The Long Season [Paperback]

Jim Brosnan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 11, 2001

The classic inside account of a baseball year by a major league pitcher. It begins, appropriately, with the winter doldrums and "sweating out" a new contract, then follows the author and his family to spring training in Florida and through the full season’s schedule to October. "One of the best baseball books ever written. It is probably one of the best American diaries as well."—New York Times Book Review. "The greatest baseball book ever written."—Jimmy Cannon.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...The best of its kind... timeless.... Over the years some players were even smart enough to grasp that The Long Season did them, and baseball, a favor, by capturing its human side and in so doing making them more, rather than less, interesting and admirable. (Washington Post )

One of the best baseball books ever written. It is probably one of the best American diaries as well. (New York Times Book Review )

Rich and always interesting....This is the most authentic and convincing book about baseball I have ever read. (Robert R. Kirsch Los Angeles Times )

An honest book that furnished an insight into the ballplayer's life which no outsider could possibly get. (Red Smith )

The greatest baseball book ever written. (Jimmy Cannon )

Brosnan provides a dose of humor, a touch of self-deprecation and a shot of unvarnished reality. (The Plain Dealer )

About the Author

Jim Brosnan pitched in the major leagues for the Chicago Cubs, the Cincinnati Reds, the St. Louis Cardinals, and the Chicago White Sox, and was a sports commentator for ABC. His books include Pennant Race and Great Baseball Pitchers. He lives in Morton Grove, Illinois, outside of Chicago.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Ivan R Dee; 1 edition (December 11, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566634180
• ISBN-13: 978-1566634182
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #305,689 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The First Of The Real Sports Journalists, September 22, 2001

By 

Duane Spencer (Prescott, Arizona United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Long Season (Hardcover)

I first read Mr. Brosnans book in the year it was published. My opinion of it has not changed in the last (could it be true) almost half a century. In "Long Season" Mr. Brosnan gives us what seems to be a very believable and accurate account of what major league baseball was like in the almost now forgotten days of the mid twentieth century. As a pitcher for the St Louis Cardinals and the Cincinnati Reds, Mr. Brosnan (I cant bring myself to call him Jim) gives what is a humorous and thoughtful insight what it is like to be a non-marquee player on teams that were quite frankly, less than steller. The Book, which is written in diary form, is an easy read. It flows from start to finish in a very readable manner. Mr. Brosnan has the talent to make everyone of his teamates and coaches come alive. As the reader, you feel that you are sitting in a bar, sipping on an adult beverage and listening to the author tell you of his everyday life in a now forgotten world of professional sports.
I guarantee you will become a fan of bullpen pitchers and oversized, bespeckled and hard-throwing righthanders within the first 10 pages.
My recomendation, is for you to grab this book and its sequal Pennant Race" before any other basebll books that are available anywhere. You wont be sorry, and once you have read it, you will be sucked into the history of baseball totally.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gentlemanly, Irreverent, Serious,, January 30, 2001

By 

K.A.Goldberg (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Long Season (Hardcover)

This insightful diary by pitcher Jim Brosnan recounts his struggles on the mound for the 1959 St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds. Jocks weren't supposed to write books, but this college-educated ballplayer (uncommon in the 1950's) wrote a very good one. Brosnan's mild irreverence annoyed the game's overseers in an era when ballplayers earned modest paychecks and rarely popped off. Older fans may enjoy reading about long-forgotten ballplayers playing in now-demolished ballparks like Forbes Field and Sportsmen's Park. Brosnan followed this book with "Pennant Race," a diary from the 1961 season. Some alledge that the Chicago White Sox tried to insert a clause in Brosnan's contract banning him from publishing anything, while others say he was blackballed from the game after 1963 for his writings. Readers may also enjoy "Ball Four," pitcher Jim Bouton's funny and more combative diary of the 1969 season.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brosnan's book- Benign Ball Four Before Ball Four, May 12, 2003

By 

David Moss (TN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Long Season (Paperback)

I really enjoyed this book, which is a milder, tamer, less controversial book written 10 years before Jim Bouton's Ball Four. Both books are written by good, but not great relief pitchers named Jim. Both are written in diary form while the pitchers toil for less than stellar teams. Funny, and at times irreverent, Brosnan's book is worth the time to read! Teaser: I love the nickname Brosnan's wife gave him. :-)