Jason Turbow

The Baseball Codes: Beanballs, Sign Stealing, and Bench-Clearing Brawls: The Unwritten Rules of America’s Pastime alternately entertained, educated and enraged me. I love that authors Jason Turbow and Michael Duca were not afraid to name names. They told some great stories about some of the great rivalries in baseball — not just between teams, but between players. They explain the rules — the unwritten codes that players learn in the dugout and in the clubhouse. Some of these rules are show more black and white — everybody joins a fight. Some of the rules are so vague that even the players can’t agree on the specifics. But everybody knows there are rules…and there are consequences for breaking them.

“I can break it down into three simple things,” said Bob Brenly, who followed a nine-year big-league career by managing the Arizona Diamondbacks to a world championship in 2001. “Respect your teammates, respect your opponents, and respect the game.”

That sounds simple, doesn’t it? Most players learn by screwing up: they do something stupid — like showboat a little on a home run — and one of their guys gets hit with a pitch. Later, in the clubhouse, they get a little schooling from the other guys and the traditions are passed on. There are even clubhouse police (Chapter 23) and kangaroo courts to help rule on minor infractions. But for the most part, younger players learn by watching the older players, taking their cues from the veterans about how to behave on the field, in the clubhouse, and in front of the media.

I was amused by the rules that even the players can’t decide on — running up the score, for example. It only seems sporting that if you are massacring the other team, you stop playing quite so aggressively in the later innings, to avoid embarrassing them. But how much of a lead is enough and how early is late in the game? What constitutes aggressive play – bunting? Stealing a base? How much celebration is too much?

There are some fabulous stories in this book. The story about how Satchel Paige came to call teammate Buck O’Neill “Nancy” is a classic. There was also the story about Tommy Lasorda’s grudge against Buster Maynard. In 1949, playing in the Single-A South Atlantic League, Lasorda threw a series of inside pitches that knocked Maynard on his behind — and Maynard had no idea why! He got his explanation after the game: 7 years earlier, when Lasorda had been just 15 years old and a huge Giants fan, he’d asked Maynard for an autograph and been ignored by his hero. It took him a few years, but Lasorda got his revenge.

Revenge is one aspect of the book that troubled me. I understood the rules about protecting your players (you hit one of my guys, I’ll hit one of yours), I understood the rules about hard slides and hard tags and when they are appropriate, but I have an issue with sending a fastball straight for a guy’s head, just because you’re mad that he bunted on you or frustrated because you gave up a home run. That ball is potentially lethal in a pitcher’s hands and they ought to know it (shortstop Ray Chapman of the Cleveland Naps was killed by pitch, thrown by Yankees pitcher Carl Mays). There are many stories in the book about players who suffered career-ending or career-altering injuries as a result of these pitches. Satchel Paige taught Nolan Ryan about “one of the best pitches” in baseball: the bow-tie pitch. You throw it right across their Adam’s apple — right where they wear their bow tie. I found myself angry and horrified listening, which is not what I expected at all when I started this book.

I enjoyed The Baseball Codes, even when it made me angry. It’s a terrific story about the behind-the-scenes stuff that goes on around the diamond. I loved getting a closer look. As for those ambiguous rules, there are a few I’m highly in favor of. For example, I completely agree that running up the score on an opposing team is downright rude and teams should never, ever do that. Of course, I was watching the day the Cleveland Indians came back from a 12-4 deficit to beat the Seattle Mariners 15-14 in 11 innings…and I’m a die-hard Indians fan. show less

An entertaining read, with plenty of juicy details. Found myself laughing out loud and then passing on several of the stories to fellow baseball nuts. Ever find yourself wondering about some inscrutable action on the field? Odds are, the unwritten rules of baseball were involved. The rules are enforced by retaliation (pitchers intentionally hitting or brushing back batters or runners spiking infielders), onfield fights, kangaroo courts in clubhouses and veterans passing on their wisdom to show more rookies. Generally, the rules reinforce respect for oneself, one's teammates and for the Game itself.

A portion of the book addresses the various methods for getting a leg up over the other team -- stealing signs, doctoring balls and corking bats for example. Depending on where you stand, this is either cheating or an expected part of the game. Major leaguers are quoted as accepting that players do whatever necessary to get an advantage in this ultra-competitive world.

The recent performance enhancing drugs scandal in baseball would seem to have been a natural result of this apparently accepted 'code.' Surprisingly, the authors stay well away from steroids. How the Keepers of the Code really felt would be incredibly topical and interesting. I suspect many of their sources were unwilling to go on record in this age of federal grand juries and media outcry.

Overall, I quite enjoyed the book, and especially as I remember many of the games discussed. I'd recommend to baseball fans anywhere. show less

If you're a baseball fan (and even if you aren't), you probably wonder what goes on behind the scenes. In this funny, absorbing book, Jason Turbow tells you all about what goes on behind the scenes in our national pastime, particularly as to the baseball code, the unwritten "rules" of the game. The code has changed over time and no one is supposed to talk about it to other players, but, in general, the code boils down to respecting one's colleagues.

Ballplayers who dig in too much in the show more batters box, who admire the home runs they've just hit, or who violate any of the myriad parts of "the code" will soon understand the error of their ways as the other team, or perhaps their own teammates, will do something to let them know where they've gone wrong.

Turbow provides a lot of stories from the distant and the recent past to illustrate his points. This was a baseball book I simply could not put down.

Cheating, sign stealing, doctoring the baseball with a foreign substance, and other such things are also covered, as is the "kangaroo court" whereby teams enforce their standards on their teammates. If a player does something stupid, his wallet will be a bit lighter, once the kangaroo court is through with him.

I'm a long-time fan and an old school sort of person so this book really resonates with me. I absolutely loved and learned a whole lot about the game I love so much. Highly, highly recommended!! One of the best baseball books I've read in a long time and I read at least a dozen of them each year, if not more. Loved it!!. show less

This book recounts the rise and fall of the 1970s Oakland A’s, who won five consecutive division titles (1971-1975) and three straight World Series championships (1972-1974). It analyzes the chaotic era of Charlie O. Finley. He was an eccentric owner who liked to call the shots and caused a lot of friction in the clubhouse. It features players such as Sal Bando, Vida Blue, Bert Campaneris, Mike Epstein, Rollie Fingers, Ken Holtzman, Catfish Hunter, Reggie Jackson, Blue Moon Odom, and show more others, drawing on interviews and news reports. It relates the internal dysfunction faced by this colorful cast of characters.

I enjoyed the depiction of the tension between oversized egos and team performance, but there was a lot of fighting and feuding. It seems like a “dish the dirt” type of book, which is not my preference in sports reading. I picked it up as part of a challenge to read something about my nearest sports franchise. In my case, it is currently the “Sacramento” Athletics, formerly the Oakland A’s, soon to be relocated to Las Vegas. I am a San Francisco Giants fan, and A’s fans may enjoy it more than I did. show less