Out of My League [Paperback]

George Plimpton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1993

This is a pre-1923 historical reproduction that was curated for quality. Quality assurance was conducted on each of these books in an attempt to remove books with imperfections introduced by the digitization process. Though we have made best efforts - the books may have occasional errors that do not impede the reading experience. We believe this work is culturally important and have elected to bring the book back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Beautifully observed and incredibly conceived, this account of a self-imposed ordeal has the chilling quality of a true nightmare. It is the dark side of the moon of Walter Mitty."
-Ernest Hemingway

"Out of My League copes with the problem of the imaginary nightmare of walking every batter and the glittering triumph (the shutout) of striking them out, one after the other."
-Marianne Moore

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

Out of My League is a classic of sport, the first of George Plimpton's remarkable forays into "participatory" journalism.On an ordinary afternoon in the third-base-line seats at Yankee Stadium, Plimpton hits on what seems an inspired idea - to get on the mound and pitch a few innings to the All Stars of the American and National Leagues. What begins as a fun-filled stunt - for the "average man" to pitch in the Big Leagues - comes to a nearly humiliating end. This honest and hilarious tale features Mickey Mantle, Billy Martin, Willy Mays, Whitey Ford, Ralph Houk, and other baseball greats. (51/2 x 81/4, 160 pages)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: The Lyons Press; 1st edition (October 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1558212388
• ISBN-13: 978-1558212381
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,885,098 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funny look at average fan trying to pitch to MLB stars, June 18, 2004

By 

T. Bratz "gwfeds0" (Beaverton, OR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Out of My League: The Classic Hilarious Account of an Amateur's Ordeal in Professional Baseball (Paperback)

If you're not familiar with George Plimpton, he was a writer who was famous for trying to participate in pro sports. His accounts of his pathetic attempts to compete are always pretty funny. He's most famous for his book about his pre-season stint with the Detroit Lions ("Paper Lion"), but this book was his first experience as a participant.

He had a deal to pitch to All-Star lineups from each league. The deal was that he would pitch his way through each lineup once, and whichever team had the most total bases against him would win the prize.

His description of the beating he took is hilarious, and so are the notes from a friend he had in the stands. The guy told him that after the P.A. announcer told the crowd that George Plimpton, of Sports Illustrated would be facing the All-Star lineups the fans seemed confused. One kept asking who this "George Prufrock" guy was.

If you've read any of his books and enjoyed them, you're sure to like this one too. If you try this one and like it you should check out his other books:

"Paper Lion" and "Mad Ducks and Bears" - pro football
"The Bogey Man" - golf
"Shadow Box" - boxing
"Open Net" - hockey

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars No, it isn't, January 8, 2000

By 

liffeystynx (Dublin, Ireland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Out of My League (Paperback)

The book referred to in the review below (which should be deleted) is "Paper Lion". "Out of my League" concerns Plimpton's BASEBALL exploits, when he faced the A.L. & N.L. All-Star line-ups in Yankee Stadium in Autumn 1960. It is not as brilliant a book as "Paper Lion", but is certainly a DIFFERENT one.

2 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars NOT BAD BUT NOT GOOD EITHER, June 26, 2005

By 

COOL JEWEL (MACEDONIA, OHIO USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Out of My League: The Classic Hilarious Account of an Amateur's Ordeal in Professional Baseball (Paperback)

THIS IS A BOOK BY GEORGE PLIMPTON WHO WRITES ABOUT SPORTING EVENTS THAT HE COMPETES IN AGAINST A PROFESSIONAL TEAM OR INDIVIDUAL. THIS COVERS PITCHING TO AN ALL STAR LINE UP FROM THE NATIONAL AND AMERICAN LEAGUE. I REALLY WANTED TO READ MORE ABOUT HIS THOUGHTS AND RESULTS DURING HIS ATTEMPT TO PITCH TO THESE MAJOR LEAGUERS, INSTEAD HE TELLS US OF HIS STRUGGLE TO FIND A GLOVE, A UNIFORM AND VARIOUS OTHER THINGS THAT LEFT ME QUITE BORED. ONCE THE BOOK GOT GOING IT WAS OK BUT IF YOU CAN STAY UP LONG ENOUGH TO MAKE IT TO THE SECOND HALF OF THIS BOOK IT IS ENTERTAINING. I FOUND PAPER LION AND OPEN NET TO BE ALOT BETTER THAN THIS OK READ.