Ebook656 pages9 hours
Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic: Reggie, Rollie, Catfish, and Charlie Finley's Swingin' A's
By Jason Turbow
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
()
About this ebook
“An exciting and engrossing book. . . . will engage fans of Charlie O. Finley and the Oakland Athletics, along with anyone captivated by baseball history.” —Library Journal, starred review
The Oakland A’s of the early 1970s: Never before had an entire organization so collectively traumatized baseball’s establishment with its outlandish behavior and business decisions. The high drama that played out on the field—five straight division titles and three straight championships—was exceeded only by the drama in the clubhouse and front office.
Under the visionary leadership of owner Charles O. Finley, the team assembled such luminary figures as Reggie Jackson, Catfish Hunter, Rollie Fingers, and Vida Blue, and with garish uniforms and revolutionary facial hair, knocked baseball into the modern age. Finley’s need for control—he was his own general manager and dictated everything from the ballpark organist’s playlist to the menu for the media lounge—made him ill-suited for the advent of free agency. Within two years, his dynasty was lost.
A history of one of the game’s most unforgettable teams, Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic is a paean to the sport’s most turbulent, magical team, during one of major league baseball’s most turbulent, magical times.
“Masterfully recounts a thrilling period in Oakland A’s history.” —Billy Beane, executive vice president of baseball operations, Oakland A’s
“Not to be believed, and yet 100 percent true.” —Steve Fainaru, senior writer for ESPN and author of League of Denial
“A must-read for any fan of the sport.” —Chris Ballard, Sports Illustrated senior writer and author of One Shot at Forever
“Carefully researched and often hilarious.” —San Francisco Chronicle
“A chance to relive a period of outlandish moments in America’s pastime.” —Publishers Weekly
The Oakland A’s of the early 1970s: Never before had an entire organization so collectively traumatized baseball’s establishment with its outlandish behavior and business decisions. The high drama that played out on the field—five straight division titles and three straight championships—was exceeded only by the drama in the clubhouse and front office.
Under the visionary leadership of owner Charles O. Finley, the team assembled such luminary figures as Reggie Jackson, Catfish Hunter, Rollie Fingers, and Vida Blue, and with garish uniforms and revolutionary facial hair, knocked baseball into the modern age. Finley’s need for control—he was his own general manager and dictated everything from the ballpark organist’s playlist to the menu for the media lounge—made him ill-suited for the advent of free agency. Within two years, his dynasty was lost.
A history of one of the game’s most unforgettable teams, Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic is a paean to the sport’s most turbulent, magical team, during one of major league baseball’s most turbulent, magical times.
“Masterfully recounts a thrilling period in Oakland A’s history.” —Billy Beane, executive vice president of baseball operations, Oakland A’s
“Not to be believed, and yet 100 percent true.” —Steve Fainaru, senior writer for ESPN and author of League of Denial
“A must-read for any fan of the sport.” —Chris Ballard, Sports Illustrated senior writer and author of One Shot at Forever
“Carefully researched and often hilarious.” —San Francisco Chronicle
“A chance to relive a period of outlandish moments in America’s pastime.” —Publishers Weekly
Author
Jason Turbow
JASON TURBOW is the author of the best-selling The Baseball Codes: Beanballs, Sign Stealing & Bench-Clearing Brawls: The Unwritten Rules of America’s Pastime and Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic. He has written for the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and SI.com. He lives in California.
Related to Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic
Related ebooks
If These Walls Could Talk: Philadelphia Flyers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/52022-2023 Ice Hockey Guide for Beginners Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Tomb That Ruth Built (A Mickey Rawlings Mystery) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBorn into It: A Fan's Life Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5If These Walls Could Talk: Pittsburgh Penguins: Stories from the Pittsburgh Penguins Ice, Locker Room, and Press Box Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsChris Therien: Road to Redemption Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBlacktop Cowboys: Riders on the Run for Rodeo Gold Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5All the Dreams We've Dreamed: A Story of Hoops and Handguns on Chicago's West Side Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bower: A Legendary Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Philadelphia Flyers Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsImmaculate: How the Steelers Saved Pittsburgh Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA History of the Falmouth Road Race: Running Cape Cod Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Age of Palmer: Pro Golf in the 1960s, Its Greatest Era Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsX Marks the Spot: (Treasure Island) Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5In the Bin: Reckless and Rude Stories from the Penalty Boxes of the NHL Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Red Rising: The Washington Capitals Story Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSeason of Loss, A Lifetime of Forgiveness, A: The Dan Snyder and Dany Heatley Story Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Turnpike Rivalry: The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Batter's Box: A Novel of Baseball, War, and Love Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGreat Australian Volunteer Firies Stories Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Ultimate Road Trip: All 89 Games with the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Ultimate Leafs Fan Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Fastest Game in the World: Hockey and the Globalization of Sports Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Different Kind of Black Belt: para-athlete series, #2 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTed Ray: The Forgotten Man of Golf Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHockey 365: Daily Stories from the Ice Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Baby Snook Scripts Volume 3 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings100 Things Cardinals Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Road to Omaha: Hits, Hopes, and History at the College World Series Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAutumn Glory: Baseball's First World Series Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Sports Biographies For You
MOX Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The TB12 Method: How to Achieve a Lifetime of Sustained Peak Performance Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Endure: How to Work Hard, Outlast, and Keep Hammering Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Agent You: Show Up, Do the Work, and Succeed on Your Own Terms Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Summary of Kobe Bryant's The Mamba Mentality Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow to Build a Car: The Autobiography of the World’s Greatest Formula 1 Designer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Quiet Strength: The Principles, Practices, and Priorities of a Winning Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Slash Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Woman Who Would Be King: The MADUSA Story Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Thin Ice: The Complete, Uncensored Story of Tonya Harding Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Be Water, My Friend: The Teachings of Bruce Lee Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Uncommon: Finding Your Path to Significance Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Horse God Built: The Untold Story of Secretariat, the World's Greatest Racehorse Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Baseball 100 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5LeBron Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5When Pride Still Mattered: A Life Of Vince Lombardi Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Blood in the Garden: The Flagrant History of the 1990s New York Knicks Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Coach Wooden's Pyramid of Success Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ball Four Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Winning Ugly: Mental Warfare in Tennis--Lessons from a Master Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Eight Men Out: The Black Sox and the 1919 World Series Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Straight Shooter: A Memoir of Second Chances and First Takes Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Terry Funk: More Than Just Hardcore Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRic Flair: To Be the Man Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Seven Deadly Sins: My Pursuit of Lance Armstrong Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Glory of Their Times: The Story of the Early Days of Baseball Told by the Men Who Played It Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Racing to the Finish: My Story Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5We Were Dreamers: An Immigrant Superhero Origin Story Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
12 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic - Jason Turbow
U^e book_preview_excerpt.html }Y#GU|J(- ƒ{Qȉ%Xe2R22w7З@?/0"}$署;2e~5էOվkw+g;}?|9kB;Y;_wmݷ/}-inǯ}z'.F=Mt_¥/uerݸK_2?8myL~sϾg]Յ}3~f㳷7xWֵ˫/oe_i{z*sF㛲^geݔkMG94U]};N?<;~J*4ٳdvWdxCd/*>S/{'w2O˦8~»M'3ί7O˰|sYU۶?}&{^eBU!esqyVeɾ5ѓ/Cݗ"}i.xol~gUxSYºqtm
m\.Ńya_b/~xU> #8UͫϞRϿ˧A)/ߺMh }ed^^՟닲5}406E=;9}M
<̖Gnfr6k|;_ď^DZDq;l˶D35~GuWZ6e-elߔLk\CnUKptzuZUe^&ee%'r,lŲfٹX6ujd_T!4ߋhnNONN,^FAБT.(r8(D9Nc^sȥ|Lwc9J".:ܓP),viru̞dz]ߋn)";'^u^XDEr<jO
3
WU!Ƿ\rԟd?={?8w4G';?9?}x}-C-.&=þtz~ÓE+n&ߺDWO6%j/w?~U)iLWJ6w
$Cٓ7?s/nKO6=ۗ/7o}]BӵiUN$}e"%^gsvy,{o;ydJ~z&1M;WVn)
Ovo^T!_ݷɹ??.egw狓ǃ5T\0O҉WvN-4O( ^;dW[Ay*"7o_o3E?O~,٫^c0l]萍tOu%ZNKWy0zP}ݦB4`UQ Fѫ>ۆ;h>H|^
x&i_8L\:,`x,[Rvrtj''ٻd_D~^A߄,w&dNGlnV?x