Baseball Audiobooks | Sports & Recreation

A Season in the Sun: The Rise of Mickey Mantle

The story of Mickey Mantle's magnificent 1956 seasonMickey Mantle was the ideal batter for the atomic age, capable of hitting a baseball harder and farther than any other player in history. He was also the perfect idol for postwar America, a wholesome hero from the heartland.In A Season in the Sun, acclaimed historians Randy Roberts and Johnny Smith recount the defining moment of Mantle's legendary career: 1956, when he overcame a host of injuries and critics to become the most celebrated athlete of his time. Taking us from the action on the diamond to Mantle's off-the-field exploits, Roberts and Smith depict Mantle not as an ideal role model or a bitter alcoholic, but a complex man whose faults were smoothed over by sportswriters eager to keep the truth about sports heroes at bay. An incisive portrait of an American icon, A Season in the Sun is an essential work for baseball fans and anyone interested in the 1950s. **Contact Customer Service for Additional Material**

Johnny Smith, Randy Roberts (Author), Pete Larkin (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Spinner Prince

The first book in a new series, The Spinner Prince weaves mystery, magic, betrayal, and high adventure into an unforgettable debut tale. In this animal fantasy series, twelve-year-old Leo is next in line for the throne of Singara. But before he can become king, he must prove his worth in a fight to the death with a slaycon, a scorpion-like monster. However, killing a slaycon may be the least of Leo's problems. The Maguar, Singara's sworn enemy, are rising up, and closer to home, Singara is being torn apart by Leo's cousin. Even worse, Leo is a Spinner, cursed with a dangerous, forbidden magic. The future of Singara is in Leo's hands. Can he hide his curse, claim the throne, and protect his realm? Or will he embrace his power as a gift and discover a far greater destiny?

Matt Laney (Author), John Kroft (Narrator)

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Watching Baseball Smarter: A Professional Fan's Guide for Beginners, Semi-experts, and Deeply Seriou

This smart and funny fan's guide to baseball explains the ins and outs of pitching, hitting, running, and fielding, while offering insider trivia and anecdotes that will appeal to anyone-whether you're a major league couch potato, lifelong season ticket-holder, or a beginner. ● What is the difference between a slider and a curveball? ● At which stadium did "The Wave" first make an appearance? ● How do some hitters use iPods to improve their skills? ● Which positions are never played by lefties? ● Why do some players urinate on their hands? Combining the narrative voice and attitude of Michael Lewis with the compulsive brilliance of Schott's Miscellany, Watching Baseball Smarter will increase your understanding and enjoyment of the sport-no matter what your level of expertise.

Zack Hample (Author), Barry Abrams (Narrator)

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The Chicago Cubs: Story of a Curse

A captivating blend of reportage and memoir exploring the history of the Chicago Cubs For Rich Cohen and millions of other fans, the Chicago Cubs have always been more than a team: they've been the protagonists of a King Arthur epic, in search of the Holy Grail that is winning the World Series. A chronicle of the last few miraculous seasons as experienced through the prism of Cubs history, The Chicago Cubs tracks the famous curse, which was placed on the team in 1945 by the infamous owner of the Billy Goat Tavern, who was ejected from Wrigley Field when he tried to bring his goat into the grandstand for the fifth game of the World Series. He vowed the team would never get back to the championship. And they haven't-until now. Cohen follows the Cubs' early days as the first powerhouse baseball team, winners of the 1907 and 1908 World Series; their storied players, such as Billy Sunday, the 2nd baseman who became the most popular preacher in America; their old stadiums; their owners, from chewing gum magnate William Wrigley to Thomas Ricketts, CEO of Ameritrade; and their time between the two World Wars; all of it leading up to the momentous last World Series appearance and the breaking of the famed curse. A captivating blend of reportage and memoir, drawing on Cohen's extensive interviews and travels with recent Cubs players, owners, and coaching staff, The Cubs is a portrait not only of a team, but also of a city, of a game, and of what it means to be a perpetually disappointed fan who is finally rewarded.

Rich Cohen (Author), Adam Grupper (Narrator)

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The Big Chair: The Smooth Hops and Bad Bounces from the Inside World of the Acclaimed Los Angeles Do

An unprecedented, behind-the-scenes look at the career of famed former Los Angeles Dodgers General Manager (a position also known as "The Big Chair"), whose tenure spanned nine of the most exciting and turbulent years in the franchise's history. During his tenure with the Dodgers, Colletti had the highest winning percentage of any general manager in the National League. In The Big Chair, (co-authored by Joseph A. Reaves) he lets readers in on the real GM experience from his unique vantage point--sharing the inner workings of three of the top franchises in the sport, revealing the out-of-the-headlines machinations behind the trades, the hires and the deals; how the money really works; how the decision-making really works; how much power the players really have and why--the real brass tacks of some of the most pivotal decisions made in baseball history that led to great success along with heartbreak and failure on the field. Baseball fans will come for the grit and insight, stay for the heart, and pass it on for the wisdom. Ned Colletti began his MLB career with his beloved hometown team, the Chicago Cubs, more than 35 years ago. He worked in Chicago for a dozen years and was in the front office when the Cubs won the National League East in 1984 and 1989, after which he moved on as director of baseball operations for the SF Giants. By 1996, he became the Assistant GM for the Giants, before being hired as the GM in Los Angeles in 2006. There he oversaw the Dodgers through the highly publicized and acrimonious divorce battle between Frank and Jamie McCourt that culminated in the equally highly publicized sale of the team. He was present at the press conference where Don Mattingly, having just watched his team eliminated from the playoffs, used the post-season conference to vehemently discuss his lack of a contract extension. He brought marquee names like Greg Maddux and Clayton Kershaw to LA, as well as marquee drama with the likes of Manny Ramirez and Yasiel Puig; hired future Hall of Famer Joe Torre as manager; and oversaw fourteen Dodgers playoff wins. And these are just a few of the highlights. Colletti serves up a huge dish of first-hand experiences with some of the biggest names in baseball history (Barry Bonds, Greg Maddux, Don Mattingly, Don Zimmer, Tommy Lasorda, Scott Boras, Vin Scully, and more). From his humble early years living in a Chicago garage to his path to one of the most prestigious positions in professional sports, his very public and illustrious career has left a permanent handprint in the history of America's sport--and now he's ready to share the insight only those who have sat in The Big Chair have ever seen.

Joseph A. Reaves, Ned Colletti (Author), Ned Colletti (Narrator)

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Electric October: Seven World Series Games, Six Lives, Five Minutes of Fame That Lasted Forever

The 1947 World Series was "the most exciting ever" in the words of Joe DiMaggio, with a decade's worth of drama packed into seven games between the mighty New York Yankees and underdog Brooklyn Dodgers. It was Jackie Robinson's first Series, a postwar spectacle featuring Frank Sinatra, Ernest Hemingway, and President Harry Truman in supporting roles. It was also the first televised World Series-sportswriters called it "Electric October." But for all the star power on display, the outcome hinged on role players: Bill Bevens, a journeyman who knocked on the door of pitching immortality; Al Gionfriddo and Cookie Lavagetto, bench players at the center of the Series' iconic moments; Snuffy Stirnweiss, a wartime batting champion who never got any respect; and managers Bucky Harris and Burt Shotton, each an unlikely choice to run his team. Kevin Cook brings the '47 Series to life, introducing us to men whose past offered no hint they were destined for extraordinary things. For some, the Series was a memory to hold onto. For others, it would haunt them to the end of their days. And for us, Cook offers new insights-at once heartbreaking and uplifting-into what fame and glory truly mean.

Kevin Cook (Author), Joe Barrett (Narrator)

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Leo Durocher: Baseball's Prodigal Son

Leo Durocher (1906-1991) was baseball's all-time leading cocky, flamboyant, and galvanizing character, casting a shadow across several eras, from the time of Babe Ruth to the Space Age Astrodome, from Prohibition through the Vietnam War. For more than forty years, he was at the forefront of the game, with a Zelig-like ability to be present as a player or manager for some of the greatest teams and defining baseball moments of the twentieth century. A rugged, combative shortstop and a three-time All-Star, he became a legendary manager, winning three pennants and a World Series in 1954. Durocher performed on three main stages: New York, Chicago, and Hollywood. He entered from the wings, strode to where the lights were brightest, and then took a poke at anyone who tried to upstage him. On occasion he would share the limelight, but only with Hollywood friends such as actor Danny Kaye, tough-guy and sometime roommate George Raft, Frank Sinatra, and his third wife, movie star Laraine Day. As he did with Bill Veeck, Dickson explores Durocher's life and times through primary source materials, interviews with those who knew him, and original newspaper files.

Paul Dickson (Author), Barry Abrams (Narrator)

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Fall from Grace: The Truth and Tragedy of “Shoeless Joe” Jackson

Considered by Ty Cobb as the “finest natural hitter in the history of the game,” “Shoeless Joe” Jackson is ranked with the greatest players to ever step onto a baseball diamond. With a career .356 batting average—which is still ranked third all-time—the man from Pickens County, South Carolina, was on his way to becoming one of the greatest players in the sport’s history. That is until the “Black Sox” scandal of 1919, which shook baseball to its core. While many have sympathized with Jackson’s ban from baseball (even though he hit .375 during the 1919 World Series), not much is truly known about this quiet slugger. Whether he participated in the throwing of the World Series or not, he is still considered one of the game’s best, and many have fought for his induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. From the author of Turning the Black Sox White (on Charles Comiskey) and War on the Basepaths (on Ty Cobb), Fall from Grace tells the story of the incredible life of Joseph Jefferson Jackson. From a mill boy to a baseball icon, author Tim Hornbaker breaks down the rise and fall of “Shoeless Joe,” giving an inside look during baseball’s Deadball Era, including Jackson’s personal point of view of the “Black Sox” scandal, which has never been covered before.

Tim Hornbaker (Author), Malcolm Hillgartner (Narrator)

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The Pride of the Yankees: Lou Gehrig, Gary Cooper, and the Making of a Classic

On July 4, 1939, Gehrig delivered what has been called "baseball's Gettysburg Address" at Yankee Stadium. There is, for now, no known, intact film of Gehrig's speech, but instead, just a swatch of the newsreel footage has survived, incorporating his opening and closing remarks: "For the past two weeks you have been reading about the bad break I got. Yet today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth," the last line, of course, having become one of the most famous, invoked, and inspiring, ever, anywhere. The New York Times account, the following day, called it "one of the most touching scenes ever witnessed on a ball field", that made even hard-boiled reporters "swallow hard." The scene and the story would likely have been largely lost to history, altogether, were it not for the film, Pride of the Yankees, best known for Gary Cooper, as the dying Lou Gehrig, movingly describing himself as "the luckiest man on the face of the earth," even as his body was being ravaged by the disease that was soon named after him. Here, now, in THE PRIDE OF THE YANKEES: Lou Gehrig, Gary Cooper, and the Making of a Classic by Richard Sandomir, New York Times sports columnist, is, for the first time, the full story behind the pioneering, seminal movie. Filled with larger than life characters and unexpected facts, Iron Hero shows us how Samuel Goldwyn had no desire to making a baseball film but he was persuaded to make a quick deal with Lou's widow, Eleanor, not long after Gehrig had passed; Hollywood icon Cooper had zero knowledge of baseball and had to be taught to play; unknown parts of the screen treatment and screenplay that will be written about for the first time; and dishy letters to Eleanor from Christy Walsh, the pioneering business manager who represented the Gehrigs, from the Los Angeles set. Nostalgic, breezy and fun, THE PRIDE OF THE YANKEES captures a lost time in film and sports history.

Richard Sandomir (Author), Kevin Stillwell (Narrator)

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Teammate: My Journey in Baseball and a World Series for the Ages

An inspiring memoir from David Ross, the veteran catcher dubbed "Grandpa Rossy," who became the heart and soul of the Chicago Cubs 2016 World Series championship team. In 2016 the Cubs snapped a 108-year curse, winning the World Series in a history-making, seven-game series against the Cleveland Indians. Of the many storylines to Chicago's fairytale season, one stood out: the late-career renaissance of David Ross, the 39-year-old catcher who had played back-up for 13 of his 15 pro seasons. Beyond Ross's remarkably strong play, he became the ultimate positive force in the Cubs locker room, mentoring and motivating his fellow players, some of them nearly twenty years his junior. Thanks to Cubs Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo, "Grandpa Rossy" became a social media sensation. No one, however, could have predicted that Ross's home run in his final career at bat would help seal the Cubs championship. Now, in Teammate, Ross shares the inspiring story of his life in baseball, framed by the events of that unforgettable November night. **Contact Customer Service for Additional Material**

David Ross, Don Yaeger (Author), Gregory Abbey (Narrator)

Audiobook

Dinner with DiMaggio: Memories of An American Hero

Foreword by Francis Ford Coppola Intorduction by Fay T. Vincent The real Joe DiMaggio, remembered by one of the few who really knew the man behind the legend-candid and little-known stories about baseball icons from Ted Williams, Lou Gehrig, and his Yankees teammates on the field to Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, and others off the field. As told by Dr. Rock Positano, DiMaggio's closest confidante in New York during the final years of his life, Dinner with DiMaggio is an intimate portrait of one of America's most enduring heroes. This memoir of a decade-long friendship reveals the very private DiMaggio as he really was-sometimes demanding, sometimes big-hearted, always impeccable, loyal, and a true stand-up guy-while serving up illuminating stories and rare insights about the people in his life, including his teammates, Muhammad Ali, Sandy Koufax, Woody Allen, and more. In 1990, Dr. Rock Positano, the thirty-two-year-old foot and ankle specialist, was introduced to DiMaggio, the pair brought together by a career-ending heal spur injury. Though Dr. Positano was forty years younger, an unlikely friendship developed after the doctor successfully treated the baseball champ's heel. At the start, Joe mentored Rock but came to rely on his young friend to show him a good time in New York, the town that made him a legend. In time, the famously reserved DiMaggio opened up to Dr. Positano and talked about his joys, his disappointments, and his sorrows as he reflected on his extraordinary life. The stories and experiences shared with Dr. Positano comprise an intimate portrait of one of the great stars of baseball and icon of the twentieth century **Contact Customer Service for Additional Material**

John Positano, Rock Positano (Author), Fred Sanders (Narrator)

Audiobook

Lou: Fifty Years of Kicking Dirt, Playing Hard, and Winning Big in the Sweet Spot of Baseball

In this candid, revealing, and entertaining memoir, the beloved New York Yankee legend looks back over his nearly fifty-year career as a player and a manager, sharing insights and stories about some of his most memorable moments and some of the biggest names in Major League Baseball. For nearly five decades, Lou Piniella has been a fixture in Major League Baseball, as an outfielder with the legendary New York Yankees of the 1970s, and as a manager for five teams in both the American and National leagues. With respected veteran sportswriter Bill Madden, Piniella now reflects on his storied career, offering fans a glimpse of life on the field, in the dugout, and inside the clubhouse. Piniella speaks from the heart about his teams and his players, offering a detailed, up-close portrait of the Bronx Zoo’s raucous personalities such as Reggie Jackson and Catfish Hunter, as well as his close friendship with Thurman Munson and his unusual relationship with George Steinbrenner. He also delves deep into his post-Yankee experiences, from winning a World Series for the controversial owner of the Cincinnati Reds, Marge Schott, to transforming the perennial cellar-dwelling Seattle Mariners into one of the league’s best teams. Some of the game’s brightest stars are here: Ken Griffey Jr, Randy Johnson, and Alex Rodriguez, Piniella’s supremely talented and controversial protégé. Throughout his time in the majors, Piniella has witnessed MLB grow into a multi-billion-dollar business. Piniella reflects on those changes, voicing his highly critical opinions on a range of controversial subjects, including steroids. Hilarious and uproarious, filled with eight pages of photos, Lou brings into focus a man whose deeply rooted passion for baseball has defined his life.

Bill Madden, Lou Piniella (Author), Johnny Heller (Narrator)

Audiobook

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