Banks to Sandberg to Grace brings together more than 60 first-person accounts from the past 50 years of Cubs baseball. Each of the storytellers whose voices are heard throughout shares his or her personal, revealing account of what it was like to play or work for the Cubs. Hank Sauer laughs about fans in the bleachers throwing tobacco at him. The team's longtime equipment manager, Yosh Kawano, talks about gaining the trust and friendship of players such as Ryne Sandberg. And WGN-TV producer Arne Harris reminisces about sharing an earpiece with Jack Brickhouse and Harry Caray. Includes a foreword by Chicago sportswriter Bob Verdi.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Library Journal
Chicago sports journalist Muskat has former and current players and personnel tell the story of the Cubs from their last pennant-winning year, 1945, to the present. Despite their losing ways, the Cubs have fans nationwide, and this book will circulate well in many libraries. It is more thorough than John Skipper's oral history, Take Me Out to the Cubs Game (LJ 8/00) and should be purchased along with George Castle's fine history The Million-to-One Team: Why the Chicago Cubs Haven't Won a Pennant Since 1945 (Diamond, 2000).
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From the Back Cover
"The Cubs haven't won a World Series since 1908, but more books have been written about them than any team except the Yankees. Banks to Sandberg to Grace is one of the best."
--Phil Tatman, Orlando Sentinel
The Chicago Cubs are one of the most beloved teams in all of sports, though not for their success on the baseball field. The post-World War II years have been especially rough for the Cubs: they have been without a pennant since 1945--longer than any team in the major leagues. But devoted Cubs fans continue to faithfully follow their team each season, regardless of the result. Banks to Sandberg to Grace takes the reader on a nostalgic journey through the triumphs (few), the heartaches (many), and the lighter moments, as told by those who were actually there--on the field, in the front office, or behind the scenes.
In the more than 60 first-person stories spanning the last 50 years, each storyteller shares his or her personal, revealing account of what it was like to play or work for the Chicago Cubs. Hank Sauer laughs about fans in the bleachers throwing tobacco at him. The team's longtime equipment manager, Yosh Kawano, talks about gaining the trust and friendship of players like Ryne Sandberg. And the late WGN-TV producer Arne Harris reminisces about sharing an earpiece with Jack Brickhouse and Harry Caray.
Cut from the cloth of memory, these warm, insightful stories make a perfect gift for Cubs fans, who, through love and frustration, remain forever faithful to their team and to the promise of "wait 'til next year."
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
interesting,
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This review is from: Banks to Sandberg to Grace : Five Decades of Love and Frustration with the Chicago Cubs (Hardcover)
In baseball, there are two known types of pain- you have the exquisite pain of Red Sox fans, whose team comes within 1 out of taking it all, only to have Bill Buckner boot the routine grounder, or have Mike Torrez give up the most improbable of home runs to Bucky Dent. It's a horrid pain- the pain of being so close, yet not getting over the hump......then there's the pain of the Chicago Cubs fan- their team never even comes close to competing for anything, save the magic of Rick Sutcliffe's magical 1984 season, or the Wildcard Cubs of a few seasons ago, led by Kerry Wood and Sammy Sosa. It's a very different type of pain. The pain of realization that "wait till next season" may well be said by June or July. Being a fan of both clubs (Born in Boston, moved to Ohio in my youth but obviously could not root for the Reds, and Cleveland??!! pulleeeze... did they even field a baseball club in the late 70's? ..so I found the Cubs), I dive into histories of both teams voraciously, and Muskat's work on the Cubs is an entertaining and informative one. Starting with the greatness of the 45 team, Muskat's tireless work interviews the greats of Cubs history- Billy Williams, Mr. Cub Ernie Banks, Ryne Sandberg, Mark Grace, and a host of others. Their perspectives are what make this work so great- the agony, heartache, hillarity, wishful thinking, hopes held high in April, hopes dashes by Season's end. It's all part of the world of being a Chicago Cub, and it is all here. At times testy, at other times silly and ridiculous, still other times tear-felt, the oral history of the Cubs has never been better presented than in this work, and never better told than by those who lived the game at Wrigley Field. As the 2001 Cubs continue to surprise the NL Central with great pitching (including castaways from my beloved Red Sox in Jeff Fassero and Tom Gordon- irony of ironies), this work may be what the Cubs and their fans need to help them amend for the past. A brilliant piece of work.
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great experience for any sports fan,
By Brian Boisier (Helmetta, NJ) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Banks to Sandberg to Grace : Five Decades of Love and Frustration with the Chicago Cubs (Hardcover)
I absolutely loved this book, and I am not even a Cub's fan. It was very entertaining, very informatative, and very fun. It has great tales from Ernie Banks, Ron Santo, Billy Williams, and Andy Pafko. I would recommend this book to any baseball fan. No, I would recommend it to any sports fan!A+
5 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
WRIGLEY TIME MACHINE,
By A Customer
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Banks to Sandberg to Grace : Five Decades of Love and Frustration with the Chicago Cubs (Hardcover)
I BELIEVE THIS IS A GOOD LOOK AT HOW IT WAS AT WRIGLEY FIELD, THE FANS, AND THE HISTORY OF THE CUBS. AN EXCELLENT COLLECTION OF VARIOUS STORIES BY SOME CUBS ALUMINI. THE PERFECT MIX OF VETERANS REPRESENTING A DIFFERNT DECADE IN CUBS HISTORY. THE BOOK IS HUMOROUS, WELL TOLD, INTERESTING, NOSTALGIC AND DOWN RIGHT ENTERTAINING. I REALLY ENJOYED THE GREAT NOSTALGIA THIS BROUGHT BACK TO MANY CUBS FANS INCLUDING MYSELF. I CONSIDER THIS A GOOD READ AND A MUST FOR ALL THE PEOPLE WHO ARE CUBS FANS OR HAVE BEEN TO WRIGLEY FIELD. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
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