Fisk's Homer, Willie's Catch, and the Shot Heard Round the World
Fisk's Homer, Willie's Catch, and the Shot Heard Round the World

Author: G. Richard McKelvey

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 1998

Total Pages: 252

ISBN-13:

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Mickey Owen's untimely passed ball in the 1941 World Series. Don Larsen's perfect game. Carlton Fisk cheering for his blast to stay fair as it sailed over Boston's Green Monster. These moments and many like them are forever etched in the minds of baseball fans. Though other sports have produced their shares of postseason memories, it is only in baseball that they are seemly forever remembered. The thrill of Willie Mays' overhead catch against the Cleveland Indians or the agony of Bill Buckner's error that denied Boston its first world championship in decades are as fresh today as they were when they occurred. The stories of 26 dramatic postseason moments in the national pastime are told here. The background of the players, the impact of the play on the postseason, and the lasting effect it had on those involved are fully covered.

For It's One, Two, Three, Four Strikes You're Out at the Owners' Ball Game
For It's One, Two, Three, Four Strikes You're Out at the Owners' Ball Game

Author: G. Richard McKelvey

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2017-07-06

Total Pages: 225

ISBN-13: 0786450495

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Many assume incorrectly that confrontations between baseball's players and management began in the 1960s when the Major League Baseball Players Association started showing signs of becoming a union to be reckoned with. (The tensions of the 1960s prompted the owners to form the Player Relations Committee to deal with them and in February 1968, the two groups negotiated the game's first Basic Agreement.) The struggles between players and management to gain the upper hand did not, however, start there--the two groups have had numerous clashes since baseball began (as well as since the 1968 agreement). There have been various periods of conflict and peace throughout the century and before. This work traces the history of the relationship between players and management from baseball's early years to the new challenges and developing tensions that led to spring training lockouts instigated by the owners and to player strikes in 1972, 1981, 1985, and 1994. An important agreement in 1996 brought labor peace once again. The future of player-management relations is also covered.

Mike Torrez
Mike Torrez

Author: Jorge Iber

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2016-08-02

Total Pages: 269

ISBN-13: 1476624453

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The history of baseball is filled with players whose careers were defined by one bad play. Mike Torrez is remembered as the pitcher who gave up the infamous three-run homer to Bucky "Bleeping" Dent in the 1978 playoffs tie-breaker between the Red Sox and Yankees. Yet Torrez's life added up to much more than his worst moment on the mound. Coming from a vibrant Mexican American community that settled in Topeka, Kansas, in the early 1900s, he made it to the Majors by his own talent and efforts, with the help of an athletic program for Mexican youth that spread through the Midwest, Texas and Mexico during the 20th century. He was in the middle of many transformative events of the 1970s--such as the rise of free agency--and was an ethnic role model in the years before the "Fernandomania" of 1981. This book covers Torrez's life and career as the winningest Mexican American pitcher in Major League history.

The Bounce
The Bounce

Author: G. Richard McKelvey

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2001-01-01

Total Pages: 260

ISBN-13: 9780786409556

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Some of baseball's most powerful and enduring memories have come as a result of watching a team for a season, a decade, or a lifetime. Some teams achieved the unexpected task of pulling themselves up from the bottom to reach the height of success, like the 1914 Miracle Boston Braves and the 1969 Amazin' New York Mets, who both went on to win World Championships. Other teams, like the 1964 Philadelphia Phillies and 1969 Chicago Cubs, experienced an astonishing fall from the roof to the cellar. This work examines some of baseball's greatest comebacks and disappointments. Included are the sagas of the 1903 and 1951 New York Giants, 1906 and 1969 Chicago Cubs, 1914 Boston Braves, 1934 Detroit Tigers, 1946 and 1978 Boston Red Sox, 1950 and 1964 Philadelphia Phillies, 1969 and 1999 New York Mets, 1987 Toronto Blue Jays, 1989 Baltimore Orioles, 1991 Atlanta Braves and Minnesota Twins, and 1998 Florida Marlins.

Lost in the Sun
Lost in the Sun

Author: G. Richard McKelvey

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2007-11-15

Total Pages: 221

ISBN-13: 0786432187

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Baseball players, like teams, have their ups and downs. Pitchers inexplicably lose their command of the strike zone, batters think themselves into deep slumps, and injuries, addiction, and poor decision-making can radically change the fortunes of either. It's in the response to such adversity that memorable stories are made. This book focuses both on players whose determination in the face of injury or private demons landed them back in the big leagues and stars who never recovered from their dramatic, unexpected falls. Profiled here are 14 players whose stories are among the most stirring in baseball history: Tony Conigliaro, Monte Stratton, Pete Rose, Bert Shepard, Eddie Waitkus, Mark Wohlers, Red Barney, Lou Brissie, Tommy John, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Steve Blass, Dave Dravecky, and Joe Jackson.

The Red Sox Century
The Red Sox Century

Author: Alan Ross

Publisher: Turner Publishing Company

Published: 2004-04-01

Total Pages: 192

ISBN-13: 1620453525

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Voices and Memories The Curse, the Green Monster, the Rocket, the homer. . .Teddy Ballgame, Yan Fenway, Nomar, and Pedro. The Red Sox Century spans 101 years of Boston Red Sox lore that's sure to be a hit with baseball fans everywhere. While the Olde Towne Team has registered more than its fair share of heartaches on the diamond, the vaunted Red and Blue have etched themselves deeply into baseball lore as perennial contenders in the American League. The Red Sox Century is filled with Red Sox stories, some legendary and others less well known. A "You are there" account of all the greats of the Hub's Hose, it is the best seat in the ballpark for the epic milestones in the team's history. Told through the voices of players, coaches, and sports-writers, this tribute also includes an all-time Red Sox team, a special Shrine to No. 9 section on the legendary Ted Williams, and player rosters for every Red Sox World Series team. From Pesky's Pole and the Wall to the Red Seat and those #*?@$! Yankees, this treasury of team lore has it all for Red Sox fans and baseball enthusiasts of all ages. Batter up! It's Bosox time in Beantown.

All Bat, No Glove
All Bat, No Glove

Author: G. Richard McKelvey

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2004-09-15

Total Pages: 224

ISBN-13: 9780786419449

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The basic elements of baseball remain essentially the same as they were when the first professional game was played in the 1870s. Changes in this sport--when they come--come slowly. In 1973, one of baseball's most drastic changes was legislated: American League owners voted to add one player to the traditional nine-man line-up, creating a "10-man game" in which a designated hitter (or DH) had a regular spot in the batting order, and he or a replacement for him batted for his club's pitcher(s) throughout the game. This change to baseball rules was approved in the hopes that DH's would provide a spark for the AL's sagging offenses; an explosion in hits, homers and runs would draw more people to their ballparks and enable their clubs to surpass the National League in the annual attendance race. This work offers a fascinating exploration of the history and place of the designated hitter in the major leagues.

Mexican Raiders in the Major Leagues
Mexican Raiders in the Major Leagues

Author: G. Richard McKelvey

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2006-09-08

Total Pages: 213

ISBN-13: 0786425636

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In 1946 American baseball was a shadow of its former self. In the wake of depression and war, attendance had spiraled down. Management was at odds with players, and some began to wonder if there might be other career options. Enter the five Pasquel brothers from Mexico. Armed with promises of wealth and stardom, the Pasquels recruited 23 players away from American teams. For most, it was the beginning of the end of their careers. Mexican baseball wasn't the picture the Pasquels painted, and the players were not given a cheerful welcome home. This book tells the story of the 1946 exodus to Mexican baseball, setting the stage with chapters on change and war in the U.S., player-management issues that clouded baseball's recovery, and a history of the Mexican "outlaw" league. Chapters then delve into the stories of 23 players who took their bats and gloves south of the border. The author unravels lawsuits that followed the players' five-year ban from American baseball, and concludes with the career outcomes for players after they returned home.

The MacPhails
The MacPhails

Author: G. Richard McKelvey

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2000-01-01

Total Pages: 356

ISBN-13: 9780786406395

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Since the early 1930s "MacPhail" has been a big name in baseball. Three generations of this one family have provided leadership, innovation and vision for the sport. Larry, Lee and Andy MacPhail, representing very different eras of American life, have each addressed baseball's needs and opportunities in his own way. During the 1930s and 1940s Larry MacPhail served as general manager and vice president of the Cincinnati Reds, executive vice president and president of the Brooklyn Dodgers, and part owner and president of the New York Yankees. He was posthumously inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1978. Larry's son, Lee, worked for 13 years in the Yankee organization before serving as general manager and president of the Baltimore Orioles. Lee later served two five-year terms as president of the American League and two years as president of the Player Relations Committee. Lee was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1998, becoming the only son ever to join his father in the Hall. Lee's son, Andy, worked in management positions for the Chicago Cubs, the Houston Astros and the Minnesota Twins before becoming president and CEO of the Cubs.

Baseball
Baseball

Author: Edward J. Rielly

Publisher: U of Nebraska Press

Published: 2005-01-01

Total Pages: 396

ISBN-13: 9780803290051

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Baseball: An Encyclopedia of Popular Culture looks at American society through the prism of its favorite pastime, discussing not only the game itself but a variety of topics with significance beyond the diamond. Its 269 entries, which vary in length from two hundred to twenty-five hundred words, explore the game?s intersection with race, gender, art, drug abuse, entertainment, business, gambling, movies, and the shift from rural to urban society. ΓΈ Filled with larger-than-life characters, baseball legends, sports facts and firsts, important milestones, and observations about daily life and popular culture, this encyclopedia is not only an excellent reference source but also an enjoyable book to browse.