1954,A triumphant season for black ballplayers and the countryaward-winning New York Times bestselling author Bill Madden delivers the first major book to fully examine the 1954 baseball season, drawn largely from exclusive recent interviews with the major players themselves, including Willie Mays and Larry Doby as well as New York baseball legends from that era: Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford of the Yankees, Monte Irvin of the Giants, and Carl Erskine of the Dodgers. 1954 transports readers across the baseball landscape of the time as future superstars such as Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, and others entered the leagues and continued to integrate the sport. Weaving together the narrative of one of baseball's greatest seasons wit the racially charged events of that year,the same in which the US Supreme Court unanimously ruled that segregation of the races be outlawed in America's public schools, 1954 demonstrates how our national pastime was actually ahead of the curve in terms of the acceptance of black Americans, while the nation at large continued to struggle with tolerance.

In this candid, revealing, and entertaining memoir, the beloved New York Yankee legend looks back over his nearly fifty-year career as a player and a manager, sharing insights and stories about some of his most memorable moments and some of the biggest names in Major League Baseball. For nearly five decades, Lou Piniella has been a fixture in Major League Baseball, as an outfielder with the legendary New York Yankees of the 1970s, and as a manager for five teams in both the American and National leagues. With respected veteran sportswriter Bill Madden, Piniella now reflects on his storied career, offering fans a glimpse of life on the field, in the dugout, and inside the clubhouse. Piniella speaks from the heart about his teams and his players, offering a detailed, up-close portrait of the Bronx Zoo's raucous personalities such as Reggie Jackson and Catfish Hunter, as well as his close friendship with Thurman Munson and his unusual relationship with George Steinbrenner. He also delves deep into his post-Yankee experiences, from winning a World Series for the controversial owner of the Cincinnati Reds, Marge Schott, to transforming the perennial cellar-dwelling Seattle Mariners into one of the league's best teams. Some of the game's brightest stars are here: Ken Griffey Jr, Randy Johnson, and Alex Rodriguez, Piniella's supremely talented and controversial protege. Throughout his time in the majors, Piniella has witnessed MLB grow into a multi-billion-dollar business. Piniella reflects on those changes, voicing his highly critical opinions on a range of controversial subjects, including steroids. Hilarious and uproarious, filled with eight pages of photos, Lou brings into focus a man whose deeply rooted passion for baseball has defined his life.

Fifty Years of Kicking Dirt, Playing Hard, and Winning Big in the Sweet Spot of Baseball

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.

No other team has come close to dominating baseball like the New York Yankees, with 26 World Series wins and 38 American League championships. No wonder no other team has a frac tion of baseball books published about them. Bill Madden adds another to the lengthy list with Pride of October: What it Was to Be Young and a Yankee. From Phil Rizzuto and Whitey Ford to Lou Piniella and Paul O'Neil, 17 former Yankees and one Yankee widow, reveal their memories about their careers. The wide range ofYankee seasons is reflected in all the players selected, so questions range from the reality of Babe Ruth's "called home run," to Pichardthe shocking final inning of the 2001 World Series loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks with the "unbeatable" Yankee reliever Mario Rivera on the mound. In the pregame clubhouse meetings, the normally reserved Rivera surprised his team mates by saying "We're going to win, but no matter what happens, it's in God's hands." Don Mattingly reflects on his 13 fine seasons with the Yanks without a single World Series ring to show for it. Yogi Berra, Madden claims, when asked directions to his home for the interview replies, "When you get to the house, you'll see it."