Few political figures of the modern age have been so vilified as Fidel Castro, and both the vilification and worship generated by the Cuban leader have combined to distort the true image of Castro. The baseball myths attached to Fidel have loomed every bit as large as the skewed political notions that surround him. Castro was never a major league pitching prospect, nor did he destroy the Cuban national pastime in 1962. In Fidel Castro and Baseball: The Untold Story, Peter C. Bjarkman dispels numerous myths about the Cuban leader and his association with baseball. In this groundbreaking study, Bjarkman establishes how Fidel constructed, rather than dismantled, Cuba’s true baseball Golden Age—one that followed rather than preceded the 1959 revolution. Bjarkman also demonstrates that Fidel was not at all unique in “politicizing” baseball as often maintained, since the island sport traces its roots to the 19th-century revolution. Fidel’s avowed devotion to a non-materialist society would ultimately sow the seeds of collapse for the baseball empire he built over more than a half-century, just as the same obsession would finally dismantle the larger social revolution he had painstakingly authored. A fascinating look at a controversial figure and his impact on a major sport, this volume reveals many intriguing insights about Castro and how his love of the game was tied to Cuba’s identity. Fidel Castro and Baseball will appeal to fans of the sport as well as to those interested in Cuba’s enduring association with baseball.
“Takes an inside look into the wave of player departures that has rocked the game both in Cuba and the U.S., while providing historical perspective.” —USA Today The stellar play and fascinating backstories of exiled Cuban sluggers and hurlers has become part of Major League Baseball history. On-field exploits by colorful Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig, AL rookie-of-the-year José Abreu, home run derby champion Yoenis Céspedes, radar-gun busting Cincinnati fast-baller Aroldis Chapman, and a handful of others have been further enhanced by feel-good tales of desperate Cuban superstars risking their lives to escape Fidel Castro’s communist realm and chase an American Dream of financial and athletic success. But a truly ugly underbelly to this story has also slowly emerged—one that involves human smuggling operations financed by Miami crime syndicates, operated by Mexican drug cartels, and conveniently ignored by ball clubs endlessly searching for fresh waves of international talent. Given rare access to Cuba and its ballplayers, Peter C. Bjarkman has spent over twenty years traveling to all corners of the island getting to know the top Cuban stars and witnessing their struggles and triumphs. In this book, Bjarkman places events in the context of Cuban baseball history and tradition before delving into the stories of the major Cuban stars who have left the island. He reveals their personal histories, explains the events that led them to defect from their homeland, and details their harrowing journeys to US shores. Players whose big-league dreams failed are also discussed, as are Cuba’s efforts to stem the defection tide through working agreements with the Japanese and Mexican leagues. Cuba’s Baseball Defectors will fascinate baseball fans, those interested in the history of US-Cuba relations, and those wanting to learn more about the unsavory story of human trafficking in the name of baseball glory. “A revelation . . . an original social history for sports enthusiasts and readers interested in past and future Cuba–U.S. ties.” —Library Journal Includes photos
The New York Mets Encyclopedia provides the full and exciting story of modern-era baseball’s most popular expansion-age franchise. From those lovable losers of 1962 and 1963, to the Miracle Mets of 1969 and 1973, and on to year-in and year-out contenders of the 1980s and 1990s, New York’s National League Mets have written some of the most exciting and colorful pages in Major League history. This is the team that captured the hearts of fans everywhere with its often-laughable antics under colorful and celebrated manager Casey Stengel. Only half a dozen years later, the Mets reached baseball’s pinnacle under gifted manager Gil Hodges. This colorful volume combines detailed narrative history with archival photographs, rich statistical data, and intimate portraits of the team’s most memorable personalities. This is also a franchise that has been home to many of the game’s biggest on-field stars. Among them are such unforgettable diamond characters as reckless slugger Darryl Strawberry; glue-fingered first sacker Keith Hernandez; baseball’s all-world catcher, Mike Piazza; pitching ace Johan Santana; and record-breaking third baseman David Wright. The full scope of the Mets’ fifty-plus-year history is discussed in an expansive chapter that gives the reader a historical detailed overview and features a year-by-year Mets chronology and season-by-season opening-day lineups. This newly revised edition offers insight on everything a Mets fan would want or need to know.
Minnie Minoso. Martin Dihigo. Luis Tiant Sr. and Jr. "El Duque" Orlando and Livan Hernadez. These are only a few of the leading lights profiled in this SABR BioProject book. The 47 individuals profiled here represent only a small handful of the legions of memorable and sometimes even legendary figures produced over nearly a century and a half by an island nation where the bat-and-ball sport known as baseball is more than a national pastime, it is the national passion. The book presents 47 biographies in all, plus essays on Cuban baseball. Profiled in this book: Aquino Abreu by Peter C. Bjarkman Rafael Almeida by Zack Moser Santos Amaro by Rory Costello Sandy (Edmundo) Amoros by Rory Costello Steve (Esteban) Bellan by Brian McKenna Ramon Bragana by Lou Hernandez Bert (Dagoberto) Campaneris by Rich Schabowski Jose Cardenal by Ray Birch Paul Casanova by Rory Costello and Jose Ramirez Sandy (Sandalio) Consuegra by Rory Costello Mike (Miguel) Cuellar by Adam Ulrey Tommie (Tomas) de la Cruz by Peter C. Bjarkman Martin Dihigo by Peter C. Bjarkman Pedro Formental by Tom Hawthorn Mike (Miguel) Fornieles by Thomas Ayers Barbaro Garbey by Doug Hill Silvio Garcia by Joe Gerard Mike (Miguel Angel) Gonzalez by Joe Gerard Tony Gonzalez by Rory Costello and Jose Ramirez Mike (Fermin) Guerra by Bill Nowlin El Duque (Orlando) Hernandez and Livan Hernandez by Peter C. Bjarkman Mike (Ramon) Herrera by Bill Nowlin Pancho Herrera by Jose Ramirez Omar Linares by Peter C. Bjarkman Dolf (Adolfo) Luque by Peter C. Bjarkman Bobby Maduro by Rory Costello Connie (Conrado) Marrero by Peter C. Bjarkman Armando Marsans by Eric Enders Rogelio Martinez by Rory Costello Roman Mejias by Ron Briley, Rory Costello, and Bill Nowlin Jose de la Caridad Mendez by Peter C. Bjarkman Minnie (Orestes) Minoso by Mark Stewart Willy (Guillermo) Miranda by Rory Costello Julio Moreno by Rory Costello Tony Oliva by Peter C. Bjarkman Alejandro Oms by John Struth Camilo Pascual by Peter C. Bjarkman Tony (Tani) Perez by Phil Cola Pedro Ramos by Peter C. Bjarkman Cookie (Octavio) Rojas by Peter M. Gordon Chico Ruiz by Rory Costello Jose Tartabull by Joanne Hulbert Tony Taylor by Rory Costello and Jose Ramirez Luis Tiant Jr.by Mark Armour Luis Tiant Sr. by Rory Costello Cristobal Torriente by Peter C. Bjarkman Zoilo Versalles by Peter C. Bjarkman
Since Cuba's Esteban Bellan made his debut for the Troy Haymakers of the National Association in 1871, Latin Americans have played a large role in the major leagues. Nearly 15 percent of big league rosters are made up of Latinos, while the region's colorful and competitive winter leagues have been a proving ground for up-and-coming major league players and managers. Early Latin American stars were barred purely because of the color of their skin from playing in the major leagues. Players such as Jose Mendez and Martin Dihigo (the only player elected to the U.S., Cuban and Mexican halls of fame) made their marks on the Negro Leagues, turning the leagues' barnstorming tours into major attractions in many Caribbean countries. This history of the players and events that make up the rich tradition of Latin American baseball gives a unique insight to this long-neglected area of baseball.
Brings the history of Cuban baseball to life like never before. This remarkable collection of photos, statistics, and stories explores Cuba's baseball heritage -- from the sport's intro. in the 1860s to Cuba's victory over the Orioles at Baltimore's Camden Yards. It examines every angle of Cuban baseball, incl. its origins and pioneers, Cuban stars who made it to the U.S. major leagues, and early barnstorming tours that brought Amer. greats to Cuba. Fans will find the island's greatest baseball stories in rich detail, from dilemmas of racial identity to Fidel Castro's short-lived pitching careers. Features comprehensive statistical records spanning nearly 120 years, with never-before-available data from 1962-98 Cuban League competition. Plus great photos!
Long before the Red Sox "Impossible Dream" season, Boston’s now nearly forgotten “other” team, the 1914 Boston Braves, performed a baseball “miracle” that resounds to this very day. The "Miracle Braves" were Boston's first "worst-to-first" winners of the World Series. Shortly after the turn of the previous century, the once mighty Braves had become a perennial member of the National League’s second division. Preseason pundits didn't believe the 1914 team posed a meaningful threat to John McGraw’s powerful New York Giants. During the first half of that campaign, Boston lived down to such expectations, taking up residence in the league’s basement. Refusing to throw in the towel at the midseason mark, their leader, the pugnacious George Stallings, deftly manipulated his daily lineup and pitching staff to engineer a remarkable second-half climb in the standings all the way to first place. The team’s winning momentum carried into the postseason, where the Braves swept Connie Mack's heralded Athletics and claimed the only World Championship ever won by Boston’s National League entry. And for 100 years, the management, players, and fans of underperforming ball clubs have turned to the Miracle Braves to catch a glimmer of hope that such a midseason turnaround could be repeated. Through the collaborative efforts of a band of dedicated members of the Society for American Baseball Research, this benchmark accomplishment is richly revealed to the reader in The Miracle Braves of 1914: Boston's Original Worst-to-First World Series Champions. The essence of the “miracle” is captured through a comprehensive compendium of incisive biographies of the players and other figures associated with the team, with additional relevant research pieces on the season. After a journey through the pages of this book, the die-hard baseball fan will better understand why the call to “Wait Until Next Year” should never be voiced prematurely. Includes: FOREWORD by Bob Brady THE BRAVES Ted Cather by Jack V. Morris Gene Cocreham by Thomas Ayers Wilson Collins by Charlie Weatherby Joe Connolly by Dennis Auger Ensign Cottrell by Peter Cottrell Dick Crutcher by Jerrod Cotosman George Davis by Rory Costello Charlie Deal by Charles F. Faber Josh Devore by Peter Gordon Oscar Dugey by Charlie Weatherby Johnny Evers by David Shiner The 1914 Evers-Zimmerman Incident and How the Tale Grew Taller Over the Years by Bob Brady The Evers Ejection Record by Mark Sternman Larry Gilbert by Jack V. Morris Hank Gowdy by Carol McMains and Frank Ceresi Tommy Griffith by Chip Greene Otto Hess by Gary Hess Tom Hughes by Greg Erion Bill James by David Jones Clarence Kraft by Jon Dunkle Dolf Luque by Peter Bjarkman Les Mann by Maurice Bouchard Rabbit Maranville by Dick Leyden Billy Martin by Bob Joel Jack Martin by Charles F. Faber Herbie Moran by Charles F. Faber Jim Murray by Jim Elfers Hub Perdue by John Simpson Dick Rudolph by Dick Leyden Butch Schmidt by Chip Greene Red Smith by Charles F. Faber Paul Strand by Jack V. Morris Fred Tyler by John Shannahan Lefty Tyler by Wayne McElreavy Bert Whaling by Charles F. Faber George “Possum” Whitted by Craig Hardee MANAGER George Stallings by Martin Kohout COACH Fred Mitchell by Bill Nowlin OWNER Jim Gaffney by Rory Costello The Braves’ A.B.C. by Ring Lardner 1914 Boston Braves Timeline by Mike Lynch A Stallings Anecdote 1914 World Series by Mark Sternman “I Told You So” by O.R.C. The Rest of 1914 by Mike Lynch How An Exhibition Game Contributed To A Miracle by Bob Brady The National League Pennant Race of 1914 by Frank Vaccaro The Press, The Fans, and the 1914 Boston Braves by Donna L. Halper Return of the Miracle Braves by Bob Brady Miracle Teams by A Comparison of the 1914 Miracle Braves and 1969 Miracle Mets by Tom Nahigian An Unexpected Farewell by The South End Grounds, August 1914 by Bob Ruzzo The Time(s) the Braves Played Home Games at Fenway Park by Bill Nowlin The Kisselkar Sign The Trail Blazers in Indian File by R. E. M. - poems for 1914 Braves, collected by Joanne Hulbert The Story of the 1914 Braves by George Stallings “Mr. Warmth” and “Very Superstitious” – two George Stallings anecdotes by Bob Brady By the Numbers by Dan Fields Creature Feature by Dan Fields
The Baseball Scrapbook, with its more than 700 rare photographs and information-packed essays and captions, is a nostalgic trip through the history of America's Pastime. Providing a unique evocation of baseball's glorious past and present, The Baseball Scrapbook is a celebration of the powerful grip that the game has on its millions of fans, and a recreation of the history of the sport as it lives in our memory and imagination.
A biography of the baseball superstar from Puerto Rico who, before his untimely death in a 1972 airplane crash, was noted for his achievements on and off the baseball field.
Reggie Miller has overcome many personal challenges to become the star guard of the NBA's Indiana Pacers as well as one of basketball's most talented one-on-one performers. He has led the Pacers in scoring throughout an entire decade, and has carried the team to three NBA Conference Finals. In this book, author Peter Bjarkman explores Miller's career and highlights his climb to true fame as one of the most prolific three-point shooters in the history of professional basketball.
From the earliest seasons of the hapless Daffiness Dodgers in the 1930s, through the trailblazing integration experiment of Branch Rickey and Jackie Robinson, on to the glorious reign of the 3Boys of Summer2 dynasty team in the early 1950s, the Brooklyn Bums hold a special charm for diehard fans everywhere. This lavishly illustrated book provides a unique nostalgic treatment of the Brooklyn baseball saga, delightfully told by baseball writer and historian Peter Bjarkman (known as 3Doctor Baseball2). Relive here once more the inspired story of baseball1s true 3America1s Team.2 Color and black and white photos.
* Captivating portraits that will appeal to baseball lovers of all ages * Contains thrilling accounts of pivotal games * Filled with action photographs & statistics
Author Peter Bjarkman has chosen ten basketball players whom he thinks best define the slam dunk style. Anecdotes, career statistics, and quotations of such greats as Charles Barkley, Darryl Dawkins, Clyde Drexler, Julius Erving, Darrell Griffith, Connie Hawkins, Michael Jordan, Shawn Kemp, Scottie Pippen, and Spud Webb all bring the excitement of the court to the reader.
Sports fans as well as reluctant readers will enjoy this book detailing the careers of 10 of baseball's most daring weapons, the baseball stealers. This book covers the careers and game highlights of such great base stealers as Luis Aparicio, Lou Brock, Ty Cobb, Eddie Collins, Rickey Henderson, Kenny Lofton, Joe Morgan, Tim Raines, Jackie Robinson, and Maury Wills.
Currently playing basketball in Europe, forward Dominique Wilkins has played for the Atlanta Hawks, the Los Angeles Clippers, and the Boston Celtics. He became the ninth player in NBA history to score twenty-five thousand career points, and he possesses the league record for consecutive free throws made in one game. Known for his dazzling slam-dunking ability, Wilkins was selected to play on Dream Team II, representing the United States in the World Championships.
This is a biography of today's most popular athlete, Shaquille O'Neal, of the Orlando Magic, who combines his size with unbeatable power to put him among the league's top scorers.
Chronicles the complete history of the team, highlighting important milestones, legendary players, and great triumphs, including team lore, anecdotes, and statistics
A look at the life and career of Scottie Pippen, who is the NBA's best all-around small forward. He also plays guard, and has helped the Chicago Bulls win three NBA championships. He was selected to play on the U.S. Olympic Dream Team, named to the All-NBA Defensive team four times, the All-NBA team twice, and was named the professional basketball's Most Valuable Player. Having emerged from team-mate Michael Jordan's shadow, Scottie Pippen has become one of the NBA's living legends.
These studies, by a group of outstanding American theologians, canonists, and church historians, provide a great deal of evidence for the historical basis and continuing importance of bishops' conferences in the life of the church.
Few political figures of the modern age have been so vilified as Fidel Castro, and both the vilification and worship generated by the Cuban leader have combined to distort the true image of Castro. The baseball myths attached to Fidel have loomed every bit as large as the skewed political notions that surround him. Castro was never a major league pitching prospect, nor did he destroy the Cuban national pastime in 1962. In Fidel Castro and Baseball: The Untold Story, Peter C. Bjarkman dispels numerous myths about the Cuban leader and his association with baseball. In this groundbreaking study, Bjarkman establishes how Fidel constructed, rather than dismantled, Cuba’s true baseball Golden Age—one that followed rather than preceded the 1959 revolution. Bjarkman also demonstrates that Fidel was not at all unique in “politicizing” baseball as often maintained, since the island sport traces its roots to the 19th-century revolution. Fidel’s avowed devotion to a non-materialist society would ultimately sow the seeds of collapse for the baseball empire he built over more than a half-century, just as the same obsession would finally dismantle the larger social revolution he had painstakingly authored. A fascinating look at a controversial figure and his impact on a major sport, this volume reveals many intriguing insights about Castro and how his love of the game was tied to Cuba’s identity. Fidel Castro and Baseball will appeal to fans of the sport as well as to those interested in Cuba’s enduring association with baseball.
The New York Mets Encyclopedia provides the full and exciting story of modern-era baseball’s most popular expansion-age franchise. From those lovable losers of 1962 and 1963, to the Miracle Mets of 1969 and 1973, and on to year-in and year-out contenders of the 1980s and 1990s, New York’s National League Mets have written some of the most exciting and colorful pages in Major League history. This is the team that captured the hearts of fans everywhere with its often-laughable antics under colorful and celebrated manager Casey Stengel. Only half a dozen years later, the Mets reached baseball’s pinnacle under gifted manager Gil Hodges. This colorful volume combines detailed narrative history with archival photographs, rich statistical data, and intimate portraits of the team’s most memorable personalities. This is also a franchise that has been home to many of the game’s biggest on-field stars. Among them are such unforgettable diamond characters as reckless slugger Darryl Strawberry; glue-fingered first sacker Keith Hernandez; baseball’s all-world catcher, Mike Piazza; pitching ace Johan Santana; and record-breaking third baseman David Wright. The full scope of the Mets’ fifty-plus-year history is discussed in an expansive chapter that gives the reader a historical detailed overview and features a year-by-year Mets chronology and season-by-season opening-day lineups. This newly revised edition offers insight on everything a Mets fan would want or need to know.
“Takes an inside look into the wave of player departures that has rocked the game both in Cuba and the U.S., while providing historical perspective.” —USA Today The stellar play and fascinating backstories of exiled Cuban sluggers and hurlers has become part of Major League Baseball history. On-field exploits by colorful Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig, AL rookie-of-the-year José Abreu, home run derby champion Yoenis Céspedes, radar-gun busting Cincinnati fast-baller Aroldis Chapman, and a handful of others have been further enhanced by feel-good tales of desperate Cuban superstars risking their lives to escape Fidel Castro’s communist realm and chase an American Dream of financial and athletic success. But a truly ugly underbelly to this story has also slowly emerged—one that involves human smuggling operations financed by Miami crime syndicates, operated by Mexican drug cartels, and conveniently ignored by ball clubs endlessly searching for fresh waves of international talent. Given rare access to Cuba and its ballplayers, Peter C. Bjarkman has spent over twenty years traveling to all corners of the island getting to know the top Cuban stars and witnessing their struggles and triumphs. In this book, Bjarkman places events in the context of Cuban baseball history and tradition before delving into the stories of the major Cuban stars who have left the island. He reveals their personal histories, explains the events that led them to defect from their homeland, and details their harrowing journeys to US shores. Players whose big-league dreams failed are also discussed, as are Cuba’s efforts to stem the defection tide through working agreements with the Japanese and Mexican leagues. Cuba’s Baseball Defectors will fascinate baseball fans, those interested in the history of US-Cuba relations, and those wanting to learn more about the unsavory story of human trafficking in the name of baseball glory. “A revelation . . . an original social history for sports enthusiasts and readers interested in past and future Cuba–U.S. ties.” —Library Journal Includes photos
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