Mickey Bradley

Ah, baseball.

This book is about 33% Spooky Ghost Story, 33% Chicken Soup for the Baseball Lover's Soul, and 33% baseball lore*. I enjoyed 67% percent of it...I'm not a big fan of the Chicken Soup-style stories. But they were segmented off into chapters, so I was able to skim the heartstring-plucking tales and get back to the good stuff.

I love baseball lore. LOVE it. I especially enjoyed the chapters on the curses, like the Curse of the Bambino (RIP 2004). How about the Curse of the Goat, which has kept the Cubs pennant-free since 1908? Well, bad playing was probably to blame for 1908-1945, but then a fan tried to bring his goat into the stadium in 1946 and was stopped at the door. Incensed, the man placed a curse on the Cubs...and they haven't won a pennant since**.

There were parts in which the authors veered pretty far away from the ballpark...haunted hotels at which players have stayed, ghost stories from a player's childhood, things like that. But it was all interesting and fun. I'd suggest this book to baseball fans - particularly those who have an interest in some of the more venerable teams in the league: the Yankees, White Sox, Cubs, and Dodgers got much of the attention.

I suppose the Metrodome isn't the sort of stadium that evokes deep history and hauntings. Unfortunately, I don't think that the ghost of Kirby Puckett is still circling the bases. If he's haunting anything, it's probably a strip club or a BBQ shack (but I love him anyway). But I still dug the book, and I think it's a fun topic.

* and 1% butterscotch ripple!

** Incidentally, my team (the Twins) didn't get one mention in the entire book. However, one of my least favorite former Twins of all time - LaTroy "Mr. Inconsistent/Moody McSulkerson" Hawkins - had something profound to say about the goat incident: "Who brings a f---ing goat to a ballpark anyway?" Indeed, LaTroy.… (mehr)