My 66 Years in the Big Leagues (Dover Baseball) [Paperback]

Connie Mack (Author), Rich Westcott (Introduction)

Book Description

Series: Dover Baseball | Publication Date: April 23, 2009

A Founding Father of modern baseball, Connie Mack was the manager and part owner of the Philadelphia Athletics from 1901 to 1950. A dashing figure in business suit and straw skimmer, "Mr. Mack" holds the record for most wins — and losses — by a manager. Enhanced by 70 photographs, his warmhearted autobiography is populated by many legends of the game.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications (April 23, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486471845
• ISBN-13: 978-0486471846
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #167,488 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Who Was Cornelius McGillicuddy?, June 21, 2009

By 

Roger D. Launius "Historian" (Washington, D.C., United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: My 66 Years in the Big Leagues (Dover Baseball) (Paperback)

Connie was one of those rare commodities in the history of Major League Baseball (MLB). A player and then owner and on-field manager of the Philadelphia Athletics, Cornelius McGillicuddy, Sr. (1862-1956), known to all as Connie Mack, has the distinction of being the longest-serving manager in MLB history--50 years. He also holds the records for 3,831 wins, almost a 1,000 more than anyone else, but his 3,948 career losses as a manager rank him first as well. It's pretty unlikely that anyone will ever break any of these records. "My 66 Years in the Big Leagues" is Mack's memoir, originally published in 1950, when he was ending his tenure as Athletics manager and was already well known as the "Grand Old Man of Baseball."

Connie Mack built two separate Athletics' dynasties during his career. Mack's teams won nine pennants and five World Series. He took the first American League pennant in 1902, but the World Series had not yet been established so the Athletics did not play the National League pennant winner for the championship. In 1905 his Athletics lost to the New York Giants in the World Series. Then he won four AL pennants in 1910, 1911, 1913, and 1914, beating the Cubs in the World Series in 1910, the Giants in 1911 and 1913, and losing to the Boston Braves in 1914. He then dismantled that team, selling most of the stars to other owners in MLB, and a succession of very bad teams followed. In the latter 1920s, however, Mack's Athletics reemerged as a powerhouse, winning the AL pennant three times between 1929 and 1931, and winning the World Series in 1929 and 1930, but losing to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1931.

This is an important autobiography in baseball history and its reappearance in an inexpensive paperback edition is most welcome. A fine introduction by Rich Westcott helps to place Mack's career into historical perspective.

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Sugar Coated History of Baseball..., March 22, 2010

By 

Joe Mugsy "The Old Geezer" - See all my reviews

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This review is from: My 66 Years in the Big Leagues (Dover Baseball) (Paperback)

Dear Old Connie Mack. One of my heroes! A perfect gentleman! A relic from another age. This is a *good* baseball history perspective (written in 1950)but really sugar coated for the masses. A lot of funny amusing, stories about the early days of baseball but Connie name drops too much of persons long deceased & not remembered. They may have been "big Time" back in 1950 but as I stated before, long forgotten now. I wish Connie had included a lot more history/stories/game stategies of the ol' Philadelphia A's instead of trying to name all of his old friends.