Game Six: Cincinnati, Boston, and the 1975 World Series: The Triumph of America's Pastime

Carlton Fisk's game-winning home run in the bottom of the eleventh inning in the sixth game of the 1975 World Series has been one of the most iconic image in sports history. Mark Frost's wonderful book details every pitch that came before it in the game, and in between pitches he weaves the backstory of how it all fit together to bring all the participants to October 21, 1975 at Fenway.

It's a well-told narrative, much like listening to Vin Scully tell a long story during an unforgettable ball game in his prime. The ending isn't a surprise, of course-- that's the allure of the book-- but there are plenty of surprises and enough trivial tidbits scattered throughout to keep you engaged. How do Dick Cheney, Monday Night Football, Bruce show more Springsteen, and Saturday Night Live all relate to this one game? Mark Frost sets the drama very well, but doesn't linger. Even the description of Fisk's game-winner is relatively brief, like the home-run itself. But the larger context is lengthy, such as how this was the last World Series played before free agency changed the game -- for better and worse-- forever.

Frost covers the broadcasters, players, coaches and managers, and even Red Sox team owner in detail. It's a worthwhile read for any baseball fan, especially those old enough to remember the game that caused church bells throughout New England to ring at 12:34 in the morning. show less

This book was definitely written for people who already know all the figures involved. There was a lot of: "And that little boy's name was... George Anderson!" to which I have no reaction other than, "Good for him." But I soldiered on despite my ignorance, and did learn some things, not leastly what the man Frost blandly refers to as "Bucky 'Fucking' Dent" actually did.

The setup: Boston and Cincinnati are in Game Six of the World Series, with Boston down three games to two. After a two-day rain delay, Game Six is on in Fenway Park.

Frost has a habit of alternating paragraphs describing the action on the field with paragraphs about one of the players, or the history of the teams, or the situation in America and Boston in 1975. This works show more when his background information is substantial enough to take a few pages. It doesn't work when all he has is an anecdote about a player and he splits it into two disjointed paragraphs rather then a single cohesive one. But I got used to the rhythm - it is sort of like the commentary sportscasters provide in the moments between action, and that may be completely intentional on Frost's part.

Frost believes - and, after reading the book, I agree - that Bernie Carbo's game-tying home run was the play of the game, and so doesn't write Carlton Fisk's game-winning home run nearly as passionately. Frost seems irritated that Fisk was dubbed the hero of the game, and Carbo completely overlooked, but his narrative choice still made the ending of the game a letdown. And then, of course, the Red Sox self-destructed in Game Seven, because that's what they do. Game Seven needed to be either written more interestingly or addressed much more briefly - a sort of highlights reel instead of a play-by-play. I found that the most boring chapter.

I also didn't understand what the "triumph" of the title was. Yes, Game Six was watched by more television viewers than ever before and ushered in the era of night games, and made a lot of money for the television networks, but the final (long) chapter is all about how both teams collapsed in the following years, salaries started getting astronomical, fans didn't care about the players anymore, and then steroids took over. It didn't seem at all triumphal to me.

I'm not sorry I read this book, but I don't feel that it was written for me. It was written for hard-core Boston or Cincinnati fans old enough to have been watching games in 1975. Occasionally a bit of a slog for someone else. And the playing down of Tom Yawkey's (and Boston's) racism to the extent that Frost did really made me uncomfortable. show less