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Full Description
The history of baseball is filled with players whose careers were defined by one bad play. Mike Torrez is remembered as the pitcher who gave up the infamous three-run homer to Bucky "Bleeping" Dent in the 1978 playoffs tie-breaker between the Red Sox and Yankees. Yet Torrez's life added up to much more than his worst moment on the mound. Coming from a vibrant Mexican American community that settled in Topeka, Kansas, in the early 1900s, he made it to the Majors by his own talent and efforts, with the help of an athletic program for Mexican youth that spread through the Midwest, Texas and Mexico during the 20th century. He was in the middle of many transformative events of the 1970s--such as the rise of free agency--and was an ethnic role model in the years before the "Fernandomania" of 1981. This book covers Torrez's life and career as the winningest Mexican American pitcher in Major League history.
Contents
Table of Contents
Introduction: Mike Torrez, from the Barrios of Kansas to the Major Leagues and Beyond
1. Riding the Rails and Shooting for Their Supper: Early Mexican American Life in Kansas, 1900-1950
2. "Winning a Place on the Varsity Has No Attraction for Them": Mexican Americans, Sports and Community in Kansas and Other Parts of the Midwest, 1920-1965
3. "I'm Just Thankful That God Gave Me a Good Arm": Childhood, Family Life and Athletics in the Oakland Barrio, 1946-1964
4. "A Bit Wild, but a Great Fastball": Torrez's Time in the Minor Leagues and His Arrival in St. Louis, 1964-1969
5. "I Was Surprised They Gave Up on Me So Quick": Torrez's Time in St. Louis and Montreal, 1969-1974
6. "I'm One of the Best in the Business Right Now": Torrez's Seasons with Baltimore and Oakland, 1975-1977
7. "I'm Curious to See What I'm Worth in the Open Market": Torrez's Transformation from World Series Champion to Scapegoat, 1977-1978
8. No Ralph Branca or Fernando Valenzuela: Torrez's Final Years in Professional Baseball, 1979-1985
9. Unloading the Poltergeist: Torrez's Post-MLB Life, His Career and Its Significance, 1986-2016
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
