Ohio native and author of Veracruz Blues (1996), author Mark Winegarnder turns 49 today. Veracruz Blues is often included in lists of the best written baseball novels. Winegardner did his homework on this one in fictionalizing the Mexican Baseball League's attempt to lure American players south shortly after World War II.
His other baseball works include a couple of non-fiction titles: Prophet of the Sandlot (1990), about Major League scout Tony Lucadello's last season, and The 26th Man (1991), co-authored with, and about, minor league journeyman Steve Fireovid.
In addition to numerous short stories and articles, Winegarnder is also the author of several other non-baseball novels, including Crooked River Burning (2001) and The Godfather Returns (2004). Winegardner is on the faculty at Florida State.
Joining similar works such as Man on Spikes and Chance, there is Season's End (Little, Brown & Co: 1992), by Tom Grimes. Like the aforementioned novels, Season's End is a career study of a star player. In the case of Season's End, the player is infielder Mike Williams: the "best pure singles hitter", ever. Grimes re-tells Williams while navigating through the tumultuous period in baseball from the mid-1970s to the beginning of the 1980s. When we are introduced to Williams we find him re-signing his contract just as the reserve clause is overturned in Federal Court. From this point on Williams' life in baseball changes dramatically. As Williams describes his ordeals with trying to earn what he's worth, struggling through slumps, the demands from his team, his agent, and his family, we are also cast back to stories of where Williams came from and how he ended up in the situation he finds himself.
Mike Williams is a complicated character. On one hand he is a rather simple individual, only wanting to play baseball his way: one base hit at a time. He appreciates the money he receives, but does not exhibit the level of greed others have (or wish Williams to possess). But Williams is also very introspective. He sees the beauty of the game; that it was timeless and could conceivably go on forever. And he sees through the various games both his agent and team owner play to one-up each other over salary and public relations. He also displays moments of weakness in regards to women and other vices, yet recognizes the self-destructive nature of his actions.
While Season's End is about the life and times of a major league ballplayer, it is equally a tale of how the end of the reserve clause and the emergence of free agency affected the game of baseball. Agents moved to the forefront and players became grossly overpaid as owners were faced with bidding against each other. And, with higher salaries came demands by the fans to see perfection. As Williams, himself, puts it: "The money, the greed, the insatiable appetite of the fans -- they became larger than the game, the field ceasing to be a sanctuary and become, instead, a place to dwell on our bitterness and frustration." In effect, baseball as Williams knew it, was over.
Birthday greetings go out to Michael Bishop (11/12), author of Brittle Innings (Bantam: 1994). Bishop is an accomplished and award winning author and poet, primarily in the science fiction genre. His account of baseball in segregation-era Georgia, though, in Brittle Innings is outstanding. And, in my opinion, Brittle Innings is one of those works in baseball fiction that should be included in a Top 20 (if not Top 10) list of the genre. Bishop's writing style, his development of a wide range of different characters, and unique story line, make Brittle Innings one of my favorites. Bishop has often focused on humanity and the human condition, and Brittle Innings is no exception.
A day late, but here's a salute to our veterans. In baseball fiction, we can add the following to the list of those who have served our country.
There's Roy Tucker(1), pitcher for the John Tunis' fictional Brooklyn Dodgers who was shot down over France and returned after the war to lead his team to the World Series). Rick Norman's Jax "Gooseball" Fielder(2), pitcher for the St. Louis Browns, was also shot down - over Japan - and tried to help out a Japanese father see his son realize a baseball dream amidst the closing days of World War II. Army Air Corps. members feature prominently in baseball novels. In Jumpin' Jimminy(3)An entire B-17 flight crew takes up baseball in neutral Sweden after their damaged plane has to make an emergency landing there after a raid over Germany. As part of their detainment, they take on the crew of a similarly stranded crew of a Japanese submarine.
From the ranks of those who served in earlier wars we have General Oakhart, commissioner of the fictional Patiot League in Philip Roth's The Great American Novel(4), and the members of Company L, 14th Brooklyn Regiment who play a series of games against their Confederate foes during the 1864 Overland Campaign(5). From the Confederate side, there is Joseph "Rebel Joe" Tyler(6) who as a prisoner of war uses his baseball skills to escape, but later stars with the Terryville (NY) Niners after the war. In a similar story, we have Win McNaughton(7), a Union prisoner in a Confederate prison camp in Texas, who uses baseball to survive and later prosper after the war.
Finally, from the non-player ranks we have Joe Tinker and Joseph Burke. Donald Honig's Joe Tinker(8), a postwar newsreporter and World War II veteran, investigates a murder which will lead him to conspiracy surrounding Jackie Robinson's breakthrough year with the Dodgers. Robert D. Parker's character, Joseph Burke(9) is a former marine, and wounded veteran of the Battle of Guadalcanal, who becomes bodyguard to Jackie Robinson during that same season.
(1) The Kid Comes Back, John Tunis, Morrow: 1946
(2) Fielder's Choice, Rick Norman, August House: 1991
(3) Jumpin' Jimminy - A World War II Baseball Saga, iUniverse: 2004
(4) The Great American Novel, Philip Roth, Henry Holt & Co.: 1991
(5) Play for a Kingdom, Thomas Dyja, Harcourt Brace: 1997
(6) Perfect Silence, Jeff Hutton, Breakaway Books: 2000
(7) Camp Ford, Johnny D. Boggs, Thorndike: 2006
(8) The Plot to Kill Jackie Robinson, Donald Honig, Dutton: 1992
(9) Double Play, Rober D. Parker, Berkley Books: 2005
If Steve Shilstone’s Chance (Breakaway Books : 1996) were written in the third person it could be termed a lighter, gentler The Natural (or perhaps it would be more comparable to the movie version of that novel). Chance is the story of phenom shortstop Chance Caine who breaks into the Majors at age 18 and plays 22 seasons with the fictional Lions of the National League. Along the way, he amasses 21 Gold Glove Awards, plays in several World Series, and hits .400. The story is told years later, after Caine’s retirement, by a self-proclaimed “old weird guy poet” who Caine has asked to write his story. During the course of the novel, we are introduced to various people who have been a part of Caine’s life, including teammates, coaches, wives, lovers, and radio announcers. And we are treated to the story of Caine's life through these characters, as well as through Caine's own words. Featured is Caine’s meteoric rise to stardom, his marriages, and his feats on the diamond.
The comparison to The Natural is present, of course. Similar to Roy Hobbs’ encounter with Harriet Bird, Caine is seduced by a young girl (“I want you because you’re going to be in the Hall of Fame”); and Caine is also shot (but not by his lover, and not with a silver bullet) so he will go out “on top”. But Chance Caine is not Roy Hobbs. While Caine knows he’s good (“I am the best ever to play my position”), there is no arrogance or self-proclaimed destiny about his situation. He is a likeable, and loved, character, even if a little quirky. And there is no darkness to the story, no sudden downfall. Caine plays until he’s 40 and then walks away – on his own terms; his skills by that time already declining (errors mounting and batting average falling). Caine leaves the game on his own terms, marrying a supermodel who doesn’t know anything about baseball, but whom Caine has recognized as his ultimate soul mate (despite spending the previous 20 years married to someone else).
While the story is narrated in a light, humorous tone, it is not overdone. The novel is sprinkled with excerpts from Caine’s diary, which was recorded during his last season with the Lions. This mechanism allows Shilstone to further develop Caine's character. And added to the voices of Caine’s peers the “personal” feel of the story is enhanced, as well. Chance is less a lighter The Natural than it is a combination of Man on Spikes with a dash of Almost Famous and a measure of Mark Harris’ Henry Wiggen. While not on the caliber of Man on Spikes, or Harris’ novels, Chance is worth the read. It is a fun and entertaining read.
Ohio native and author of Veracruz Blues (1996), author Mark Winegarnder turns 49 today. Veracruz Blues is often included in lists of the best written baseball novels. Winegardner did his homework on this one in fictionalizing the Mexican Baseball League's attempt to lure American players south shortly after World War II.
His other baseball works include a couple of non-fiction titles: Prophet of the Sandlot (1990), about Major League scout Tony Lucadello's last season, and The 26th Man (1991), co-authored with, and about, minor league journeyman Steve Fireovid.
