Rawlings Presents Big Stix: The Greatest Hitters in the History of the Major Leagues [Hardcover]

Rob Rains (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 16, 2004

The debate began to rage during the 2003 baseball season, as Barry Bonds began to creep closer to Hank Aaron's career home run leading total of 755 home runs -- is Bonds a better hitter than the legendary Babe Ruth? Of course they played in different eras, under different conditions, and had very dis-similar styles. One thing is clear, however, Ruth and Bonds are two of the greatest, if not the greatest, hitters in the history of the game. Rawlings Sporting Goods also has a long history of success in the game of baseball, with many major leaguers relying on Rawlings bats as their bat of choice, both in eras gone by and today. It makes sense then that one of the leading suppliers of bats to major leaguers would know a little something about hitting. In Rawlings Presents Big Stix, the Top 25 Hitters of All Time, author Rob Rains will take a close look at the greatest hitters in the history of the game, determining -- at least for arguments' sake -- if Bonds is a b! etter hitter than Ruth. Or was somebody else, Ted Williams perhaps, better than either Ruth or Bonds? Rains will take a unique look at all of the great hitters in the game, examining their careers and coming up with a ranking that will be certain to make this book a topic of discussion and debate.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Rob Rains is the author or co-author of nine sports books, including "Mark McGwire: Home Run Hero" for St. Martin's Press. He also wrote "The St. Louis Cardinals: The 100th Anniversary History," as well as co-authored "Red: A Baseball Life" with Cardinal Hall of Famer, Red Schoendienst, and "Jack Buck: That's a Winner!" with broadcaster Jack Buck. A frequent contributor to "The Sporting News," Rains lives with his family in St. Louis.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Sports Publishing LLC (April 16, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582617570
• ISBN-13: 978-1582617572
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,444,280 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A worthless book, July 26, 2004

By 

A reader (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rawlings Presents Big Stix: The Greatest Hitters in the History of the Major Leagues (Hardcover)

This book is a waste of money. The best hitters are determined by a nonsensical formula which just adds unrelated statistics up. Then each player gets a short biography and a picture or two. It's neither a coffee table book nor a book to read, so I can't imagine anyone who would be satisfied with this volume.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For any dedicated baseball fan's personal reading list, July 5, 2004

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rawlings Presents Big Stix: The Greatest Hitters in the History of the Major Leagues (Hardcover)

Enhanced throughout with color photography, Rawlings Presents Big Stix: The Greatest Hitters In The History Of The Major Leagues showcases the top twenty-five hitters in the history of major league baseball. Veteran baseball writer Rob Rains presents a carefully documented and descriptive analysis of baseball's all time great hitters and establishes a ranking for them that is fair and balanced. This is no easy task as the hitter's are drawn from different eras of the game from the legendary Babe Ruth to the 2003 baseball season phenomena of the San Francisco Giants' Barry Bonds. Incidentally, the Rawlings referred to in the title is the Rawlings Sporting Goods company which has a long history of providing players their bat of choice. Rawlings Presents Big Stix is a welcome and recommended addition to any dedicated baseball fan's personal reading list -- and will serve as the catalyst for many a spirited bar room or ball park discussion on the subject of baseball's best and brightest hitters.