The Southpaw

The Southpaw is a story about coming of age in America by way of the baseball diamond. Lefthander Henry Wiggen, six feet three, a hundred ninety-five pounds, and the greatest pitcher going, grows to manhood in a right-handed world. From his small-town beginnings to the top of the game, Henry finds out how hard it is to please his coach, his girl, and the sports page?and himself, too?all at once. Written in Henry?s own words, this exuberant, funny novel follows his eccentric course from bush league to the World Series. Although Mark Harris loves and writes tellingly about the pleasures of baseball, his primary subject has always been the human condition and the shifts of mortal men and women as they try to understand and survive what life has dealt them. ø This new Bison Books edition celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of The Southpaw. In his introduction to this edition, Mark Harris discusses the genesis of the novel in his own life experience. Also available in Bison Books editions are The Southpaw, It Looked Like For Ever, and A Ticket for a Seamstitch, the other three volumes in the Henry Wiggen series.

More than any other sport, baseball has developed its own niche in America’s culture and psyche. Some researchers spend years on detailed statistical analyses of minute parts of the game, while others wax poetic about its players and plays. Many trace the beginnings of the civil rights movement in part to the Major Leagues’ decision to integrate, and the words and phrases of the game (for example, pinch-hitter and out in left field) have become common in our everyday language. From AARON, HENRY onward, this book covers all of what might be called the cultural aspects of baseball (as opposed to the number-rich statistical information so widely available elsewhere). Biographical sketches of all Hall of Fame players, owners, executives and umpires, as well as many of the sportswriters and broadcasters who have won the Spink and Frick awards, join entries for teams, owners, commissioners and league presidents. Advertising, agents, drafts, illegal substances, minor leagues, oldest players, perfect games, retired uniform numbers, superstitions, tripleheaders, and youngest players are among the thousands of entries herein. Most entries open with a topical quote and conclude with a brief bibliography of sources for further research. The whole work is exhaustively indexed and includes 119 photographs.

Comparing major league players has always been a popular topic among baseball fans. Debating the strengths and weaknesses of such greats as Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams, Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Mickey Mantle, or Tom Seaver and Greg Maddux continues to stir up controversy among fans eager to champion their heroes. In Baseball’s Top 10, Bob Kuenster has compiled a ranking of the game’s best players by position, highlighting the achievements of nearly 300 individuals. In addition to the top 10, Kuenster includes Honorable Mentions—players who were considered but didn’t make the final list—and Dishonorable Mentions—players who were left off the rankings due to alleged steroid and performance enhancing drug use. Drawing upon original interviews conducted by the author, this ranking reveals the best players in major league history as seen through the eyes of former players, managers, and announcers. Player entries include biographical information, individual achievements, stats, and quotes. Organized by position—first base, second base, third base, shortstop, left field, center field, right field, catcher, designated hitters, multi-position players, right-handed starting pitchers, left-handed starting pitchers, and closers—280 outstanding players made the cut as the most elite pitchers, hitters, and fielders in MLB history. Baseball’s Top 10 features interviews with some of baseball’s greatest personalities—including players who have since passed, such as Al Lopez, Bob Feller, Stan Musial, Lou Boudreau, Andy Pafko, Ron Santo, Harry Caray and Harry Kalas. With over 50 photographs and a comprehensive list of suggested titles for further reading, this book is sure to interest baseball fans and historians who love to debate the many outstanding players who have appeared in the major leagues.

This carefully edited collection of adventure & mystery novels has been designed and formatted to the highest digital standards and adjusted for readability on all devices. Table of Contents: William George "Gilbert" Patten (1866-1945) was a writer of adventure novels, better known by his pen name Burt L. Standish. Patten used many other pseudonyms and wrote westerns and science-fiction novels, but he is most famous for his sporting stories in the Merriwell series with brothers Frank and Dick Merriwell, who became icons of All-American sportsmanship. Apart from the Merriwell stories, Patten wrote 75 complete novels and an unknown number of stories. In total, some 500 million of his books were in print, making him one of the best-selling fiction authors of all time. Table of Contents: The Merriwell Series: Frank Merriwell's Limit (Calling a Halt) Frank Merriwell's Chums Frank Merriwell Down South Frank Merriwell's Bravery Frank Merriwell at Yale (Freshman Against Freshman) Frank Merriwell's Races Frank Merriwell's Alarm (Doing His Best) Frank Merriwell's Athletes (The Boys Who Won) Frank Merriwell's Champions (All in the Game) Frank Merriwell's Return to Yale Frank Merriwell's Cruise Frank Merriwell's New Comedian (The Rise of a Star) Frank Merriwell's Reward Frank Merriwell's Backers (The Pride of His Friends) Frank Merriwell's Triumph (The Disappearance of Felicia) Frank Merriwell's Pursuit (How to Win) Frank Merriwell's Son (A Chip off the Old Block) Frank Merriwell's Nobility (The Tragedy of the Ocean Tramp) Frank Merriwell, Junior's Golden Trail (The Fugitive Professor) Dick Merriwell's Trap (The Chap Who Bungled) Dick Merriwell Abroad (The Ban of the Terrible Ten) Dick Merriwell's Pranks (Lively Times in the Orient) Other Novels: Owen Clancy's Happy Trail (The Motor Wizard in California) Lefty Locke, Pitcher-Manager

This engaging study examines sports as both a symbol of American culture and a formative force that shapes American values. Leverett T. Smith Jr. uses "high" culture, in the form of literature and criticism, to analyze the popular culture of baseball and professional football. He explores the history of baseball through three important events: the fixing of the 1919 World Series, the appointment of Judge Landis as commissioner of baseball with dictatorial powers, and the emergence of Babe Ruth as the "new" kind of ball player. He also looks at literary works dealing with leisure and sports, including those of Thoreau, Twain, Frost, Lardner, and Hemingway. Finally he documents the emergence of professional football as the national game through the history and writings of former Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi, who emerges as both a critic of the business-oriented society and a canny businessman and manager of men himself. First paperback edition

Boston writer Michael Connelly captures the magic of America’s return to normalcy after World War II in this intimate portrait of a city and the baseball team it loves. Fenway 1946 celebrates the city, the team, and the spirit of that wonderful 1946 season in Boston—a season, as usual, that broke fans’ hearts—as America returned to return to peacetime pastimes. And none was more American than baseball. Along the way, Connelly brings out the stories and personalities that made that year so special in the Hub. For returning veterans like Ted Williams, young Congressman John F. Kennedy, and thousands of others and their families who worried while they were in Europe or the Pacific, the 1946 Red Sox season was a celebration. It was catharsis. It was what made America great. Husbands and sons were coming home to the open arms of a grateful nation. This included five hundred major leaguers who fought in World War II. The homecoming of America’s best sparked a spirit of collective pride from coast to coast—and New England was not exempt. For the previous five years, America sat around its radio listening to war reports. Now they would gather in the parlors to enjoy baseball once again. Baseball had always been a thread that connected the country—a sport that linked generations. Opening Day 1946 was a tangible reminder that the country was at peace—back to the way things were. Nowhere was this more relevant than in Boston. From Scollay Square to South Boston to the North End, veterans in their uniforms, kids with bats over their shoulder, and housewives were talking about the return of Ted Williams and a roster that was considered the best in the league. Expectations were high—as always, at Fenway Park. Fans somehow knew this would be their year. The 1946 Boston Red Sox finished first in the American League with a record of 104 wins and 50 losses. And they wouldn’t disappoint (until October).