The deeply personal story of a friendship between two teammates, and of a human bond which ultimately transcends the game itself.As back-to-back No. 1 draft picks for the New York Yankees, Ron Blomberg and Thurman Munson made for an odd couple. One was a good-looking, gregarious kid from Atlanta who cheerfully talked anyone's ear off at the slightest provocation; the other was a dumpy, grumpy dude from the Midwest rust belt who was about as fond of making idle chit...

Foreword by industry legend Harold Kerzner! This book describes a completely unique step-by-step, workflow-guiding approach to project management which simplifies activities by enforcing execution of all required processes on time, and redirecting to an alternative path in the event of project issues. Since compliance with all project management processes is enforced by the workflow, product quality is significantly improved and life cycle errors are almost eliminated. Project Workflow Man...

A wild pop-culture history of baseball's most colorful and controversial decade, the 70s: "A trove of nuggets many of us either never knew . . . or forgot." — The New York TimesThe Major Leagues witnessed more dramatic stories and changes in the 1970s than in any other era. The American popular culture and counterculture collided head-on with the national pastime, rocking the once-conservative sport to its very foundations. Outspoken players embraced free a...

The author of Big Hair and Plastic Grass returns with "a knuckleball ride through the wonderful and wacky year . . . the national pastime changed forever" ( Kirkus Reviews).America, 1976: colorful, complex, and combustible. It was a year of Bicentennial celebrations and presidential primaries, of Olympic glory and busing riots, of "killer bees" hysteria and Pong fever. On the baseball diamond, Thurman Munson led the New York Yankees to their first ...

A deluxe photographic celebration of the unsung hero of guitar music—the effects pedal—featuring interviews with 100 musicians including Peter Frampton, Joe Perry, Jack White, and Courtney Barnett.Ever since the Sixties, fuzz boxes, wah-wahs, phase shifters, and a vast range of guitar effects pedals have shaped the sound of music as we know it.Stompbox: 100 Pedals of the World’s Greatest Guitarists is a photographic showcase of the actual effects p...

The Bronx Is Burning meets Chuck Klosterman in this wild pop-culture history of baseball’s most colorful and controversial decade.The Major Leagues witnessed more dramatic stories and changes in the ‘70s than in any other era. The American popular culture and counterculture collided head-on with the national pastime, rocking the once-conservative sport to its very foundations.Outspoken players embraced free agency, openly advocated drug use, and ev...

Big Data Baseball provides a behind-the-scenes look at how the Pittsburgh Pirates used big data strategies to end the longest losing streak in North American pro sports history.New York Times BestsellerAfter twenty consecutive losing seasons for the Pittsburgh Pirates, team morale was low, the club’s payroll ranked near the bottom of the sport, game attendance was down, and the city was becoming increasingly disenchanted w...

The incredible inside story of power, money, and some of the most important moments in the history of baseball.In the fall of 1992, America's National Pastime is in crisis and already on the path to the unthinkable: cancelling a World Series for the first time in history. The owners are at war with each other, their decades-long battle with the players has turned America against both sides, and the players' growing addiction to steroids will threaten the game's ver...

With his trademark wit and distinctive voice, legendary Ball Four author Jim Bouton recounts his battle against local elites' efforts to replace Wahconah Park, one of the oldest parks in the United States, against the wishes and votes of local citizens.But Foul Ball is more than just a lively romp about saving an old ballpark near Bouton's home in Massachusetts.In a detailed diary—his first since Ball Four—Bouton takes us along on his wild ride into the teeth of corporate m...

The Oakland A's of the early 1970s were the most transformative team in baseball history. Never before had an entire organization so collectively traumatized baseball's establishment with its outlandish behavior and business decisions—or with its indisputable winning record: five straight division titles and three straight championships. The high drama that played out on the field was exceeded only by the drama in the clubhouse and front office. But those A's, with their garish uniforms an...

In Scorecasting, University of Chicago behavioral economist Tobias Moskowitz teams up with veteran Sports Illustrated writer L. Jon Wertheim to overturn some of the most cherished truisms of sports, and reveal the hidden forces that shape how basketball, baseball, football, and hockey games are played, won and lost.Drawing from Moskowitz's original research, as well as studies from fellow economists such as bestselling author Richard Thaler, the authors look at: the influence home-...

With his irreverant personality, laid-back approach, and penchant for the unexpected, Joe Maddon is a singular presence among Major League Baseball managers. Whether he's bringing clowns and live bear cubs to spring training or leading the Chicago Cubs to their first World Series victory in 108 years, Maddon is always one to watch.In Try Not to Suck, ESPN's Jesse Rogers and MLB.com's Bill Chastain fully explore Maddon's life and career, delving behind the scenes and dissec...