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Anyone else read this? Keith Hernandez's account of the 1985 Mets pennant run with an addendum of the 1986 playoff and World Series games. An excellent baseball book written in a journal format. Hernandez comes off as a very intelligent player and all around just cool guy. I think this was one of the first baseball books I ever read when I was 11 or so. Eighteen years later I pick it up and it's just as entertaining.
digglahhh
04-16-2006, 08:19 PM
Wow, after we connected on the sports reporter issue, maybe this is just a sophmore slump.
I thought this book was very poor.
Hernandez is an intelligent player, but he comes off as pretty self-indulgent. I thought there was, overall, very little insight offered in the book. I didn't think it was written well at all. The diary format always has some nostalgic value but its not redeeming enough to make this book a worthwhile read, IMO. I'm actually a big Hernandez fan too. I like his approach to the game, his personality and believe he should be in the HOF.
Is that the book that had the part about Sid Fernandez not understanding the concept of a mortgage? I forget. Because that story is priceless, but still not enough to salvage the book, IMO.
Interesting. Yes, he does come off as self-indulgent and narcissistic, but it's kind of a given so it doesn't distract. I thought some of the "behind the scenes" clubhouse stuff was really funny...for example, when he catches Gooden, Sid Fernandez, and others playing wiffle ball in the clubhouse during a game.
As far as insight, he was a very knowledgeable hitter and the description of his approach over so many at bats, through slumps, hot streaks, etc., was informative to me as a youngster when i first read it...not so much now though. Also interesting were his perspective on the (very temporary) strike in '85 and his going on trial for cocaine use.
To each his own...though I'm guessing this stands up a whole lot better than Dykstra's "Nails."
digglahhh
04-18-2006, 08:28 PM
Oh, I always like to hear him talk about hitting. Hernandez was a blue cholar player who hit .300 through work and study. His historic defense was also aided by his studious and attentive approach to the game.
That narcissism though, actually translated into part of what made him a good leader.
The cocaine trial stuff wasn't really explored in enough depth to really interest me.
Something that struck me as weird in the book was that there was no mention of his sex life, though he didn't pull punches on the rest of his social life.
The saga of Sisk was interesting too.