Synopses & Reviews
andquot;This is the best book looking inside the mind of a big-league manager I have ever read, because Francona is sharp and loves the game, because Shaughnessy is eloquent and a dazzling storyteller.andquot;andmdash;
Philadelphia Daily News When Terry Francona took over as manager of the Boston Red Sox in 2004, the storied franchise hadnandrsquo;t won a World Series championship in eighty-six years. Led by Francona, the team won two over the course of four years. During the full eight years of Franconaandrsquo;s tenure, the Red Sox were transformed from andldquo;cursedandrdquo; into one of the most successful and profitable teams in baseball historyandmdash;only to fall back to last place as soon as Francona was gone.
Francona: The Red Sox Years lets readers in on the inner workings of the Red Sox clubhouse like no book has ever done before. From the highs of the World Series to the lows of the final months of the 2011 seasonandmdash;the most epic collapse of a team in baseball historyandmdash;this book features the never-before-told stories about Sox fansandrsquo; favorite players, moments, wins, and losses.
andldquo;A scorched-earth memoir . . . [that] touches fleetingly on steroid use, sabermetrics, and Michael Jordanandrsquo;s stint in the minor leagues . . . but saves its heaviest artillery for the owners . . . [and] Theo Epstein backs him up.andrdquo;andmdash;New York Times Book Review
andldquo;Itandrsquo;s not often that baseball aficionados and gossip gluttons can plunk down on a shared portion of outfield grass with the same book for an afternoon of readerly delight, but Francona can bridge those kinds of differences.andrdquo;andmdash;Boston Globe
Review
“Definitive, indispensible.... A vivid and entertaining portrait.” Sports Illustrated
Review
“Madden provides a definitive and captivating biography of ‘The Boss.” Kirkus Reviews
Synopsis
No owner has changed the landscape of sports more than New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner. From the moment he bought the team in 1973, Steinbrenner's monomaniacal pursuit was to restore the most-fabled franchise in baseball history to its former glory. Steinbrenner's tumultuous reign included epic battles with Billy Martin, Reggie Jackson, Dave Winfield, even beloved Yankee captain Derek Jeter. His ruthless and free-spending tactics made him a lightning rod for controversy but they also paid off: Steinbrenner's Yankees won seven championships and remain the gold standard in all sports.
Throughout his three decades of covering the Yankees, Bill Madden has cultivated hundreds of sources at every level in the organization—from the many managers and front-office personnel Steinbrenner has fired to the bat boys who are ever present in the locker room. They all have colorful stories about the man with whom they have enjoyed a love-hate relationship, but in Steinbrenner, it is the Boss himself whose voice rises above the rest.
Synopsis
If you love the New York Yankees, arguably the most storied franchise in all of sports—or even if youre just a fan of baseball history, or big business bios—this biography of the larger-than-life team owner for the past four decades is a must for your bookshelf. For more than 30 years Bill Madden has covered the Yankees and Major League Baseball for the New York Daily News, and he brings all his insights and inside connections to Steinbrenner: the definitive biography of one of New Yorks most intriguing and long-standing sports figures, Yankees owner George Steinbrenner.
Synopsis
The bestselling story of Terry Francona's tenure as manager of the Boston Red Sox.
About the Author
Terry "Tito" Francona was a first baseman and outfielder in the majors from 1981 to 1990. After retiring as a player, he managed several minor league teams in the 1990s before managing the Philadelphia Phillies for four seasons. In 2004, Francona was hired to manage the Boston Red Sox, and that year he led the team to its first World Series championship since 1918. He won another World Series with Boston in 2007 and continued to manage the team until the end of the 2011 season. He is now a commentator for ESPN, joining in on their Sunday Night Baseball telecast and contributing to ESPN.com.Dan Shaughnessy is an award-winning columnist for the Boston Globe and the author of several sports books, including The Curse of the Bambino, a best-selling classic. Seven times Shaughnessy has been voted one of Americaand#8217;s top ten sports columnists by Associated Press Sports Editors and named Massachusetts Sportswriter of the Year. He has appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, The Early Show, CNN, Nightline, NPR, Imus in the Morning, ESPN, HBO, and many others. He lives in Newton, Massachusetts.