Spring Training

by Zinsser, William Knowlton

• ISBN13: 9780822958246
• ISBN10: 0822958244
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-03-01
• Publisher: Univ of Pittsburgh Pr

Summary

Spring training, a time when every team is in first place, is an American tradition dating back to the early years of the twentieth century. William Zinsser vividly brings to life the unique, once-a-year relationship between Bradenton, Florida, and its adopted team, the Pittsburgh Pirates.In 1988 the Pirates were an unproven yet promising bunch with high hopes of competing for the National League pennant. Given rare access to players, management, scouts and umpires, Zinsser sought to discover how a team prepares for the longest season in professional sports.As valid today as it was when first published,Spring Trainingreveals how the fundamentals of baseball are taught and learned. The author has added a new introduction and postscript, which includes a lengthy interview with manager Jim Leyland about the lessons that can be learned from losing.

Author Biography

William Zinsser is the author of sixteen books

Table of Contents

Introduction	ix
Rites of Spring	1	(7)
The Pirates	8	(8)
Florida Days	16	(16)
The Gospel According to Thrift	32	(18)
Going to Work	50	(8)
Jim Leyland's School	58	(11)
The Biggest Change	69	(9)
Hitting	78	(8)
Running	86	(5)
A Day at the Ballpark	91	(15)
Fathers and Sons	106	(3)
The Pitching Coach	109	(15)
Scouts	124	(9)
A Ton of Ground Balls	133	(8)
Calling on Edd Roush	141	(11)
Three Pitchers	152	(7)
Umpires	159	(10)
The Toughest Position in Baseball	169	(9)
Play Ball!	178	(10)
Epilogue	188	(3)
Postscript	191	(10)
Acknowledgments	201	(2)
Sources	203	(2)
Index of Baseball Names	205