The reviews are in - well, some of 'em

So far, "Diamond Duels" has a gem of a start

EDITOR’S NOTE: Some of you kind folks out there have maybe written Letters To The Editor or maybe posted a text or comment online for something that got you riled up or maybe even delighted and that was that. Nobody shot back. But unless I miss my guess is, most of your haven’t had somebody evaluate/comment on/take aim at your writing. Some wiseacre, it might have been Socrates, said “Opinions are like armpits. Everybody has at least two.” When you’ve spent months, maybe even years of your life on a project and you see someone is going to write a review, well, you hold your breath. “Diamond Duels” hasn’t even been out a week and so far, the reviews have been wonderful. Will it keep up? My readers have been so supportive, I figured I ought to share the news. So far, the news has been darn good.

Thanks, friends.

HERE ARE A FEW EXCERPTS: FROM PAUL WHITE

(White is a nationally-known baseball writer, author of the recent "Cooperstown's Back Door: A History of Negro Leaguers in the Baseball Hall of Fame."

By Paul White

Baseball is, of course, a team sport. It exists to see which side of nine players is the best on any given day or in any given series or season. But, at its core, it’s a one-on-one duel unlike any other in team sports…Baseball, though, is centered around a one-on-one duel between pitcher and batter on every single pitch. There are times the game situation dictates a certain approach by one or the other - a batter looking to make contact on a hit-and-run, or a pitcher issuing an intentional walk to a dangerous hitter when a base is open - but usually it’s just a mano-a-mano battle to see who is better. It’s that central war, that pitch-by-pitch duel, that is the focus of John Nogowski’s latest book, Diamond Duels: Baseball’s Greatest Matchups.

Any fan of baseball and its history can conjure some of these epic duels on demand. Walter Johnson against Babe Ruth, or Bob Feller against Ted Williams, or Greg Maddux against Tony Gwynn. Those and dozens of others are all in here, sometimes in passing, sometimes in great depth, but always focused on studying that central fight between the pitcher and batter, with their teammates playing only supporting roles at best.

Nogowski is smart in his choices. With tens of thousands of major leaguers to choose from, and countless head-to-head matchups to review, it would have been easy for him to get bogged down in details and bury us in minutiae, but he doesn’t do that. He’s judicious in his selections, smartly giving us the nuts and bolts of the marquee historical matchups we want to know about (e.g, Willie Stargell was virtually helpless against Sandy Koufax, owner of an .087 average and 10 strikeouts in 23 at-bats), while also enlightening us with some we likely wouldn’t have picked but are fascinating nonetheless. For instance, Mike Torrez, of all people, mastered the art of getting Pete Rose out, holding him to a .171 average.

He also doesn’t restrict himself to only pitcher vs. hitter duels. Nogowski delves, for instance, into the performances of Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio when they faced each other, and reviews the best 3-4 lineup combinations in history, and adds a few entries to his earlier book, Last Time Out: Big League Farewells of Baseball’s Greats, which explored how notable players did in their final career plate appearances. My personal favorite, Jim Rice, had a boring fly ball to right field. Not exactly Ted Williams blasting a homer, but it’s fun information to have.

All of these details are provided with wonderful narratives. This sort of book can devolve into just a recitation of facts and figures, but Nogowski doesn’t fall into that trap. There are fabulous explorations of the players involved woven throughout, like the contrast of Christy Mathewson’s writing style with his sterling reputation as a gentleman, and a quote from the great sportswriter Red Smith describing Lefty Grove’s pitching motion. You get to hear Rod Carew explain his hitting approach and then compare it to how George Brett viewed his at-bats.

It all combines to make for a fun, yet eye-opening, read for anyone interested in the history of this team game that relies so heavily upon the repeated meetings of one man with a ball and another with a bat, engaging in modern-day jousts in which the best man, and team, doesn’t always win.

FROM BOOKLIST

FROM THE SUBSTACK POST “ALL SPORTS BOOKS”

Diamond Duels: Baseball's Greatest Matchups’ by John Nogowski (out today)

“Diamond Duels” by John Nogowski is exactly what it claims to be - a look at baseball’s greatest matchups. The book goes beyond the box scores to highlight the wonderful variety of factors and outcomes when great pitchers and great hitters face off. What elevates the book from the routine is Nogowski’s eye for both an interesting angle on the well known and a sense of what lesser known stories deserve a wider audience.

The book is a love letter to baseball told with charm and wit. Nogowski is clearly excited to share the stories - he definitely had a blast researching it. It’s an interesting and fun way to tell some baseball history and some quirky anecdotes. I found it hard not to get excited for MLB’s return when leafing through the various chapters.”

MLB WRITER JIM CALLIS, FORMERLY OF BASEBALL AMERICA

REVIEW - THE NEW YORK JOURNAL OF BOOKS

“[I]t is much more than statistics as Nogowski makes interesting observations about players and the oddities related to their careers, as well as the changing nature of baseball and how the changes impact player evaluation… If you are any of these “baseball bugs” then you will love this book. If you are a fan with some knowledge of the history of the game you will enjoy Nogowski’s analysis and argue with his opinions.”

COMMENTS FROM THOSE WHO PLAYED THE GAME

Author John Nogowski will be doing a book signing at Midtown Reader on March 27 at 6:30 p.m. (It’s a Thursday.) If you miss that one, he’ll also be doing a book signing at Books A Million on April 26 at 2 p.m. (A Saturday) Hope to see you!