Lou: Fifty Years of Kicking Dirt, Playing Hard, and Winning Big in the Sweet Spot of Baseball
by Lou Piniella
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Description
In this candid, revealing, and entertaining memoir, the beloved New York Yankee legend looks back over his nearly fifty-year career as a player and a manager, sharing insights and stories about some of his most memorable moments and some of the biggest names in Major League Baseball. For nearly five decades, Lou Piniella has been a fixture in Major League Baseball, as an outfielder with the legendary New York Yankees of the 1970s, and as a manager for five teams in both the American and show more National leagues. With respected veteran sportswriter Bill Madden, Piniella now reflects on his storied career, offering fans a glimpse of life on the field, in the dugout, and inside the clubhouse. Piniella speaks from the heart about his teams and his players, offering a detailed, up-close portrait of the Bronx Zoo's raucous personalities such as Reggie Jackson and Catfish Hunter, as well as his close friendship with Thurman Munson and his unusual relationship with George Steinbrenner. He also delves deep into his post-Yankee experiences, from winning a World Series for the controversial owner of the Cincinnati Reds, Marge Schott, to transforming the perennial cellar-dwelling Seattle Mariners into one of the league's best teams. Some of the game's brightest stars are here: Ken Griffey Jr, Randy Johnson, and Alex Rodriguez, Piniella's supremely talented and controversial protégé. Throughout his time in the majors, Piniella has witnessed MLB grow into a multi-billion-dollar business. Piniella reflects on those changes, voicing his highly critical opinions on a range of controversial subjects, including steroids. Hilarious and uproarious, filled with eight pages of photos, Lou brings into focus a man whose deeply rooted passion for baseball has defined his life. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Many people don't like "as told to" memoirs by sports figures, but this book doesn't read like one of those. Piniella's voice comes through loud and clear, but is supplemented by interviews and research clearly done by his co-author, Bill Madden. I've been fascinated by Piniella since he played for the short-lived Seattle Pilots in the late 1960s. Yes, Lou has a temper, but he also has a heart. He is opinionated but some of his opinions will surprise readers, like his defense of Alex Rodriguez.
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New York Yankees
77 works; 2 members
Author Information
1 Work 42 Members
Lou Piniella is fourteenth on the list of all-time MLB managerial wins. He lives in Tampa, Florida. Bill Madden has covered Major League Baseball for the New York Daily News for more than forty years and has written several books about baseball.
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Lou: Fifty Years of Kicking Dirt, Playing Hard, and Winning Big in the Sweet Spot of Baseball
- Alternate titles
- Lou
- Original publication date
- 2017-05-16
- People/Characters
- Lou Piniella; Reggie Jackson; Catfish Hunter; Thurman Munson; George Steinbrenner; Marge Schott (show all 9); Ken Griffey, Jr.; Randy Johnson; Alex Rodriguez
- Important places
- New York, New York, USA
- Dedication
- This book is dedicated to my wonderful wife, Anita. For the past
fifty years, she has been my rock, my loving companion, and the
mother of our three amazing children, Lou Jr., Kristi, and Derek.
I also want to... (show all) thank my parents, Margaret and Louis, for the
love and encouragement they gave me all their lives. - First words
- The sun was just beginning its slow rise above the Fenway Park grandstand behind home plate, and you could already feel the tension in the air as we climbed off the team bus and began making our way to the visiting clubhouse ... (show all)for what would be the biggest and most fun baseball game of my life.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)In my twenty-three years of managing, I never once used a shift and somehow still managed to win 1,835 games.
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Epilogue: I also realize that, approaching my midseventies, I am in the ninth inning of life, winning the game because of my faith—and that is the greatest comfort of all to me. - Blurbers
- Shaughnessy, Dan; Parcells, Bill
- Original language
- English
Classifications
- Genres
- Sports and Leisure, Nonfiction, Biography & Memoir
- DDC/MDS
- 796.357092 — Arts & recreation Recreation, sports, and performing arts Athletic and outdoor sports and games Ball sports Ball and stick sports Baseball Biography And History Biography
- LCC
- GV865 .P56 .A3 — Geography, Anthropology and Recreation Recreation. Leisure Recreation. Leisure Sports Ball games: Baseball, football, golf, etc.
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 42
- Popularity
- 661,934
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (3.67)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 10
- ASINs
- 1
