Game Six: Cincinnati, Boston, and the 1975 World Series: The Triumph of America's Pastime [Hardcover]

Mark Frost (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 22, 2009

Boston, Tuesday, October 21, 1975. The Red Sox and the Cincinnati Reds have endured an excruciating three-day rain delay. Tonight, at last, they will play Game Six of the World Series. Leading three games to two, Cincinnati hopes to win it all; Boston is desperate to stay alive. But for all the anticipation, nobody could have predicted what a classic it would turn out to be: an extra-innings thriller, created by one of the Big Red Machine's patented comebacks and the Red Sox's improbable late-inning rally; clutch hitting, heart-stopping defensive plays, and more twists and turns than a Grand Prix circuit, climaxed by one of the most famous home runs in baseball history that ended it in the twelfth.

Here are all the inside stories of some of that era's biggest names in sports: Johnny Bench, Luis Tiant, Sparky Anderson, Pete Rose, Carl Yastrzemski-eight Hall of Famers in all-as well as sportscasters and network execs, cameramen, umpires, groundskeepers, politicians, and fans who gathered in Fenway that extraordinary night.

Game Six is an unprecedented behind-the-scenes look at what is considered by many to be the greatest baseball game ever played--remarkable also because it was about so much more than just balls and strikes. This World Series marked the end of an era; baseball's reserve clause was about to be struck down, giving way to the birth of free agency, a watershed moment that changed American sports forever. In bestselling author Mark Frost's talented hands, the historical significance of Game Six becomes every bit as engrossing as its compelling human drama.

Praise for The Match

"Mark Frost, author of one of the sport's all-time great books, The Greatest Game Ever Played, produces another wonderful telling of a true tale . . . in The Match."
--Chicago Tribune

"Frost captures an elusive magic in this improbable matchup and what it meant for those who played and witnessed it."
--Publishers Weekly

"It's difficult to beat a good golf book, be it a good yarn or a picture book . . . The golf is spectacular, the course more so, the descriptions luminous."
--USA Today

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Many a diehard baseball fan could tell you how Game 6 of the 1975 World Series ended—with Boston catcher Carlton Fisk dramatically waving his extra-inning home run toward fair territory, and the pandemonium that soon followed. As for the other details, Frost (The Match) mentions them all in a wonderful tale about one of the sport's seminal events. Describing pitch by pitch and inning by inning, Frost breaks down the excitement on the field, but also how each participant came to play in the October thriller. Each player has a story—from Boston's star pitcher Luis Tiant and his humble beginnings, to Cincinnati's rugged, trash-talking third baseman, Pete Rose. From Yastrzemski to Bench, Evans to Morgan, Frost covers them all, along with the managers, owners and even broadcasters, expertly weaving from the past to that famous fall night. The last third of the work covers the aftermath of the game, recapping Cincinnati's eventual World Series win in Game 7 (an oft-forgotten fact about that series), and what became of each player in the years following. With each passing baseball season, the number of people who would later claim to have been at Game Six would increase twenty-fold, and thanks to Frost, the reader will likewise feel like he was in attendance at Fenway Park for that World Series classic. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Mark Frost is the author of the critically acclaimed THE GREATEST GAME EVER PLAYED, THE GRAND SLAM, and the bestselling THE LIST of 7, THE 6 MESSIAHS, and BEFORE I WAKE. He received a Writer's Guild Award and an Emmy nomination for his work as executive story editor on the acclaimed television series Hill Street Blues, and was the co-creator and executive producer of the ABC television series Twin Peaks. He lives in Los Angeles and upstate New York.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion; First Edition edition (September 22, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401323103
• ISBN-13: 978-1401323103
• Product Dimensions: 1.2 x 6.3 x 9.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #799,239 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

MARK FROST is the bestselling author of The Greatest Game Ever Played, The Grand Slam, and the novels The Second Objective, The List of Seven, and The Six Messiahs. He received a Writers Guild Award and an Emmy nomination for the acclaimed television series Hill Street Blues, was co-creator and executive producer of the legendary ABC television series Twin Peaks, and in 2005 wrote and produced The Greatest Game Ever Played as a major motion picture from Walt Disney Studios. Mark lives in Los Angeles and upstate New York with his wife and son.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great game, great book October 7, 2009

By A Southern Reader

Format:Hardcover

First, in the interest of truth in packaging, I was living in Cincinnati in 1975 and watched Game Six on TV.
After Fisk hit the home run, I went and woke my wife up to tell her that she had just missed the greatest baseball game ever. She was not amused.

This is fine book. Frost not only thoroughly chronicles the historic game, but interweaves the game with all that was going on in the world at the same time. He also weaves a lot of baseball culture and history into the telling of the story. For instance, even though I have read a ton of baseball writing, I had never heard that there were significant rumors that the first World Series was fixed.

Frost documents the lives of the players involved, and tells not only how they got to Fenway Park that evening in October, but also what happened to all of them.

This book has the makings of a classic baseball book not unlike The Boys of Summer. If you enjoy baseball even a little bit you will enjoy it. Or, even if you don't, but like a really well written small piece of sports history, you will like Game Six.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars History Revisited October 24, 2009

By C. W. Emblom

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Author Mark Frost has done a commendable job in reliving game six of the 1975 World Series. Any self-respecting baseball fan old enough to remember can tell you where he was when Fisk hit that 12th inning home run into the night to force a game seven. My only complaint with the book is when the author begins to digress back into the game's history with tidbits of Ban Johnson, Minnie Minoso, Nuf Ced McGreevey owner of the 3rd Base Bar in Boston, Cy Young, and a history of each player who is presently at bat or on the mound. I have hundreds of baseball books in my library, and they have been read. However, I felt it was too much of an interruption in the flow of the game to be off on a rabbit trail between pitches detailing each player and whoever else he wanted to introduce into the text. I enjoyed the book much more once author Frost reached the 8th inning when the game itself became the principle focus.

Bosox owner Tom Yawkey confided to Yaz how much it would mean to him to win a world championship, yet it was Yawkey's attitude towards signing African-Americans and hiring like-minded individuals such as Mike "Pinky" Higgins as manager that Yawkey had only himself to blame for the lack of a World Series winner. How would Willie Mays and Jackie Robinson have looked in Red Sox flannels? The opportunity was theirs for the taking, but they chose to pass on it. Instead they became the last team to sign an African-American with the signing of Elijah "Pumpsie" Green in 1959. There never was a curse of the Bambino. The problem was the curse of Yawkey and his cronies.

I enjoyed the section of what became of the individuals who played a part in this historic game whether it be the managers, coaches, or players both superstars or supernumeraries.... It was enjoyable reliving this historic game once again. It's hard to believe it took place thirty-nine years ago. Not only do the years fly by, but the decades as well. Read more ›

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Good narrative October 27, 2009

By Jon Hunt

Format:Hardcover

One of the first things that stood out in "Game Six" for this reader was the final sentence in an early chapter where the author mentions an increase in the number of people who claimed to be in attendance by twenty times. Having been a college senior who actually WAS at the game, this doesn't surprise me at all. What is good about Mark Frost's book is that he builds the tension nicely and in the meantime reminds those of us who are old enough to remember, the key players on both rosters. One great memory for me after that game was the hundreds of Bostonians singing "Roll Out the Barrel" as people poured from Fenway Park.

"Game Six" begins with a look at George "Sparky" Anderson, the indefatigable Reds' manager... and indeed, Anderson becomes the focal point of the book. But the side stories are appropriate to revisit. The whole episode of Luis Tiant's mother and father coming from Cuba, the alcohol problems of Bernie Carbo and his manager, Darrell Johnson, the effervescence of Pete Rose and the heroics of Carlton Fisk, all serve as a walk down memory lane. Frost spends time discussing the reserve clause and its importance to baseball in 1975, which is a necessary addition, excellently explained.

Finishing up, the author has a lengthy "afterward" regarding the players and staff of each team. This is a terrific way to wrap up a crisp and poignant book about "Game Six" of the 1975 World Series. I highly recommend it.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Captivating and Tense, if flawed October 24, 2009

By K.A.Goldberg

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Mark Frost's compelling style recreates Game Six of the 1975 World Series between Cincinnati and Boston - probably the most thrilling ball game ever played. I still remember that night's thick tension lasting from the first pitch until Carlton Fisk "waved fair" his 12th-inning homer well after midnight to win it for the Red Sox. In between the fans saw Fred Lynn's blast, the Reds comeback, eight Cincinnati pitchers, Bernie Carbo's game-tying homer, Dwight Evan's game-saving catch, etc., all captured here in moving prose. The author intersperses his compelling account with narratives about Johnny Bench, Carl Yastrezemski, Ken Griffey (Sr.), Luis Tiant (and his parents arriving from Cuba), Tom Yawkey, Pete Rose, etc. We see the competing strategies of managers Sparky Anderson and Darrell Johnson, the latter foolishly staying too long with the valiant Tiant. Readers come away with a deeper understanding of the game's participants, and drained from the marvelously recreated tension. This is clearly baseball at its best; the author does a superb job capturing the game's feel with moving, readable prose.

Sadly, he also makes errors. Bucky Dent was then with the White Sox (not Yankees), Carbo didn't pull his blast (it went to center), by October of 1975 Jimmy Carter had been out campaigning for months, etc. Also, the author slobbers praise on Bench but ignores Fisk, and while Bench and Joe Morgan may have been the best ever at their positions, others would choose Yogi Berra, Roy Campanella or Eddie Collins.

Despite these minor flaws, this is a riveting account of what was probably the greatest baseball game ever played.