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Billy Martin

Baseball's Flawed Genius

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
The New York Times bestseller. “The sprawling, brawling, no-punches-pulled narrative Martin deserves . . . one of baseball’s epic characters.”—Tom Verducci, bestselling author of The Cubs Way
Even now, years after his death, Billy Martin remains one of the most intriguing and charismatic figures in baseball history. And the most misunderstood. A manager who is widely considered to have been a baseball genius, Martin is remembered more for his rabble-rousing and public brawls on the field and off. He was combative and intimidating, yet endearing and beloved. In Billy Martin, Bill Pennington resolves these contradictions and pens the definitive story of Martin’s life. From his hardscrabble youth to his days on the Yankees in the 1950s and through sixteen years of managing, Martin made sure no one ever ignored him. Drawing on exhaustive interviews and his own time covering Martin as a young sportswriter, Pennington provides an intimate, revelatory, and endlessly colorful story of a truly larger-than-life sportsman.
“Enormously entertaining . . . Explores the question of whether a baseball lifer can actually be a tragic figure in the classic sense—a man destroyed by the very qualities that made him great.”—The Wall Street Journal 
“Bill Pennington gives long-overdue flesh to the caricature . . . Pennington savors the dirt-kicking spectacles without losing sight of the man.”—The New York Times Book Review
“The hair on my forearms was standing up by the end of the fifth paragraph of this book’s introduction. I knew Billy Martin. I covered Billy Martin. But I never knew him like this.”—Dan Shaughnessy, bestselling author of Reversing the Curse
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    • Publisher's Weekly

      March 23, 2015
      In this definitive biography, New York Times columnist Pennington (The Heisman) portrays former New York Yankees manager Billy Martin as a baseball man of superior knowledge, albeit one who battled demons his entire life. Martin was killed in a traffic accident on Christmas Day, 1989âa sad ending for a 61-year-old California native who spent 12 seasons playing second base for seven Major League Baseball teams. From 1969 to 1988, he also managed five pro teams. Remembered for his tenacity on the field, Martin also liked to kick dirt on umpires' shoes and run trick plays. But he became even more famous off the field for his fiery temper, blatant philandering, and massive alcohol consumption. Numerous books about Martin already exist, including two by the man himself. But Pennington, a Yankees beat writer in the 1980s who witnessed several of the incidents recounted here in animated detail, was able to accomplish something that no other author has: he interviewed all four of Martin's wives. A motley cast of baseball Hall of Famers, including Casey Stengel, Mickey Mantle, Rod Carew, Ricky Henderson, Reggie Jackson, Tommy Lasorda, and Earl Weaver, make appearances in this must-read for fans of the great American pastime.

    • Library Journal

      March 15, 2015

      There's a famous video of Hall of Famer George Brett charging angrily out of the dugout after his two-run home run was invalidated by the umpire. Known to baseball fans as the "Pine Tar Incident," it occurred owing to the eagle-eyed observation of Billy Martin, the legendary manager and player whose attention to detail on the field was unparalleled. Despite this, Martin is more remembered for his cantankerous personality and his short fuse--that, and for being fired by Yankee owner George Steinbrenner multiple times. Reconciling the two sides of Martin--the brilliant baseball mind and the irascible loudmouth--is no easy task, but New York Times sportswriter Pennington (On Par; The Heisman) is more than capable of doing so. His study of Martin is comprehensive and detailed, offering the reader rich details on his early years and his time as a player for several teams, most notably the Yankees. Most of the book's focus, however, is on Martin's service as a manager, and in particular his experience at the Yankees' helm. Pennington expertly combines material from his subject's personal and professional life, leaving the impression of a complicated and flawed but unforgettable man. VERDICT Baseball fans of all ages will thoroughly enjoy this lengthy but well-paced biography.--Brett Rohlwing, Milwaukee P.L.

      Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

    • Library Journal

      November 1, 2014

      Second baseman for the Yankees during the 1950s, then a major league manager for 16 seasons, Billy Martin was known for his incredible baseball smarts and his fiery temper--he was fired by Yankees owner George Steinbrenner five times. Pennington once served as the Yankees beat writer at the Bergen County Record and knew Martin well: "I was threatened by him. I was almost beaten up by him. I was also so charmed by him and enjoyed being in his charismatic presence for countless hours on the baseball trails." With a 40,000-copy first printing.

      Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

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Languages

  • English

Levels

  • Lexile® Measure:1040
  • Text Difficulty:6-8

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