Fairly at bat by Ron Fairly with Steve Springer is one of those books that surprises you with their fun and honest anecdotes. I must confess I knew fairly little about Ron Fairly. Turns out he was in LA for the biggest chunk of 1958 to 1969. Winning the world series three times. He recounts his time as a player with the Dodgers and his post-player career in a great way.
Besides reflecting on his own career, Fairly takes time to recall experiences and some reminiscing about teammates and other contemporaries in baseball. Like the tale of Sandy’s slider, Stan Williams’ confidence, Campy’s antics and Vin Scully’s managing stint. The parts about George Steinbrenner are hilarious as well. Turns out he was exactly like the Steinbrenner portrayed in Seinfeld.
Fairly continued his baseball career after his playing days. He became a sportscaster for the Angels and, later on, to make things even worse, for the Giants. He finished his baseball days with the Mariners. A career of 50 years in baseball.
The book is just over 200 pages but I wish there was more.
All in all it’s written with a heart for baseball and love for the game and it’s players. Fairly is a competitor but in his book allows himself to open up and give his contemporaries the floor. What a sportsman!
It’s been a year since the 2017 World Series. I’ve tried to write about it in december, again around the start of spring training and again when I had some weeks off during the summer. Never managed to get very far because it still hurt.
Now, it still does but I also look back on last season with amazement and pride. Our boys in Blue were record breakers, even with that abysmal few weeks between August 26th and September 11th. Bellinger with his 39 homeruns, Turner with his .322 BA, Kershaw winning 18 and Kenley saving 41. There even was a young guy who pitched just over 9 innings and got a win. His name was Buehler and by now we all know him.
Getting to the World Series
That 2017 season shook up the blue bleeding fans and the entire season there was a vibe and after that great series against the Cubs. Turner hitting one out in the ninth, like Gibson did 29 earlier on the EXACT SAME date was one for the ages. Before I knew it, the NLCS was over and our Dodgers were going tot he World Series for the first time since 1988.
Having been a fan since 1980 and having to endure a 29 year drought I knew I needed to do one thing: be part of the world series 2017.
Well, that sounds complicated enough with an entire legion of dodger fans wanting to do the same and willing to pay the steep ticket prices. For me, living in Europe, it was a whole other game. I had to book a plane ticket mere days before game one. Which means it wasn’t cheap. But I did it anyway. My flight was on the day of game 1. Luckily there were no delays so I arrived on time, drove to my airbnb, settled in and around three walked to the stadium.
Friends
Now, I’ve seen busy days in and around Dodger Stadium but this was absurd! People were genuinely stoked. This was, finally, next year!
It took me half an hour in line to get into the stadium, tried to get from top deck to lower levels but that was impossible. Smart thinking but on the other hand it stopped me from meeting some Dodger friends. Which was sad, but we’ll meet again.
I did meet Jorge Sandoval FINALLY! We have been facebook friends for years but never met. He was really stoked to see his Dodgers play in the World Series. Emma Amaya was working at the top of the Park shop so we got to meet up for a chat. Always great to meet Emma, she is so knowledgeable about baseball. After the home games I got to meet up with two more facebook friends and Dodger fans I never met: Carmen Martinez and Mariana Vasquez. Great to talk to them, it was like I've known them for years!
It Starts!
Then it was time to get the show started. Big flag, national anthem, announcement of the players and... I’d almost forget... it was HOT! 103 degrees at first pitch. With people really getting excited it felt like 150! But shadows lengthened and people were still just settling in and before we knew it Taylor hits one into the left field pavilion. Less than one full inning into the game and the Dodgers took the lead. Didn’t take Houston long to reply. In the top of the 4th Bregman hits one out, game tied 1-1. Then JT was at is again, with one on he hit a homer into the lfp, Dodgers in front 3-1. It turned out to be the final score. We were lucky enough to get regular season Kershaw who got 11 strike outs and Jansen who got the save.
Randy Newman’s 'l love LA' never sounded this sweet! The stadium exploded and there were high fives all around. I walked to my airbnb with a little spring in my step, not realizing I had been awake for a bit more than 24 hours. I slept like a blue baby.
Game 2
Game two turned out to be what most people agree on one of the most amazing games in MLB history. Eights homers were hit during the game that spanned 11 innings. It was totally awesome to be sitting right there in a Dodger Stadium packed to the brim with Dodger fans and even some Astros supporters. There was a lot of banter but all in good fun. Valenzuela threw the first pitch, Vin was there, it was great!It’s hard to believe it was only 1-1 in the bottom of the 5th. Seager looked like he just sealed the deal in the bottom of the 6th with a homer with one on. Dodgers took the lead for the first time that night: 3-1. It stayed that way for some time. Then in the top of the 8th Puig gave it his all to try and catch a ball hit by Bregman but he didn’t get it and a few moments later he scored. 3-2 Dodgers. Top of the ninth. Only 3 outs to get on the road with a 2-0 lead in games. It’s Jansen in the bottom of the ninth, what could go wrong?
Well, His name was González. Hitting his first homer of the post season. 3-3. So we went into extra innings and man oh man what a show. Altuvé homers, Correa homers. Puig answered with a homerun, Dodgers trailing by only one. Forsythe slides home, all tied up after 10: 5-5. Springer hits one out with one on. Houston now leads by two. But wait… Culberson HITS.ONE.OUT!! Goosebumps all over when I recollect that moment. Can Puig do it again? But no, he strikes out. Game gone! While I write this and read it back it looks like a cold fact-like review of the game, but being there in Cauldron Stadion watching this game was total awesomeness. Yes it took me the better part of a year to come to terms with it, but it was one of the best experiences of my life.
Game 3 and beer
I watched game 3 at Arts District Brewery downtown LA. It was a weird game. Darvish was out of control from the get go, late throws, wild throw. It never felt like we had a hold on that game. Fans were positive, though. It might have been the beer that flowed plentiful.
The End
There the 'live' world series ended for me. I flew back to the Netherlands and watched the remaining games at home.
Game five was insane and in the end we, blue bleeding fans, were left with nothing more than memories and hopes and dreams. Because that’s what’s being a fan is about: hoping for better times when times are rough and when they are good you enjoy it and dream about so much more. Last year was a roller coaster ride that almost ended the way a Dodgers season should end but just before the finish line we had only one thing left to say:
If you have never read anything about the boys in blue, this is probably the best book to start. It’s a fairly standard sports book. It recounts, chronologically, by year, the seasons of the Dodgers in LA. As a bonus, the book starts with some history in Brooklyn, the first World Series win and the why of the move to Los Angeles. You also get to know the most important names in Dodger history, which, if you are new to Dodgers fandom is very useful. The bibliography at the end helps as well if you want a list of (mostly) interesting books about the Dodgers.
That being said... it’s all a bit too brief. If you are a die hard fan and probably have read books about the team before, this one might be a bit too ‘light’. Recounting 60 years in 326 pages doesn’t give you a lot of room to go deep. For example, instead of 55 pages about the 60’s I’d rather read ‘The Last Innocents’ by Michael Leahy. Mentioning Roy Campanella is mandatory, but if you really want to know the man, read ‘Campy: the Two Lives of Roy Campenella’ by Neil Lanctot.
As with a lot of these sports books there are too many typos and missing words. It seems like proof reading and final editing are something of the past. It’s unprofessional and honestly it’s irritating as hell.
Still... for now, this book has a description of the 2017 season. So, until the first entire book about the NL Pennant winners comes out, this is the book for you. You get 15 pages describing the roller coaster season, including that 7-game World Series.
The icy coldness of a period without baseball begins to thaw as our hearts begin to warm and beat quicker: Spring training is around the corner!
Baseball has always inspired people to write about the sport and luckily loads of authors have written about our boys in blue. 2018 seems to be another good year to pick up or download a copy of a Dodgers related book. A list of six books being published this year.
First to hit the shelves is Fairly at Bat which will be released on February 1st.
"Fairly at Bat is a dramatic, funny, and altogether entertaining romp through a 50-year career as a player and broadcaster, including as a member of three World Series champion Dodgers teams in the 1950s and ‘60s."
I must admit I know fairly (pun intended) little about Ron, other than him being a broadcaster and the winner of three world series with the Dodgers. This book might change that. Yes, he became the voice of the hated ones in San Francisco, but everybody makes mistakes.
Jackie Robinson: An Integrated Life
"Jackie Robinson’s story is not only a compelling drama of heroism, but also as a template of the African American freedom struggle. J. Christopher Schutz reveals the real Robinson, as a more defiant, combative spirit than simply the “turn the other cheek” compliant “credit to his race.”"
Jackie Robinson is not an easy subject to write a book about. There are so many books about this legend, you might wonder why someone would write another.
Release: February 15th
"The Dodgers: 60 Years in Los Angeles chronicles the team’s impressive history since arriving in the West Coast. Covering the amazing feats of Dodgers greats such as Steve Garvey, Fernando Valenzuela, and Kirk Gibson, author Michael Schiavone offers an in-depth history of the team since their arrival in 1958 and through the 2017 season."
This is Michael Schiavone's first all sports book (his other sports related book was about labor relations in US sports). He's against some stiff competition, because good books about Dodgers seasons have been around for decades. The big plus for this book is the inclusion of the awesome 2017 season. To be honest... they should write an entire book about 2017 alone. Release: April 3rd.
Brothers in Arms: Koufax, Kershaw, and the Dodgers’ Extraordinary Pitching Tradition by Jon Weisman. Weisman is known for 'high fives, pennant drives and Fernandomania' digs into Dodgers lore once again.
"The Los Angeles Dodgers are one of the most storied franchises in all of sports, with enduring legacies both on and off the diamond. Chief among the hallmarks of the organization is an unparalleled pitching dominance."
Since pitching is in my opinion THE best position and the Dodgers have had some of the best ever, this book goes to #1 on my wish list. Interviews with Koufax, Drysdale, Valenzuela, Hershiser and Kershaw.... awesomeness! Available May 1st.
Charles Ebbets: The Man Behind the Dodgers and Brooklyn's Beloved Ballpark
"Ebbets became president of the Brooklyn Dodgers, taking over a chronic second division team in poor financial condition. Over the next 25 years, he built four pennant winning clubs while making the franchise one of the most profitable in baseball."
Branch Rickey, Walter O'Malley and... Charles Ebbets, these guys did things that shapeds the Dodgers Organization as we know it today. Reading about this threesome, for me, is a must and I'm glad there will be an extensive book (235 pages) about the man who realized a field we still know today.
In stores June 28th.
Blue Monday: The Expos, the Dodgers, and the Home Run That Changed Everything
"Author and Montreal Expos historian Danny Gallagher leads readers up to the unforgettable day in October 1981 when Rick Monday of the Los Angeles Dodgers hit a home run off of Montreal Expos pitcher Steve Rogers in the ninth inning to give the Dodgers a berth in the World Series."
I must admit that this is a period in Dodgers history I know very little about but I love Rick Monday and the 1981 team which went on to win the World Series and was the start of my Dodgers fandom.
Out: November 6th.
