A collection of interviews with baseball stars about their own father-son relationships, includes conversations with Ted Williams, Reggie Jackson, Gary Carter, Wade Boggs, and many others

The essays in Fathers Playing Catch with Sons are a wonderful mixture of reminiscence and observation, of baseball and of fathers and sons, of how a game binds people together and bridges generations. In the pantheon of great sports literature, not a few poets have tried their hand at paying tribute to their love affair with the game--Walt Whitman, Marianne Moore, and William Carlos Williams among them. This elegant volume collects Donald Hall's prose about sports, concentrating on baseball but extending to basketball, football and Ping-Pong.

Time often slows and even stops in the small town of Cottage Park, Iowa. In fact, time is best measured not by the hands of a clock but by the innings of a baseball game. Praying and playing baseball are two of the town's primary activities. Actually, they are one in the same in a town where baseball is a religion. Still, time does eventually flow on. Much like the Des Moines River just outside Cottage Park, time leads to the site of the 1974 Iowa high school baseball tournament. Cottage Park's Holy Trinity High School has never won the Finals. The team's three elderly coaches vow to at last anoint themselves champions before they retire. For the players, the road to the Finals is a confirmation by fire--a rite of passage before they must face adulthood. Fathers, sons, and the holy ghosts of baseball join together in the quest for the Finals. Along this journey, young and old alike ultimately learn you must sacrifice before you can gain and sometimes you must lose before you can win.

Baseball Fathers and Sons will amaze and delight baseball fans. More than fifty post 1920 Big League father-son, grandfather-father-son, and even one mother-son match-ups are described in a fast-moving way that will inform and delight baseball fans. From the Ken Griffeys, Sr. and Jr., to Barry and Bobby Bonds, to Felipe and Moises Alou, to Yogi and Dale Berra, short thumbnail sketches of featured fathers and sons bring these personalities to life. A single line of statistics about each player is included, showing at a glance how fathers and sons did in their careers, as well as in comparison to each other. Baseball Fathers and Sons is an ideal Father's Day gift for any dad who has ever played catch with his son. It is not a "statistics" book; rather, it is an entertaining work that highlights the careers of dozens of fathers and sons who have played Big League Baseball.

A hilarious tribute to baseball and to the fathers and sons who share the love of the game. Are We Winning? is built around a trip to Wrigley Field to watch the St. Louis Cardinals play the Chicago Cubs--the "lovable losers" to most fans but the hated enemy to the Leitch men. Along for the ride are both Will's father, the gregarious but not-exactly demonstrative Midwestern titan who, despite being a die-hard Cards fan and living his whole life just 200 miles south of Chicago, had never been to Wrigley Field before this game, and Will's college friend, a lifelong Cubs fan. The Cardinals have recently fallen out of the pennant race, and the Cubs, as it turns out, are attempting to clinch the division on this Saturday afternoon in September. The pitchers are Ted Lilly for the Cubs and Joel Pineiro for the Cardinals. It's just a regular game. Play ball. The book unfolds in half-inning increments where Will gives one-of-a-kind insight on the past, present, and future of the game--from Pujols' unrivaled greatness to the myth that steroids have ruined baseball. Along the way, he shares memories of his father and growing up in the small town of Mattoon, including the year his dad coached his Little League team and nicknamed a scrawny kid "Bulldog," and an unlikely postgame episode involving a biker bar and Mr. Holland's Opus. And there is beer. Lots and lots of beer. Are We Winning? is a book about the indelible bond that links fathers and sons. For the Leitch men it's baseball that holds them together--not that either of them would ever be so weak as to admit it. No matter how far apart they are or what's going on in their lives, they'll always be able to talk about baseball. It's the story of being a fan, a story about fathers, sons, and legacies. And one perfect game.

Baseball is America's favorite pastime and one of the best ways for fathers and sons to bond. Major League Dads is an inspirational look at such connections through a collection of heartfelt essays from interviews with 150 of the top players in Major League Baseball, such as David Wright, Carlos Pena, Brad Lidge, and Derek Jeter. Through personal recollections, you can read firsthand what their dads meant to them growing up and how they coached them to success both on and off the field.

Discusses the statistics and accomplishments of fathers and sons who have played professional baseball.