Baseball is a beautiful game. Unlike football, basketball, and ice hockey, there is no running clock, but that’s part of its charm. There are also so many nuances to the game. It’s much more than home runs and strikeouts. It’s laying down the perfect bunt, executing the double steal, or making the perfect relay throw to nail a runner at the plate. Baseball is a “relaxed” excitement when compared to the other spectator sports, but it’s just as intense.
As with other sports there is a dark side to the game. In football it’s the late hit. In basketball it’s the flagrant foul. In ice hockey it’s the “goon” blindsiding an opposing skater. In baseball it’s the beanball.
I’ve never quite understood why baseball tolerates it. The specter of a 95 mph fastball being thrown at a defenseless batter on purpose seems criminal, but it’s part of baseball’s unwritten code.
The way the hit-batsman routine works is pretty well scripted. After a pitcher nails a batter as a means of retaliation or to show him who’s boss, the batter charges the mound, the pitcher drops his glove, the two of them throw roundhouse rights that miss, and the benches and bullpens empty. The umpires restore order and throw the batter and pitcher out of the game. It makes for great theater but usually nothing happens unless one of the punches connects. Then all bets are off. It’s all basically stupid and juvenile, but baseball has never tried to stop it. It’s apparently considered one of the “harmless” rites of the game. Of course, it isn’t always harmless.
A baseball can be a lethal weapon. One major leaguer, Ray Chapman, died from being hit in the head (that was in 1920 before the age of batting helmets). The “lucky” hit-batsman might get by with a concussion.
The most famous case in the last 50 years was Tony Conigliaro of the Boston Red Sox. He was so talented he was considered a potential Hall of Famer. But, in 1967, after being beaned in the face (presumably unintentionally) and having his left cheekbone shattered and retina damaged, his vision and career were never the same again. Conigliaro sadly ended up dying at the age of 45 after a massive heart attack and stroke left him in a vegetative state for several years.
Against this backdrop comes John Grisham’s latest novel, “Calico Joe.” Grisham is best known for his legal thrillers, but when he steps into a different genre he often produces some of his best work. Calico Joe is no exception. It’s the story of baseball’s ultimate phenom.
In 1973, Joe Castle is called up from the minors by the Chicago Cubs and lights the league on fire. He starts hitting and doesn’t stop. A young 11-yearold Little Leaguer, Paul Tracey, is one of the millions of kids in awe of Castle. What set him apart is his father, Warren, is a pitcher for the New York Mets.
Warren is the type of loudmouth father we’ve all seen or read about and are relieved isn’t ours. He makes Paul’s life miserable by coming to his Little League games and constantly criticizing him. He was the super jock in high school and married the homecoming queen. Although he made the major leagues, he is a journeyman pitcher. He is also a wife-beater and philanderer.
Naturally, things come to a head when the Cubs come to New York to play the Mets. Warren is one of those pitchers who believed in the unwritten “code” of the beanball. He even demanded that Paul use it in Little League. When Joe Castle gets into the batter’s box to face Warren you already know what’s going to happen. As the book jacket states, “Warren threw a fastball that changed their lives forever.”
There are many twists and turns in the novel and Grisham mixes real life ballplayers with his fictional ones. It bounces back and forth between 1973 and near-present day and doesn’t skip a beat. It is easily the type of book you could read in one sitting.
Beyond that, it is a reminder that one of baseball’s oldest “rituals” is perhaps one it can do without. A beanball can literally change multiple people’s lives. Grisham manages to get this point across with an engrossing novel.
Book Notes
June 1, 2012
Book Notes: ‘Calico Joe’ one of Grisham’s best
- Book Notes
-
- Book covers much more than caddies and golf St Andrews in Scotland is famous as the birthplace of golf. Every few years the "old course" hosts the British Open so all television viewers are reminded that the place is hallowed ground.
- Memoir reflects on 'roller-coaster life and career' Apparently, the third time wasn't the charm. The way Reynolds described him, the third husband was worse than the first two combined and that's saying a lot. Eddie Fisher literally walked away from Reynolds and their two infant children to chase a sex goddess. At least he got his just desserts when Elizabeth Taylor tossed him aside for Richard Burton.
- 'Who's on Worst?' reveals the ugly in baseball The Baseball Hall of Fame celebrates the greatest players, managers and owners from our national pastime. Any of us who have watched Major League baseball have inevitably seen some of these immortals practicing their craft. But we have also likely witnessed a sample of their opposite brethren, players who shouldn't have been in the Major Leagues. Has there ever been a definitive source that "celebrates" the non-accomplishments of the worst that Major League baseball has to offer?
- Book takes readers on path for equal rights One of the most troubling aspects of our history is race relations. It takes a long time to achieve true equality in a society when the heritage of one ethnic group is slavery and Jim Crow laws. Even today African Americans are more likely to be stereotyped as athletes than doctors, lawyers or entrepreneurs. The path to a "color-blind" nation is still a work in progress.
- Piazza wasn't considered much of a prospect for the majors It's probably going to be a quiet few days in Cooperstown when Hall of Fame weekend rolls around this summer. The baseball writers did not elect anybody this year despite some heavyweight candidates. The problem was that at least three of the poster boys for the steroids era, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Sammy Sosa, were on the ballot for the first time. The writers were clearly making a statement when nobody got elected.
- Who would have thought e-books would be so popular? When I was in library school 25 years ago, a future concept was presented that seemed absurd at the time. It was the notion you could read books on a small computerized device about the size of a pocketbook.
- 2012 was a year of great films, future favorites The year 2012 was a blockbuster year for great films. Several of the movies up for Best Picture would have been runaway favorites almost any other time. They will make for easy pickings for the library when they become available on DVD.
- Blockbusters are not the only movies worth watching Hollywood makes enough movies that there are always a few that you don't hear about until they are on DVD. Sometimes they are simply horrible films that end their theater run quickly, but often they are "diamonds in the rough" that made their mark at film festivals.
- Mickey Mantle biography shows the good and the ugly It has become obvious in recent days that bestowing "hero" status on athletes is a misplaced priority.
- Book looks at 50 years of James Bond movies When I was in elementary school, James Bond was all the rage. For some reason I didn't see any of the early films with Sean Connery playing the infamous 007 British spy, but my siblings and several friends certainly did.
- More Book Notes Headlines
Mayor: Person Killed in San Antonio Flooding
Raw: Apple 1 Computer Sells for More Than $650k
Hagel Urges Cadets to End Scourge of Sex Assault
Raw: Gay Rights Activists March in Ukraine
Bus Fire Kills 16 Children, Teacher in Pakistan
Raw: Pakistan Election Results Protested
Raw: Trucker Bumps I-5 Bridge Before Collapse
Raw: Texas Deputy Shot by Colo. Suspect Honored
Major Detours Following Wash. Bridge Collapse
American Held in Grisly Czech Murders
Raw: Jersey Shore Reopens for Summer
UK-bound Pakistan Plane Diverted, 2 Men Arrested
Officials: Tsarnaev Friend Linked to Slaying
Obama:Sexual Assault Threatens Trust in Military
Bridge Collapse Survivor: 'Rough Day'
Jersey Shore Open for Business
Raw: Memorial Day Flags Placed at Arlington
New Wheelchair Lift Promises More Access
First Person: Mom Discusses Famous Tornado Photo
Raw Video: Washington State Bridge Collapse
