The First Fall Classic, By: Mike Vaccaro

In the early years of the baseball world series, it was simple an exhibition game between the champions of the two leagues. The interest in the competition beyond the gamblers was questionable. That all changed in 1912 when the Boston Red Sox defeated the New York Giants. That series had stars. That series had intrigue. That series had back and forth action, and controversy. It was when all of America realized just how wonderful this little baseball series was. It was the point where the world series became the World Series.

I admit. My knowledge of the early 20^th century Red Sox is limited. Some of it’s not my fault. There’s not a lot of information that has survived. And, what little is available has been shoved down my throat continuously. (If I hear one more time why Nuf Ced McGreevy was called Nuf Ced, I may choke on my Red Sox Nation membership card.) But, this book escapes that trap. It was a thrilling read. It followed the 1912 series so it felt like I was there. I was anxious when the games were close, and pleased when the Red Sox came out on top. It was fascination to see how all the players interacted with each other. Vaccaro didn’t hold anything back. Gamblers were mentioned as willingly as Gamers. It really felt like I was in a time machine transported back almost 100 years to one of the most exciting events I could see. I can’t imagine why anyone wouldn’t read this book. Do yourself a favor and pick it up.

Rating: 4 bases.

Tris Speaker, By: Timothy M. Gay

As the back of the book states, “Tris Speaker tells the story of one

of baseball’s true legends, offering an honest look at Speaker’s roughshod, frontier-forged personality.” And that really sums it up. All too forgotten in the annals of baseball history, this book hopes to bring the greatness of Tris Speaker to a new generation. Speaker wasn’t extreme enough in his personality to warrant much publicity through the years. He was a partier, but not like Babe Ruth. He was a bigot, but not like Ty Cobb. He had some gambling issues, but not like the Black Sox. He was the sixth man elected to the Hall-of-Fame, but just missed the first class and the history that went with it. He just missed getting the press coverage. This book hopes to rectify that.

I’ll admit. I didn’t know much about Tris Speaker. I knew he was the guy in the Red Sox media guide who had 35 assists in a season for the Sox. Twice. I remember wondering why people didn’t just stop running on the guy after a while. Then, I saw that due to the dead ball era, he played a very shallow centerfield. He got some of those assists by being the pivot man on 5-8-3 double plays. So, I sort of chalked him up to being a dead-ball gimmick. This book certainly opened my eyes. Tris Speaker was a fantastic player. How he doesn’t have a statue outside Fenway Park is beyond me. It’s a definite must read for any Red Sox fan. The book does have a couple issues. Gay tends to bounce around a little with his narrative. He’ll tell you something’s coming and then tell you about it later. (Much like one of those tabloid television shows) So, it was sometimes tricky to remember that the stuff only happened once. He also tended to go off on tangents. I assume that was because there just isn’t much information left on Tris Speaker. He couldn’t interview anyone who was alive when Speaker played. There’s not a lot of video. So, sometimes Gay had to wander where the information took him, even if a paragraph was more about Smokey Joe Wood than Tris Speaker. But, in the end, none of that mattered. This book affected me in a way that was unexpected. I find myself wanting to tell everyone I see what a great player Speaker was. I’m certainly telling everyone reading this review to read the book.

Rating: 4 bases

Dice-K By: Ian Browne

Hmm. I wonder what this book is about. As the subtitle to the book

proudly declares, it chronicles “The First Season of the Red Sox $100 Million Man.” But, that is cutting things a little short. The book really covers everything leading up to, and including Dice-K’s first season with the Sox. It discusses in detail life-building events like the Koshien tournament. It talks about his time with the Seibu Lions as he honed his craft. It goes into great detail into the posting process where Matsuzaka became eligible to play in the Major Leagues. It discusses the negotiations between him and the Red Sox on that first contract. And, of course, it talks all about his first season in Boston. All that is presented as a way of answering the question, “Who is Dice-K?”

Similar to when I talked about the great book “Becoming Manny”, this book really depends on whether the reader is already a Dice-K fan, or not. If you think Matsuzaka is an overpaid nibbler who “JUST WON’T THROW STRIKES!” this book isn’t going to do much for you. You’ll gloss over it as a list of excuses for why Dice-K doesn’t already have four Cy Young Awards. But, if you think Dice-K is a fine pitcher who is misunderstood, that’s another story. This book will explore the transition from Japan to the United States. It gets into the root of the differences between the Red Sox way and the Matsuzaka way. Why does he throw so many pitches? Why does he look lost sometimes on the mound? Why does that one big inning always seem to get him? It explains that, perhaps, the reason everything seems so foreign with him is because it is. It’s also interesting that the book came out in 2008. I wonder if any of it would be different with three more seasons under his belt? Whether you feel Dice-K has been a boon or a bust, any Red Sox fan should read this book. After reading it, I have a newfound appreciation for Matsuzaka, and what he is as a pitcher. Of course, I was a fan before I started reading.

Rating: 4 bases

Dynasty By: Tony Massarotti

This book is the self-described “inside story of how the Red Sox

became a baseball powerhouse.” It looks behind the scenes at the Sox over the last several years, starting with the Dan Duquette era. It explores the path a team takes from barely mediocre to a perennial playoff contender. How is the entire organization built to achieve sustained excellence? This looks at exactly that.

I’ve read three books now written, or co-written, by Tony Massarotti. In all three, the editing was horrendous. I have no idea what kind of control Massarotti has over this, but it’s interesting nonetheless. The worst ones are the baseball mistakes. He obviously needs an editor that knows that David Ortiz can’t possibly be batting in the bottom of the ninth in a game in Detroit. That’s beside the point. Even I make some typos and grammatical errors once in a while. This was a great book. It was nice to see a book finally giving Dan Duquette a little credit for his part in building the 2004 championship team. It was also interesting to remember how past seasons were handled. Since I was reading this book as the 2010 trading deadline came and went, the parts of the book on deadline deals were especially interesting. To see how past deadlines were handled, and Theo’s impressions during those seasons were eye opening. The fact that this book went back to the Duquette era was great. Not many books lately have gone back to that point in Sox history. It really was where the Dynasty started, though. This book does a great job of moving from year to year with each new piece added to the organization along the way. It really is a must-read book.

Rating: 4 bases

Becoming Manny By: Jean Rhodes and Shawn Boburg

This book is an authorized biography of former Red Sox slugger,

and future Hall-of-Famer, Manny Ramirez. It follows his journey from the early years in the Dominican Republic, through high school in NYC, and onto his baseball career. It explores the factors in his life that made Manny be Manny. In an interesting twist for a sports biography, one of the authors is a psychology professor. So, the book really is more about the man that Manny is, as opposed to the player. It goes between the perception and the performance. It’s a unique insight into a great player.

The enjoyment of this book depends a lot on how you view psychology, and how you viewed Manny before you read the book. I just finished reading this book, so I got it pretty late in the game. I remember the EEIdiots discussing the book when it was first released. They categorized it as a book of excuses for why Manny behaved the way he did. That touches a bit on the “excuse vs. reason” question I’ve posed. Are the events from his childhood an excuse for his behavior, or are they simply why he behaves the way he does. I enjoyed this book. It was able to put me into the shoes of a superstar growing up playing baseball. I was able to imagine how the events in his life would have changed what became of my life. What would I do, if I had Manny’s life? It was fascinating, and I wish the same book were written about many other players. It was a book that any fan should read, whether you live in Mannywood, or are sick of Manny being Manny. Read the book, and see what it says to you.

Rating: 4 bases

Ted Williams By: Leigh Montville

This book follows the life of Red Sox legend Ted Williams. It starts with Williams as a kid in San Diego, and follows him even after his death. Along the wary, it gives an intimate, behind the scenes look at his life. It discusses his relationships with his family, the media, his friends, and the Boston fans. It follows him as a minor leaguer, a fighter pilot, a superstar, a manager, and as a living icon. It adds fresh interviews to the mountains of information already out there on the Splendid Splinter. Along the way, the reader can see how all these experiences wove into the person many people thought they knew.

I am too young to have been a Ted Williams “fan.” By the time I came around, he had even finished his managerial career. I was certainly aware of Ted Williams the legend, but never had the connection to him that those of previous generations would. So, I enjoyed this book a great deal do to all the information it provided. It was fascinating to see how everything built. I had always heard he hated the media, and now I knew why. I had heard he was booed at Fenway, and now I know the reasons. It struck me, reading the book as Manny Ramirez was playing his first spring in LA, how similar the stories appeared to be. Ted was an immense talent who was seen as selfish by the fans, not a real team player. He detested the media intruding into his life. But, he sure could hit. As with any biography, you’ll probably like Ted a little less after reading the book than you did before. (Apparently, even baseball idols have flaws) That shouldn’t stop anybody from picking up this wonderful book. I had a hard time putting it down.

Rating: 4 bases

Red Sox Rule By: Michael Holley

This book takes a unique look at the Red Sox championship run.

Rather than focus on the team, or the front office, it looks squarely at the manager Terry Francona. It discusses how he got the managerial job in the first place. It discusses the events in his life that may have influenced his coaching style. It explores the history of the making of a Boston Red Sox manager. The access to Francona for this book is evident, as every detail is there for all to see. This book brings it all together into a seamless story.

This was a great book. It was fascinating to see how past events in Francona’s life affected the way he managed the Red Sox. It was amazing how friends he made, or people he met years ago could still influence him today. It went from the obvious influence of someone like Brad Mills to the less obvious. What did managing Michael Jordan in the minor leagues teach him about handling Pedro Martinez? How did trying to play through so many injuries in his career prepare him to deal with veteran players? Does being a past first round pick help him to deal with the superstars of tomorrow? Time and time again I found that the success of the Red Sox just made sense. It became obvious that Terry Francona was almost created just for the role. Anyone who ever refers to him as “Francoma,” or anyone else for that matter, needs to read this book.

Rating: 4 bases

Book Review: 2009 Red Sox Media Guide

OK, so maybe it's not exactly a book. Maybe the best word would be a reference manual. But, it doesn't really matter. The important thing is that I finally got my hands on the 2009 version this weekend. If you've never seen a media guide, you should at least flip through one. It's where everyone gets all those useless stats about the Sox and its players. A couple gems from this year's guide:
-Jason Bay is one of only 8 players to be traded during a season in which he scored 100 runs, hit 30 home runs, and drove in 100 runs. (BTW, the guy he was traded for is another one)
-Mark Kotsay is one of only 3 players in history to play more games at first base during the postseason than he did during the regular season.
-John Dopson holds the Red Sox record for most balks in a single game with 4 on June 13, 1989.

How can you not need a book filled with all this info? It also has bios on every member of the Red Sox, and the front office. It has team histories, records, a section on minor leaguers, and so much more!

Clearly, any Sox fan has to have this book. I usually read it cover to cover just to see what new stuff is added. It's also fun to see how some active players are moving their way up the all-time Red Sox ranks. (Unfortunately, Manny is no longer one of them) It's also great to hold on to for reference about teams past. Simply put, it's a must read.

Rating: 4 bases

One Day at Fenway: A Day in the Life of Baseball in America.- By: Steve Kettmann

This is a fabulous example of the “story behind the game” genre.

But, instead of dwelling on the pasts of the people involved, it stayed in the present. Through interviews and first hand observations, Kettmann is able to walk you through the game through the eyes of people involved. The range of people discussed was also diverse. Instead of focusing on the players, Kettmann discussed owners, managers, fans, and celebrities. The book is able to paint a complete picture of what people at the game were thinking as the game was going on. Think of it as a collection of game blogs kept by a dozen people.

This book is a must read. The detail included in the stories is mind boggling. It tells you just what Joe Torre was thinking during a pitching change, or John Henry during breakfast, or random fan as he’s driving to the game. It was like watching golf on television, but fun. As the round goes on, the coverage jumps from golfer to golfer in such a way that you can see the whole round with several golfers. In the same way, you can read the same game while jumping from subject to subject. In the end, the total is so much more than the sum of the parts. The fact that the game happened to be one that I was lucky enough to attend was a nice little bonus in my case. In any event, this book comes highly recommended. It easily earns an S36 listing...

Rating: 4 bases.

Faithful: Two diehard Boston Red Sox fans chronicle the historic 2004 season - By Stewart O’Nan and Stephen King

This book chronicles the most magical season in Red Sox history. The authors lucked out big time when they started this diary in the beginning of the season. (Like Stephen King needed any more help selling books.) The contrast of the two authors creates a nice dynamic in the book. O’Nan is more of an “everyfan” excited about an autograph or foul ball. He’s just slightly more advanced and dedicated than most. King, on the other hand, while still a diehard, is a little more upper echelon. He likes his box seats, and VIP parking passes when he goes to a game. The combination gives rich insight into both neighborhoods of Red Sox Nation.

This book is an absolute must-read. It is, obviously, well-written. The diary format allows the reader to remember events as they happened. What did they really think about the Nomar trade. Just how much faith was really there after ALCS Game 3? It’s easy to look back and think, “I always knew it would work out.” This book proves that wasn’t the case. It chronicles the turning point in Red Sox fandom, and is even better every time it’s read.

For a rating, I’d give this book a 4 out of 4 bases.