Big League, Big Time

Big League, Big Time
Author: Len Sherman
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 364
Release: 1999-03
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0671003445

On March 31, 1998, more than 48,500 fans cheered the arrival of Major League Baseball's newest expansion team, the Arizona Diamondbacks. In the first book ever to chronicle the birth of a major-league baseball franchise from conception to Opening Day, Big League, Big Time takes you inside the Diamondbacks dugout -- and their corporate suite -- to examine the billion-dollar business of baseball and its enormous impact on our culture. While many prominent people went to bat for baseball in Phoenix, sports entrepreneur Jerry Colangelo, the Diamondbacks' managing general partner, swung for the fences and scored a league-envious, $355 million state-of-the-art baseball facility. Big League, Big Time discloses how Colangelo's revolutionary vision for the Diamondbacks affected all aspects of the club -- especially his choice of personnel, from Jay Bell and Andy Benes to former Yankees manager Buck Showalter, "a young man with old-fashioned ideas." But even before they had drafted a player, the Diamondbacks front office was well aware that marketing "The Show" was the off-the-field game they couldn't afford to lose. Read the inside story of how they chose the team's name and colors, successfully maneuvered multimillion-dollar deals with a host of major sponsors, determinedly wooed the vast Mexican market, attracted such celebrity coinvestors as Billy Crystal and Lou Gosset, Jr., and became one of the five highest revenue-producing franchises before a single game was played. Complete with player profiles, an exclusive inside-the-war-room took at the expansion draft, and a dissection of the media's role in the global growth of the sports industry, Big League, Big Time is a rare glimpse into the politics, business, and promise of baseball -- a fascinating analysis of how one city cultivated a very special field of dreams.

Big League, Big Time

Big League, Big Time
Author: Len Sherman
Publisher: Beyond Words/Atria Books
Total Pages: 368
Release: 1998
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN:

Tells of the birth of the Phoenix-based major-league baseball franchise from the very beginning to opening day.

Becoming Big League

Becoming Big League
Author: Bill (William) Mullins
Publisher: University of Washington Press
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2013-06-18
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 0295804734

Becoming Big League is the story of Seattle's relationship with major league baseball from the 1962 World's Fair to the completion of the Kingdome in 1976 and beyond. Bill Mullins focuses on the acquisition and loss, after only one year, of the Seattle Pilots and documents their on-the-field exploits in lively play-by-play sections. The Pilots' underfunded ownership, led by Seattle's Dewey and Max Soriano and William Daley of Cleveland, struggled to make the team a success. They were savvy baseball men, but they made mistakes and wrangled with the city. By the end of the first season, the team was in bankruptcy. The Pilots were sold to a contingent from Milwaukee led by Bud Selig, who moved the franchise to Wisconsin and rechristened the team the Brewers. Becoming Big League describes the character of Seattle in the 1960s and 1970s, explains how the operation of a major league baseball franchise fits into the life of a city, charts Seattle's long history of fraught stadium politics, and examines the business of baseball. Watch the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hwhl5sLoQs&list=UUge4MONgLFncQ1w1C_BnHcw&index=1&feature=plcp

Big League Break

Big League Break
Author: Mark Freeman
Publisher:
Total Pages: 148
Release: 1989
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 9780345359056

The big call comes and the Rookies get set to burn up the majors!

Out of My League:

Out of My League:
Author: Dirk Hayhurst
Publisher: Citadel Press
Total Pages: 461
Release: 2013-03-01
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 0806536667

The New York Times bestseller from the author of The Bullpen Gospels. “A humorous, candid and insightful memoir . . . Grade: Home Run.”—Cleveland Plain Dealer After six years in the minors, pitcher Dirk Hayhurst hopes 2008 is the year he breaks into the big leagues. But every time Dirk looks up, the bases are loaded with challenges—a wedding balancing on a blind hope, a family in chaos, and paychecks that beg Dirk to ask, “How long can I afford to keep doing this?” Then it finally happens—Dirk gets called up to the Majors, to play for the San Diego Padres. A dream comes true when he takes the mound against the San Francisco Giants, kicking off forty insane days and nights in the Bigs. Like the classic games of baseball’s history, Out of My League entertains from the first pitch to the last out, capturing the gritty realities of playing on the big stage, the comedy and camaraderie in the dugouts and locker rooms, and the hard-fought, personal journeys that drive our love of America’s favorite pastime. “A rare gem of a baseball book.”—Tom Verducci, Sports Illustrated “Observant, insightful, human, and hilarious.”—Bob Costas “A fun read . . . This book shows why baseball is so often used as a metaphor for life.”—Keith Olbermann “Entertaining and engaging . . . reminiscent of Jim Bouton’s Ball Four.”—Booklist “The book is a terrific read. If you loved Bullpen Gospels (I’d have a hard time believing you are a baseball fan if you didn’t) you will love Out of My League too.”—Bluebird Banter

Home Game

Home Game
Author: Bret Boone
Publisher: Crown Archetype
Total Pages: 282
Release: 2016-05-10
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 1101904917

From the first third-generation player in Major League history, a sometimes moving, always candid inside look at his family’s seventy years in baseball A five-foot-ten fireball questioned by scouts because of his small stature, supposed lack of power, and cocky attitude, Bret Boone didn’t care about family legacy as he fought his way to the Major Leagues in 1992; he wanted to make his own way. He did just that, building a career that featured three All-Star appearances, four Gold Gloves, a bout with alcohol­ism, and the mixed blessing of being traded three times. But now that he’s coaching minor leaguers half his age—and his fifteen-year-old son has the potential to be the first fourth-generation Major Leaguer—Bret has a new perspective on his remarkable family, with its ten All-Star appearances, 634 home runs, 3,139 RBIs, and countless kitchen-table debates about the game’s great­est players. For the first time, he’s ready to share his adventures as part of the sport’s First Family. Infused with Bret’s candor and deep love of the game, Home Game traces baseball’s evolution—on the field and behind the scenes—from his grandfa­ther Ray’s era in the 1950s to his father Bob’s in the ’70s and ’80s to the one he shared with his brother Aaron in the ’90s and 2000s—sometimes called the PED era—when players made millions, dined on lobster in the clubhouse, and, in some cases, indulged in performance-enhancing drugs. Along the way, his book also touches on Boone family lore, from Ray playing with his hero Ted Williams and Bob winning a World Series with the 1980 Phillies to Bret’s flop in a nationally televised home-run derby and Aaron’s historic home run in the 2003 playoffs. Blending nostalgia, close analysis of the game, insight into baseball’s un­written codes, and controversial thoughts on its future as a sport and a busi­ness, Bret Boone offers a one-of-a-kind look at the national pastime—from the colorful, quotable scion of a family whose business is baseball.

Bigger Than the Game

Bigger Than the Game
Author: Dirk Hayhurst
Publisher: Kensington Books
Total Pages: 320
Release: 2014
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0806534877

"The best writer in a baseball uniform." --Tyler Kepner, The New York Times After nearly a decade in the minors, Dirk Hayhurst defied the odds to climb onto the pitcher's mound for the Toronto Blue Jays. Newly married, with a big league paycheck and a brand new house, Hayhurst was ready for a great season in the Bigs. Then fate delivered a crushing hit. Hayhurst blew out his pitching shoulder in an insane off-season workout program. After surgery, rehab, and more rehab, his major-league dreams seemed more distant than ever. From there things got worse, weirder, and funnier. In a crazy world of injured athletes, autograph-seeking nuns, angry wrestlers, and trainers with a taste for torture, Hayhurst learned lessons about the game--and himself--that were not in any rulebook. Honest, soul'searching, insightful, hilarious, and moving, Dirk Hayhurst's latest memoir is an indisputable baseball classic. Praise for The Bullpen Gospels and Out of My League "Dirk Hayhurst writes about baseball in a unique way. Observant, insightful, human, and hilarious." --Bob Costas "A fun read. . .This book shows why baseball is so often used as a metaphor for life." --Keith Olbermann "Entertaining and engaging. . .reminiscent of Jim Bouton's Ball Four." --Booklist "A rare gem of a baseball book." --Tom Verducci, Sports Illustrated "A humorous, candid, and insightful memoir of Hayhurst's rookie season in the majors. . .Grade: Home Run." --Cleveland Plain Dealer

Little Big League

Little Big League
Author: Ronald Kidd
Publisher: Turner Publications Incorporated
Total Pages: 98
Release: 1994
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 9781570361357

One remarkable summer Billy Heywood learns what it is like to be an adult, while the baseball players on the team he has inherited rediscover their youthful enthusiasm for the game.

Throwback

Throwback
Author: Jason Kendall
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
Total Pages: 309
Release: 2014-05-13
Genre: Sports & Recreation
ISBN: 1250031826

Throwback offers an informative and irreverent look at the inner mechanics, strategies, secret signals, and customs of major league baseball. Ever Wonder What's Being Said at Home Plate? How a Team Silently Communicates? What Goes on in the Clubhouse Behind Closed Doors? America's pastime has always left fans and amateur players alike yearning for the answers to questions about how pros play the game. Jason Kendall is a former All-Star catcher who has seen just about everything during his years with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Oakland Athletics, Chicago Cubs, Milwaukee Brewers, and Kansas City Royals. A player's player, a guy with true grit--a throwback to another time with a unique view on the game that so many love. Jason Kendall and sportswriter Lee Judge team up to bring you the fan, player, coach, or curious statistician an insider's view of the game from a player's perspective. This is a book about pre-game rituals, what to look for when a pitcher warms up between innings, the signs a catcher uses to communicate with the pitcher, and so much more. Some of baseball wisdom you will find inside: * What to look for during batting practice. * The right way to hit a batter. * Who's a tough guy and who's just posing. * How to spot a dirty slide. * Why you don't look at the umpire while you're arguing. Based on Kendall's 15 years of professional MLB experience, Throwback is an informative, hilarious, and illuminating look into the world of professional baseball-and in a way that no one has ever seen before.

Big League Ballparks

Big League Ballparks
Author: Gary Gillette
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2009
Genre: Baseball
ISBN: 9781435114524

Extensive guide to all 30 big-league ballparks detailing the best and worst seats in the park, inside scoop on concessions, where to stay, and how to make the most out of your baseball experience.