Table of Contents
Introduction xi
Prologue xv
I The Boss 1
A Student of Attila the Hun 3
George and the Yankee Doghouse 6
George's First Black Coach 9
The Man Who Missed Steinbrenner 12
The Seinfeld Steinbrenner 15
II The Crack of the Bat 21
So Many Hits, So Much Time for Jeter 23
Whew! Scooter Talks Circles around the Hall 26
Mantle and Herschkopf the Psychiatrist 29
A Final, Sweet Ovation for Mantle 32
DiMaggio, a Neighbor, the Quake 35
DiMaggio, Failing, Is 84 Today 38
Roger Maris Comes Home 41
Reggie: Old "44" Returns 45
Reggie Becomes Mr. Cooperstown 49
Blomberg: One Awestruck Rookie 52
O'Neill Moves On Gracefully 55
Murcer: Yanks' Last Link to Bygone Days 58
Mattingly's Elusive Dream 62
Winfield: One Definition of a Winner 65
Wiggins Touched the Hot Iron 68
Strawberry Attempts to Do It Over Again 71
This Bernie Is Not Some Banjo Hitter 74
Babe Ruth and John Dillinger 77
One for Eli Yale 80
Yogi: Baseball's Oddest Marvel 83
McDougald, Once a Quiet Yankee, Now Lives in Quiet World 86
For McDougald, the Miracle of Sound 93
III Atop the Hill 97
The Goose in His Old Nest 99
Era Ends: Gator Says "So Long" 103
Forty Years Later, Larsen Still Delights in His Perfection and His Luck 106
Come Home, Allie Reynolds 109
Niekro: Trying to Pitch Forever 112
A Yankee Dinosaur Called Rags 115
The Future Is Unclear for Howe 118
Anticipation and Drama at Stadium 121
Pettitte: The Trade Never Made Still Golden 124
Gooden: Conquering More than the Strike Zone 127
Clemens: Chin Music 132
Wells: Colorful Pitcher, but Not a Stand-Up Guy 134
Abbott's Inspirational Return 137
Waite Hoyt in theRain 140
Bouton and the Write Stuff 144
Cone Must Prove Himself Again 148
Catfish Hunter: The Obituary 151
IV The Hot Seat 159
Torre Knows Victory Isn't Everything 161
Time and Success Mellow Piniella 164
Rubbernecking on Billy Day 168
Remembering Billy Martin, Battler 171
"Stained-Glass" Casey Stengel 174
Clyde King Faces Another Challenge 177
Dallas Green Isn't Blue 180
V The Way It Was 183
Twenty-Five Years Fail to Dim Either Title or Turmoil 185
Some Old Faces in the Clubhouse 188
Healy's Gone, So Who's on First Now? 192
Yesterday Was Just Perfect for a Ballgame 195
Baseball Season: No Trespassing 199
Down Broadway 202
VI A Handful of Notable Rivals 205
Cookie Lavagetto's Double 207
Koufax Is No Garbo 210
Seaver: A Family Affair 214
Maddux: A Baseball Picasso 218
Manny Ramirez: Formidable, and Forgetful 221
Zimmer: Unlikely Hero of '55 Series . . . Well, Sort Of 225
Varitek and A-Rod Brawl 228
A-Rod in Japanese Translation 231
Ted Williams: An Evening with the Kid 233
About the Author 236
