An unforgettable story of insight, inspiration, and faith Growing up in a small town in the Panama Canal Zone, Rod Carew and his friends spent the long, temperate days hitting bottle caps with broomsticks, outfitted with mitts molded from paper bags, cardboard, and string. Each broomstick bat was customized by its owner; Carew's, slathered in black paint with yellow trim, bore in orange the number 42—that of his idol, Jackie Robinson. It was in this fashion, years before he would move to New York City in search of a better life, Carew honed the skills that would one day turn him into a perennial All-Star. For 19 seasons, Carew was a maestro in the batter's box. Uncoiling from his crouched stance, he seemed to guide the ball wherever he wanted on the way to a whopping seven batting titles and a spot in the Baseball Hall of Fame. If only everything in life had been as easy as he made hitting look. In One Tough Out: Fighting Off Life's Curveballs, Carew reflects on the highlights, anecdotes, and friendships from his outstanding career, describing the abuse, poverty, and racism he overcame to even reach the majors. In conversational, confessional prose, he takes readers through the challenges he's conquered in the second half of his life, from burying his youngest daughter to surviving several near-fatal bouts with heart disease. He also details the remarkable reason he's alive today: the heart transplant he received from Konrad Reuland, a 29-year-old NFL player he'd met years before. Carew explains how that astonishing connection was revealed and the unique bond he and his wife, Rhonda, have since forged with his donor's family. As Robinson once said, "A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives." As Carew recounts his story, Robinson's words take on an even greater resonance.

"A biography of baseball Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew"--

A treasury of Twin Cities baseball history packed with photos from the archives. Major League Baseball came to the Minnesota prairie in the spring of 1961, and ever since, the Minnesota Twins have held a cherished place in the hearts of sports fans throughout the region. With Hall of Famers like Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, and Kirby Puckett and beloved characters from Billy Martin to Kent Hrbek to Joe Mauer, the history of the Twins encompasses highs and lows, heroes and goats, but always nonstop excitement. Minnesota Twins: The Complete Illustrated History provides an in-depth and entertaining look at the team, its players, its stadiums, and the memorable moments through the years. Illustrated with photos from the Star Tribune’s archives, it is the ultimate celebration of a beloved franchise.

DIVIn the more than 40 years since Rod Carew debuted in the big leagues, he's watched thousands of great and not-so-great hitters while discerning the fundamentals of success at the plate. Countless hours spent experimenting, watching video, and refining his own techniques have helped transform Carew from one of the game's best hitters to one of its most revered teachers./div Rod Carew's Hit to Win teaches hitters how to develop their own swing, stance, and plate approach, all within the framework of solid fundamentals. Detailed photos and diagrams help students envision and execute success at the plate. Carew's hitting philosophy is featured here as well, with a focus on the mental and psychological battle between a hitter and a pitcher. Carew encourages his students to be creative and flexible in the batter's box, making Rod Carew's Hit to Win the ideal instructional tool for hitters of all ages and skill levels.

For 25 years, Chicago sports fans invited Terry Boers into their homes, cars, and offices as one of the premier voices of WSCR radio. Covering the latest championships and trades, and always ready to offer up timely takes, Boers was a Windy City constant until his retirement in 2017. In his highly-anticipated memoir, Boers delivers a trove of lively anecdotes and personal reflections from his life and journey through sports media--from raucous banter with Mike Ditka during The Score's early days to the Cubs' World Series celebration in 2016. A must-read for any of the thousands of listeners who made Boers part of their daily routine, The Score of a Lifetime is a freewheeling, frank portrait of a man, a career, a station no one thought would survive, and a city that loves its sports.

An insider’s look at baseball’s unwritten rules, explained with examples from the game’s most fascinating characters and wildest historical moments. Everyone knows that baseball is a game of intricate regulations, but it turns out to be even more complicated than we realize. All aspects of baseball—hitting, pitching, and baserunning—are affected by the Code, a set of unwritten rules that governs the Major League game. Some of these rules are openly discussed (don’t steal a base with a big lead late in the game), while others are known only to a minority of players (don’t cross between the catcher and the pitcher on the way to the batter’s box). In The Baseball Codes, old-timers and all-time greats share their insights into the game’s most hallowed—and least known—traditions. For the learned and the casual baseball fan alike, the result is illuminating and thoroughly entertaining. At the heart of this book are incredible and often hilarious stories involving national heroes (like Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays) and notorious headhunters (like Bob Gibson and Don Drysdale) in a century-long series of confrontations over respect, honor, and the soul of the game. With The Baseball Codes, we see for the first time the game as it’s actually played, through the eyes of the players on the field. With rollicking stories from the past and new perspectives on baseball’s informal rulebook, The Baseball Codes is a must for every fan.

Lively and anecdotal, Viva Baseball! chronicles the struggles of Latin American professional baseball players in the United States from the late 1800s to the present. Even as "Fernandomania" raged in 1981, most Latin players felt lonely, shunned, and forgotten. Samuel Regalado reveals the shocking racism faced by these immigrant athletes in a white culture. Only a burning desire to succeed and a grim determination to leave behind the grinding poverty of their homelands could have driven these men to continue in the face of overwhelming hostility. In addition to mining the National Baseball Hall of Fame Library in Cooperstown, New York, and the Sporting News archives, Regalado conducted interviews with some twenty-five Latin baseball stars, among them Felipe Alou, Orlando Cepeda, and Tony Oliva.