The Books of October

The two ickiest teams made it to the World Series (not that I like the Braves, however) – I guess I am for the Marlins because they aren’t the Yankees, and sometimes the enemy of my enemy somewhat resembles a friend.

In a way I hate the Yankees less after they lost the last two years, but in another way I hate them even more because they don’t have any particularly obnoxious players upon which to fix my animosity (other than Clemens and he’s retiring). I delighted in despising Knoblauch, Brosius, O’Neill (see below), the old Petitte (he’s a even better pitcher now, but less obno), the invincible Rivera (he’s more tolerable after losing the 2001 Series – ha ha). I have to admit I kind of like Jeter, Bernie, Giambi, Wells, Matsui (whom my wife thought was named “Matt Sui”), although of course I hate their Yankee-ness.

As to the Series, the first game was taut and dramatic, the second a total snooze although I give Petitte full credit for pitching a gem against an outrageously inventive lineup. To help with the Series mood, PW Daily reports on this season’s bestselling baseball titles reported by more than 400 independent bookstores for the period March 1-October 12. The top 10 are:

1. The Teammates by David Halberstam (Hyperion)
2. Moneyball by Michael Lewis (Norton)
3. Triumph and Tragedy in Mudville by Stephen Jay Gould (Norton)
4. Sandy Koufax by Jane Leavy (HarperCollins)
5. Game Time: A Baseball Companion by Roger Angell (Harcourt)
6. Me and My Dad: A Baseball Memoir by Paul O’Neill with Burton Rocks (Morrow)
7. Perfect I’m Not: Boomer on Beer, Brawls, Backaches, and Baseball by David Wells with Chris Kreski (Morrow)
8. When You Come to a Fork in the Road, Take It!: Inspiration and Wisdom from One of Baseball’s Greatest Heros by Yogi Berra with Dave Kaplan (Hyperion)
9. The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract by Bill James (Free Press)
10. October Men: Reggie Jackson, George Steinbrenner, Billy Martin, and the Yankees’ Miraculous Finish in 1978 by Roger Kahn (Harcourt)

No one would need any help getting in the mood had it been Cubs/Red Sox, but sucking when it counts most is what both franchises do best.