$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on Apr 1, 2009 10:19:54 GMT -5
Are we sure about that? I would have thought he would avoid that type of chatter, as he is a broadcaster now, and they take themselves a bit more seriously.
Also, here's the description of the new book on Amazon...seems a bit more bland. Looks like a how-to!
As to wild stories, Straw's book comes out this month....lets see bout that one - although that one looks like a book of "redemption."
Ron Darling has been beloved by Mets fans since he helped his team win the 1986 World Series. Today he is considered one of the most articulate and insightful broadcasters in baseball, bringing the game to life in ways that few can match. Now he gives us an engaging, sophisticated, practical, and philosophical exploration of the art, strategy, and psychology of pitching.
Darling takes us inside the pitcher’s mind, illuminating the subtler aspects of the game and providing a deeper appreciation of what happens on the field. He explains why the position of pitcher is uniquely strategic and complex and explores the various tactics a pitcher uses in different scenarios, including the countless factors in deciding what to throw and how he bounces back from a tough inning. Throughout, we get a glimpse of what it feels like to stand alone on the mound, the center of attention for tens of thousands of fans.
While there are technical books on pitching, there is no other book that examines the position in such compelling depth as The Complete Game. Filled with captivating, real-life anecdotes, it will do for pitching what Ted Williams’s The Science of Hitting did for batting—and it will be an essential book for every fan and aspiring player.
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Post by baldvinny on Apr 8, 2009 7:32:18 GMT -5
the author of this book stopped by on saturday and dropped off a copy to me. it looks like a pretty funny/entertaining read, and i really hope i find some time in the upcoming weeks to check it out. the book is called "Chuckin Chuck" and it's a story of charles manson developing an unhittable fastball while pitching for the prison baseball team here is the product description from amazon: Desensitized. That's what all sports fans have become to the plethora of criminal-athletes that pervade our sports culture. So what will the bombastic owner of the New England Mavericks do when he learns that America's most notorious inmate has developed a literally unhittable pitch while playing for his prison baseball team? A sportsworld littered with bad boys who belong on Cops rather than on a box of Wheaties is deplorable. But when a man can throw the ball 81 times per game and not one pitch is so much as foul-tipped...what's not to love?
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Post by yanksgooner on Apr 8, 2009 8:02:25 GMT -5
That Chuck Manson was a talented guy. If you've ever read any of his books before, he was a fantastic musician and was teetering on a professional career alongside one of the Beach Boys, I believe. Goes to show you, whatever he did, whether good or bad, was spectacular. An enormous waste of talent, so it seems. ======================================= Anyway, I've picked up "Invisible Frontier: Exploring the Tunnels, Ruins, & Rooftops of Hidden New York." It's all about the journeys of a team of Urban Explorers that uncover unused and hidden infrastructure and secret locations all around the city that are invisible to the everyday person. Pretty cool read so far, though their 6 train expedition through the city hall loop isn't very exotic, as they don't kick you off the train when it turns from Downtown to Uptown and passes the 'secret' deserted station.
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on Apr 8, 2009 8:49:37 GMT -5
Both of those books look pretty cool. Ill probably add them to my voluminous Amazon wish list and potentially grab in time, or let me know later on if they are truly worth a borrow. Once again I am in the middle of a handful of books, including George Kell's autobiog, and the Torre book - which has not really been mindgrabbing enough to get me through yet. I have about 100 pages to go. But with a new Roger Clemens "expose" sorta book hitting my mailbox next week - penned by the guy who wrote, "The Bad Guys Won" - I am in early in on this one now... Facing Clemens: Hitters on Confronting Baseball's Most Intimidating PitcherProduct DescriptionA fascinating look at Roger Clemens, in the words of those who have had to face him at various times in his career, from All Stars (Cal Ripken, Jr., Torii Hunter) to rookies and even Clemens' eldest son. From the Back Cover As the most feared pitcher of all time, Roger Clemens has won more than 350 games in his 20-year baseball career, struck out more than 4,500 batters (the second highest total in the history of the game), and earned a record seven Cy Young awards. Along the way, he’s hit 150 batters, knocked down hundreds more, and stared down every batter who tried to dig in against him. Facing Clemens explores what it’s really like to face the Rocket Man. Author Jonathan Mayo has interviewed scores of players, including Ken Griffey Jr., Chipper Jones, Luis Gonzalez, Torii Hunter, Cal Ripken Jr., and even Clemens’s own son, Koby Clemens, for a batter’s box view of the Rocket bearing down from the mound. [/i]
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Post by Lindsey on Apr 8, 2009 10:27:19 GMT -5
I love Jon Mayo. He's a great guy, is amazingly smart, has a passion for prospects.
I got a comp copy of his book but I haven't had time to read it yet. I want to read it though! It was coming out during that whole Clemens hoopla, so it'll be fun to read.
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on Apr 8, 2009 10:30:57 GMT -5
Ill say this, though, Mayo has a boner for Clemens. He talks about him like John the Baptist describes the Lord. Of course this book came out before the crap hit the fan, which makes some of the speeches about Clemens' clean regime worth a chuckle. But this is a great read.
I had forgotten how much a stud hitter Dave Magadan was when he came up, the bastard hit over .500 in his last season of college ball. Reading a bit of his background, and his tilts with Clemens from the College World Series up until a meaningless regular season series years later is a fun take.
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on Apr 8, 2009 22:32:03 GMT -5
When this finally comes out, it'll be a grab. RONNIE JAMES DIO To Write Autobiography - Apr. 8, 2009 According to U.K.'s Classic Rock magazine, legendary heavy metal vocalist Ronnie James Dio (HEAVEN & HELL, BLACK SABBATH, RAINBOW, DIO) has begun writing his autobiography. It will "not be centered around myself so much as me telling my life story through the stories of those around me," he is quoted as saying.
Dio explained that he's fitting the writing around a hectic schedule with HEAVEN & HELL, which is scheduled to release its debut album, "The Devil You Know", later this month.
"Every time I feel I'm getting halfway there, another halfway comes along," he said. "But yes, I'm writing it and it's certainly going to be very, very interesting for people interested in the bands I've been in and the people I've played with.
"You have to have a focal point, and I guess that had to be me. It's an autobiography, but within it, I tell the stories that somehow explain a little bit what [former RAINBOW mastermind] Ritchie [Blackmore]'s like or [BLACK SABBATH's] Tony [Iommi]'s like or Geezer [Butler]'s like. I don't analyze them, but just in telling the tales I paint everyone in as good a light as possible. It's not a tell-all book."
According to Dio, anyone expecting to read about on-the-road debauchery and excesses will be disappointed. "I've tried to live my life on a very straight path,' he told Classic Rock. "I'm not Nikki Sixx [MÖTLEY CRÜE] or people who go over the edge. That's alluring to a lot of people, but I'm sure being a little bit different is alluring to some other people, too."
The as-yet-untitled book is tentatively due next year.
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Post by Jason Giambi on May 2, 2009 22:40:40 GMT -5
Finally started buying some books, now that I've graduated. Tom, have you read the Goldenbock book "7"? I also bought Sun Tzu the Art of War and some book on baseball follies/rules.....
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on May 4, 2009 14:21:27 GMT -5
Flagstaff, AZ-based authors Ghiglieri, a biologist who leads river trips in the Grand Canyon and abroad, and Myers (Fateful Journey: Injury and Death on Colorado River Trips in Grand Canyon), a medical doctor who has treated hundreds of Canyon injuries, have compiled a fascinating chronicle of deaths and dangers in Grand Canyon National Park. The book is arranged by category falls, dehydration, floods, the Colorado River, air crashes, freak accidents, suicides, and murder and at the end of each chapter is a chronological list with names, descriptions, and causes of the accidents. The authors show that most of the deaths, whether of tourists, prospectors, or experienced adventurers, occurred when people failed to pay attention to warning signs or did not use common sense; others are attributed to high testosterone levels. The episodes are engrossing, but one becomes sated with the details after a while. . George M. Jenks, Bucknell Univ., Lewisburg PA
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Post by Lindsey on May 4, 2009 14:24:51 GMT -5
Tom, did you ever finish reading Living in the Black?
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on May 4, 2009 14:31:15 GMT -5
Eh, no....I still never got Living in the Black. Its on the agenda, on the wish list with like, 980 other things.
Im still in the middle of 2 different Clemens books, and I have not finished the Joe Torre book yet. The A-Rod book hits my mailbox tomorrow. I still have not started that book about the baseball guy that rotted in jail that you recommended. Oh, I am also in the middle of the Josh Hamilton book. The Maury Wills book I just got looks excellent. I got a lot to catch up on...
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Post by Chris on May 4, 2009 14:33:23 GMT -5
Living In The Black was a VERY good book. I got that from the public library and read it the week it came out.
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Post by yanksgooner on May 4, 2009 14:36:04 GMT -5
you're really going to read that A-Rod book Tom?? I've thought about it, and realized that the most unenjoyable parts of all the baseball books I've read in the last year or so dealt with roids. I'd be curious to see how much of this book deals with that topic, and how much deals solely with him being a dick.
i'd actually prefer to read about him being a dick than taking steroids.
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Post by Chris on May 4, 2009 14:38:44 GMT -5
I just started The October Twelve - Phil Rizzuto's book.
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Post by Lindsey on May 4, 2009 14:38:45 GMT -5
Living in the Black was a GREAT book. I had it pre-ordered.
I've ordered the A-Rod book too. It'll be like book porn to a girl like me.
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on May 4, 2009 14:38:46 GMT -5
I think I am going to end up reading it for the same reasons I ended up reading the first Canseco book - its the talk of the town. Thats what got me to get the Torre book - which I was planning on getting at some point - the day it came out instead. It was what was being discussed. And I have a habit of jumping into the chatter. And to do that, I should know what I am talking about.
I want to see how much dirt really is out there. I think the story about him having some sort of veritable slave who put toothpaste on his toothbrush for him piqued my curiousity as to what other sort of "diva behavior" they got on him.
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Post by 9 on May 4, 2009 14:50:36 GMT -5
i'd actually prefer to read about him being a dick than taking steroids. It sounds like you'll get your wish.
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on May 5, 2009 20:49:34 GMT -5
Theres actually ANOTHER Clemens book coming out, next week. 464 pages, covering mostly the steroid stuff. I am finding the book by Pearlman ("The Bad Guys Won") a good read, but still not deep into the book. This one is supposed to be heavy duty on the investigative side. American Icon: The Fall of Roger Clemens and the Rise of Steroids in America's Pastime (Hardcover)Product Description It was an epic downfall. In twenty-four seasons pitcher Roger Clemens put together one of the greatest careers baseball has ever seen. Seven Cy Young Awards, two World Series championships, and 354 victories made him a lock for the Hall of Fame. But on December 13, 2007, the Mitchell Report laid waste to all that. Accusations that Clemens relied on steroids and human growth hormone provided and administered by his former trainer, Brian McNamee, have put Clemens in the crosshairs of a Justice Department investigation.
Why did this happen? How did it happen? Who made the decisions that altered some lives and ruined others? How did a devastating culture of drugs, lies, sex, and cheating fester and grow throughout Major League Baseball's clubhouses? The answers are in these extraordinary pages.
American Icon: The Fall of Roger Clemens and the Rise of Steroids in America’s Pastime is about much more than the downfall of a superstar. While the fascinating portrait of Clemens is certainly at the center of the action, the book takes us outside the white lines and inside the lives and dealings of sports executives, trainers, congressmen, lawyers, drug dealers, groupies, a porn star, and even a murderer—all of whom have ties to this saga. Four superb investigative journalists have spent years uncovering the truth, and at the heart of their investigation is a behind-the-scenes portrait of the maneuvering and strategies in the legal war between Clemens and his accuser, McNamee.
This compelling story is the strongest examination yet of the rise of illegal drugs in America’s favorite sport, the gym-rat culture in Texas that has played such an important role in spreading those drugs, and the way Congress has dealt with the entire issue. Andy Pettitte, Jose Canseco, Alex Rodriguez, and Chuck Knoblauch are just a few of the other players whose moving and sometimes disturbing stories are illuminated here as well. The New York Daily News Sports Investigative Team has written the definitive book on corruption and the steroids era in Major League Baseball. In doing so, they have managed to dig beneath the disillusion and disappointment to give us a stirring look at heroes who all too often live unheroic shadow lives.
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Post by Chris on Jun 5, 2009 14:54:44 GMT -5
I know it doesn't count...really...but I got about half way through the audio book CD for Joe Torre The Yankee Years on my plane rides.
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Post by Jason Giambi on Jun 5, 2009 16:12:27 GMT -5
we need to start a virtual library to share books....
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Post by MSBNYY on Jun 5, 2009 22:11:48 GMT -5
I'm still not done with the Torre book. Haven't picked it up in about 6 weeks. In fact, I am rereading The Godfather right now. If you liked the movie or if you're like Tom and probably haven't SEEN the movie, it's a great book.
Has stuff not seen on film in it, like most books that movies were based upon.
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Post by Chris on Jun 6, 2009 0:50:28 GMT -5
The Godfather is indeed an amazing book. I've read it twice, although that last time was probably 15 years ago.
As great as the movie was, reading the book only makes you wish they had filmed all of what the book entails. Although it would mean turning a 3 hour movie into a 4 or 5 hours movie.
Lucabrasi is much more involved in the book.
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Post by thecaptain15 on Jun 22, 2009 15:12:00 GMT -5
Tom,
Today, I just ordered a bunch of those wrestling books (including the Dynamite Kid) we discussed at the bodega the other day......I also picked up a few Thurman Munson biographies out there as well.
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on Jun 22, 2009 19:53:07 GMT -5
I got Thurmans old autobiog on Amazon for a penny or so, but have not read it. Heard it kind of stinks, and it gets no buzz either way. I read a blurb about the new one coming out, written by Appel - he has a story that buries Thurman in that once before a game he wanted Thurman to pose with Dickey, Yogi, and Elston Howard, but Thurman was watching "The Three Stooges" (ironic, seeing top of the board today) and said pretty much no cause he was busy. He was begged and begged and finally did it. Years later, after Thurmans funeral, Appel was in his house, and the picture was hanging on the wall, after all that.
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on Jul 16, 2009 8:03:58 GMT -5
Just ordered.... Kick ass! This tale pops up often in my Civil War era reads, so Im going into further detail with it. Product DescriptionIn May of 1856, when Southern Congressman Preston S. Brooks caned Massachusetts Senator Charles Sumner on the Senate floor, he shocked the nation and shattered the fragile truce that had existed between North and South. Part of the American Stories series, Benson’s book introduces readers to this key turning point in the coming of the War and as one of the most pivotal moments in American history. Because its story incorporates so many of the era's key issues like slavery and abolition, personal liberty laws and state rights, "Bleeding Kansas" and territorial expansion, ideals of gender and manhood, competing visions of labor and the economic order, and the revolutionary shift between the Whig-based "second party system" and its Republican-dominated third party successor, it provides an excellent window into the mind of a nation on the brink of conflict. These broad implications and the incident's inherent drama make this a natural topic for the American Stories series. The passionate language and sharp controversy of the collection's editorials and speech excerpts should appeal to a wide range. The narrative is complemented by a number of graphics, including images of the incident and maps showing the politics and intellectual geography of the era and how they were affected by the incident.
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Post by 9 on Jul 18, 2009 11:01:37 GMT -5
Just read this one. Interesting story about a boy born mute (not deaf, just can't speak) and a family who raises dogs. Not the greatest book I've ever read, but I was still enjoying it until the end. Won't spoil it in case anyone's reading this, but a very Sopranos-like, abrupt ending that made you feel like the book was missing a few pages. Depressing, too. Bah.
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Post by yanksgooner on Jul 30, 2009 8:15:01 GMT -5
Not sure if there's any travel lit fans over here but Bryson is just awesome at what he does. I've read a few of his books before, such as 'Notes from A small Island" about Britain and "A walk in the Woods" about his travels on the Appalachian Trail. This one is about him re-tracing his steps on a journey through Europe he took in 1972. The funniest part is that he was with a travel companion at the time but he has decided that omit that person fron the story since they were very annoying. So while it seems he is alone on this trek, you'd have to envision a babbling idiot beside him at all times on the same tour, but contributing nothing to what the author does and sees. His writing is pure comedy, especially for those who've been known to explore and travel, and take risks while doing it.
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$heriff Tom
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Post by $heriff Tom on Jul 30, 2009 9:13:25 GMT -5
Travel book fan here! Funny, though, I have never read Bryson but I surely know who he is, and have always had a desire to read his book - especially the one in the woods. Big woods fan. Im actually reading a travelogue amongst the 6 or 7 books Im in the middle of - CONFEDERATES IN THE ATTIC. This dude is on sort of a "Civil War" trip in the South, checking out the humerous, and sometimes frightening way - that some Southerners have not "let it go." My only complaint - and this writer is highly regarded and has retraced many steps in many books - is a lot of it seems to be embellished. Remember the adage, "you cant malarky a malarkyter" - well, a lot of the real people in here are too much a caricature at times. This said, I am enjoying the book, will read more of his stuff. This holds extra interest for me as I am an avowed Civil War buff.
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Post by Chris on Aug 10, 2009 12:20:36 GMT -5
I was just given the book As They See 'Em
In a no-holds-barred insider examination of the private world of baseball umpires, both minor and major leagues, Weber, a New York Times reporter, dives into the rough basic training school for the men who call balls and strikes in this irresistible book. As a 52-year-old student umpire, the author dons the mask and learns the fundamentals, while spending almost three years visiting baseball venues across the country, as well as interviewing former umpires, players and coaches. Many candidates dream of making it to the majors, as about 100,000 amateur baseball umpires call games in the U.S., Weber writes, but only 68 pro umpires make it to the big show.
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MSBNYY
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Post by MSBNYY on Aug 10, 2009 13:01:27 GMT -5
I still haven't finished that Torre book, though I may pick it up again. Tough to relive that 2004 collapse, even for the interesting perspective. But that said, last week's revelation that tainted their titles may make reading it a bit easier.
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