The Last Real Season by Mike Shropshire
July 22nd, 2008Title: The Last Real Season
Author: Mike Shropshire
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (2008)
I love baseball and I am from Cincinnati…therefore when I saw there was a new book out about the 1975 season, well I had to read it! For those who don’t know what I am talking about, 1975 was the year of the famous Reds vs. Red Sox World Series (which the Reds won). I figured this book would at least talk a little bit about The Big Red Machine. I was right…there was a little talk about them. But that’s not what this book was about. In The Last Real Season: A Hilarious Look Back at 1975 When Major Leaguers Made Peanuts, the Umpires Wore Red, and Billy Martin Terrorized Everyone, Shropshire tells his story of being a beat writer for the Texas Rangers. He also gets the award for longest secondary title of a book that I have read.
I should have seen it coming, but I didn’t expect this book to be the way it was. It’s basically 240 pages of stories about how baseball was better back in the old days. Before free agency and when players drank and smoked cigarettes in the dugout. Back when all the players were out of shape and got drunk after each game. If this book is historically accurate, which I assume it is, it sounds like baseball is FAR better off now than it was in “the glory years”. The only thing we have to worry about now is steroids and A-Rod cheating on his wife with Madonna. Yes…much better than before.
This book tells story after story of these types of things. The main character of the book is Billy Martin, who was the manager of the Rangers at the time. He was loud, obnoxious, and an OK manager (in my opinion). Eventually he acted like such a jerk that the Rangers owner was forced to fire him. Martin did this because he wanted the New York Yankees job, which coincidentally opened up right after he was fired. Classy!
The part I liked about this book was reading Shropshire’s writings from back in 1975. I’ve not read any of his other writings, but the stuff he wrote as beat writer is awesome. He had no fear and basically just wrote what he observed. I appreciate that in a writer. His writing style is also fun to read, and eventually, the story got around to the 1975 World Series…which was exciting! Yea Reds!
All in all this was an OK book. I guess I was just disappointed in the general creepiness that was going on back then.
Rating: 3 out of 5
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July 22nd, 2008 at 10:59 am
Hi! I’ve nominated you for a blog award
Details are in Readerville
July 22nd, 2008 at 2:40 pm
Added. Nice work on this one. Btw, my blog is dofollow, stop by and grab a link. Walter
July 22nd, 2008 at 6:04 pm
I haven’t nominated you for anything and I don’t have a blog. However, I think your blog site is the cat’s pajamas.
Signed,
An old 1975 baseball fan.
July 22nd, 2008 at 10:33 pm
I suppose you’re allowed to nominate anyone you want…I haven’t seen any restrictions!