Customer Reviews

Confessions of a Baseball Purist: What's Right--and Wrong--with Baseball, as Seen from the Best Seat in the House

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

OK, OK, so I'm an Oriole fan, and still grieving Jon Miller's departure for points west. I admit it. Still, I think I can objectively say: this is a terrific read. Miller is smart, opinionated, and articulate, and he *loves* baseball. Moreover, he is acutely conscious of the game's history, and the lessons and perspectives to be gleaned from it. More important, he exhibits a fine sense of humor that doesn't stop at his own doorstep. Any serious baseball fan, anywhere, should enjoy this book.

More of a memoir than anything else, the book is unflaggingly interesting and funny, especially if one can imagine Miller himself reading it. An audiocassette version of this book might well be the ultimate way to experience it. In any case, it just breezes by, leaving you with a warm feeling and a greater desire to hear more Miller broadcasts afterward.

A wonderful book from a man who loves his baseball, not to mention being one of the finest announcers in the game today. This is must reading for baseball lovers and Major League Baseball Executives!

I already knew that ESPN's Miller was the game's preeminent play-by-play man; "Confessions..." proves that he's a most capable writer as well. With a highly enjoyable mixture of autobiography, ancecdote, and opinion on the state of the sport in the '90s, Miller lets his obvious love for the pastime shine through. I don't agree with all of his opinions (this purist hates the DH), but I love his style. It's a welcome antidote to more pedantic mouthpieces like Bob Costas and George Will. END

A wonderful look at baseball with interesting stories as seen from the Broadcasting booth. Written by one of the best sports announcers of all time Jon Miller. Must reading for any baseball fan!

I received this book along with Joe Morgan's as a Christmas present, and it was interesting to read them in tandem, as it shows why they are such a complementary broadcast team. Miller's book is more an anecdotal memoir than a detailed analysis of the game, but that doesn't spoil the enjoyment of it. His tribute to Ken Coleman, the retired Red Sox radio broadcaster, brought back to this Red Sox fan vivid memories of Miller's all-too-brief stay in Boston. The book, however, suffered from an editing job that assumed that the reader had a familiarity with Miller's personal life and career history. For example, there are several references to his first marriage which both assume that the reader knows that Miller was married before and why it ended. But these references are extraneous and add nothing to this picture of Miller as broadcaster and baseball purist -- which, after all, is the book's primary focus.

Had an opportunity to read this book over the Thanksgiving holiday...just couldn't put it down. Jon Miller gives baseball fans and purists an updated insider's view on many of the issues that are of prime concern to today's baseball fans such as: the designated hitter, interleague play, outrageous salaries, current and future hall of famers; and he gives you all the details of his divorce with the Baltimore Orioles and notes interesting tidbits about Baltimore's greedy and incompetent owner -- Peter Angelos.

Easy to read. Easy to understand and enjoy.

This is the book written by the Frick Award winning baseball announcer Jon Miller. I finally read this book just recently (It came out in 1998) and I was not disappointed at all. As I was reading, I could hear Jon's voice in my head and this is just another point of access for all of the brilliant humor and baseball stories that live inside of his head.

This book covers a lot of stories from Jon's days with the A's and the Orioles, as well as some of his own personal history. There is an entire chapter on Jon's view of the Iron Man, Cal Jr. There are also sections where Jon explains his views of baseball, the rules, and the changes that should be made to make the game better.

This book is an overall easy read. Whether you agree with his view of baseball or not, you have to respect the effort and love that Jon has for the game. He dedicated his life to it. Jon is known for making a rain delay or a 16-1 blowout interesting, but with this book he proves that he can write down a good story as well. If you are a Jon Miller fan, this is a must read.

I loved this book!

I was given this book for Christmas in 1998. At that time, I had just moved from Maryland to West Virginia. While in Maryland a couple of friends and I would purchase a couple of "mini-season" plans, split the tickets and head to "The Yard" for baseball.
Jon Miller only added to the experience. At the time, he was our "homegrown" broadcaster who had made it big on Sunday Night Baseball.
This book brought back a lot of good baseball memories for me. Cal's streak, Boog's BBQ, and "The Yard" in general.
Buy the book, you'll be glad you did!

This book brings forth the thoughts of one of the most well known and well respected broadcasters in baseball today. This book came out in 1998 when Miller started as a Giants broadcaster. His broadcasts on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball and radio broadcasts for the Giants bring out his personality. He's dedicated to his job and had been interested in broadcasting since he was a child. His passion for the game of baseball and his attentiveness to perfecting his craft only added to his skill in the descriptions of his broadcasts and brought the feel of the flow of the game while it's unfolding live in front of his eyes. If you are familiar with Miller's broadcasts on TV or radio then you won't lose a step when reading his book because it is similar to the way he broadcasts. Miller brings about his thoughts about some of the issues in baseball like realignment as proposed by Bud Selig, to the personalities of owners he has known and how they contributed to the rise or demise of a franchise, and stories about Cal Ripken and some insider accounts from the clubhouse about his consecutive game streak. Miller bring a good light-hearted folksy humor that will make you smirk or guffaw with tongue in cheek. It is interesting in the fact that it feels like he conversing with you like you were at a bar and he was telling interesting stories which would be either intriguing or funny. This is a nice book for baseball fans who want to see things from the perspective of a broadcaster. The book reads easily and shouldn't take too long to read at all.