Ron Guidry

This 220 page gem of a book is a must-read for any Yankee fan, especially if you grew up during the ‘70s and ‘80s when Guidry was pitching, as I did. When he was on the mound, I always felt like something magic could happen. He was one of those rare players that you couldn’t take your eyes off of. You knew you were watching something special when he threw the ball. He was pure poetry in motion on that mound.

In this really well-written memoir of those years, and small excursions into the times before and after, Guidry shares his poignant thoughts about those he played with and against.

He opens the narrative with “The Game”. Any Yankee (or Red Sox) fan in the ‘70s knows what game he’s referring to. The Yanks and BoSox were tied at the end of the 1978 regular season, so they had to have a one-game playoff to determine who would move on to the American League championship series. Guidry was the starting pitcher for the Yankees. No one could have predicted what happened in that magical and memorable game. Guidry’s insight into that game is a fabulous story in itself.

Chapter 9 really got to me. It was about Thurman Munson, my favorite player of all-time. Guidry remembers the Yankee captain’s tragic death in ‘79, and relates how it affected him and his teammates.
I’d heard how Munson had a way of talking to his pitcher that could bring out their best performance. Guidry says that after he’d given up a homerun once, Thurman came out to the mound, pointed up at the sky and said,
“You ever notice how clouds make all the strange formations and shit?”
Guidry says, “What the hell you talking about?”
Munson replies, “That one over there looks like the pitch you just threw that went out of the frickin’ ballpark like a cannon shot.”

Guidry covers a lot of ground in such a short book, giving anecdotes on teammates, coaches, and others he met during his career. Usually in baseball books, there’s a lot of statistics and gossip laden stories, but that’s not the case here. It was more a refreshing and modest story of one man’s life in baseball, who made it to the top of his sport. Guidry is so relatable, it’s like he’s just sitting across from you and talking to you like you’re an old friend.

The very best part of the book is the last chapter, his tribute to his friend, Yogi Berra. Everyone who loves baseball should read that section. Just that chapter is worth the price of the book.

“Here’s the thing about Yogi. There are so many things one can take away from his life: the values of passion, hard work, kindness, mentorship, stubbornness, righteous indignation--the list goes on. But if I could leave you with one thing, it’s that he taught the world that the only opinion of yourself that matters is your own. He was constantly told no in his life, and he inevitably fought his way to yes. He was told he was too small, yet he became the biggest man in baseball history. He was laughed at for the way he spoke, and he grew to be one of the most brilliant commentators the world has ever seen. That is the legend of Yogi. He might have had a funnier way of explaining it, but he was the most underestimated athlete and person this game ever saw. I was just lucky to be friends with him.”

I consider myself extremely lucky myself for being able to watch Guidry pitch in his prime, and for being able to read this fine memoir.

… (altro)

Rod Guidry's book "Gator: My Life in Pinstripes" was a fun read for fans of Yankee baseball in the late 70's and early 80's. Guidry tells a little of his story as a youngster in rural Louisiana, of learning to pitch as a minor leaguer in the Yankees organization, and of his troublesome relationship with manager Billy Martin during his rookie season. Soon, he became the ace of the Yankee pitching staff, and developed as great relationship with owner George Steinbrenner, manager Billy Martin, and his teammates.
It was nostalgic to hear Guidry talk about some of his early teammates, such as Dick Tidrow, Goose Gossage, Yogi Berra, Craig Nettles, Thurman Munson, and Reggie Jackson. Some of the great competition with the Red Sox and Royals brought back some great memories too, especially of the Bucky Dent playoff homerun against the Red Sox, the "pine-tar" game against the Royals, and a number of other memorable games. All-in-all, the book provides a nice review of those Yankee years when starting pitchers actually completed games, teammates focused on team victories vs. individual stats, and players interacted in the locker room and on the team bus instead of losing themselves in their iPods and headphones.… (altro)