit Tigers: Michigan’s favorite sports team book would be a valuable addition to any library. Whether a casual fan or a savvy baseball enthusiast, the reader will enjoy hours learning more about the Detroit Tiger franchise.
Players' interviews are prefaced with a short history of the parallel paths the city and professional baseball took from the end of World War I through the early 1950s.
Offering a fresh approach to the familiar concept of all-time baseball teams, this exhaustive work ranks more than 2,500 players by state of birth and includes both major league and Negro League athletes. Each chapter covers one state and opens with the all-time team, naming a top selection for each position followed by honorable mentions. Also included are all-time stat leaders in nine categories--games, hits, average, RBI, home runs, stolen bases, pitching wins, strikeouts and saves--a brief overview of the state's baseball history, notable player achievements, historic baseball places to see, potential future stars, a comprehensive list of player nicknames, and the state's all-time best player.
Part reference, part trivia, part brain teaser, and absolutely the most unusual and thorough compendium of baseball stats and facts ever assembled—all verified for accuracy by the Baseball Hall of Fame. First created by legendary sportswriter Bert Randolph Sugar, and now updated, here are thousands of fascinating lists, tables, data, and stimulating facts. Inside, you’ll find all of the big name baseball heroes like Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Ernie Banks, Pete Rose, Denny McLain, Ty Cobb, and a lot of information that will be new to even the most devoted fans: Highest batting averages not to win batting titles Home-run leaders by state of birth Players on last-place teams leading the league in RBIs, by season Most triples by position, season Winners of two “legs” of triple crown since last winner Oldest pitchers with losing record, leading league in ERA Career pitching leaders under six feet tall Managers replaced wile team was in first place Hall of Famers whose sons played in the majors Players with palindromic surnames And so much more! Not just a collection of facts or records, this is a book of glorious fun that will astound even the most bookish baseball fan. Read up and amaze your friends!
Over 1,500 men played major league baseball during the golden era of the 1920s, and over 850 played in the Negro Leagues during the same decade. At the end of the 20th century only about 20 of those men were still alive. The author of this work tracked down all of those players, 14 of whom were able to grant an interview. In this unique book, those 14 players, a Cuban leaguer and five former sportswriters give first person accounts of baseball in the 1920s and early 1930s. They talk of the greatest players in the history of the game--Babe Ruth, Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, Walter Johnson and Martin Dihigo--and of their own memorable careers. The personal accounts are then complemented by historical analysis from the author. Those interviewed are major leaguers Bill Rogell, Willis Hudlin, Clyde Sukeforth, Ray Hayworth, Paul Hopkins, Bob Cremins, Frank Stewart, Karl Swanson, Mel Harder, Ben Sankey, Carl Sumner and Bill Werber; Negro leaguers Ted Radcliffe and Harold Tinker; Cuban leaguer Rodolfo Fernandez; and sportswriters Will Cloney, Fred Russell, Harold Rosenthal, Carl Lundquist and Will Grimsley.
