The engaging snarkiness of Jim Bouton's writing shines in this entertaining audiobook. Bouton chronicles his efforts to save Wahconah Park, an old stadium in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, and to bring a minor league baseball team to the city. Jim Seybert narrates with the right mix of candor, hubris, and resentment. This is not a baseball book, as many would expect. Instead, it's a chronicle of the dysfunction and political gamesmanship Bouton faced during his ultimately unsuccessful efforts. Seybert builds on the dialogue that makes the story so engaging, taking it to the next level with sarcastic inflections that enhance the details of Bouton's frustrated efforts. Even non-baseball fans will relish this performance.
Pub Date: May 3, 2022
Duration: 17 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781666530148
Publisher: Dreamscape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
More books have been written about baseball than any other sport, and audiobooks such as this allow the genre to flourish. Former pitcher Ron Darling, now a broadcaster, had a distinguished career, primarily with the New York Mets. Darling has met just about everyone in the sport for nearly four decades and demonstrates his knowledge and connections with the anecdotes in this entertaining memoir. Narrator Malcolm Hillgartner's relaxed delivery sounds as though he is in the broadcast booth with Darling. Like most audio sports memoirs, this book succeeds because of the narrator's engaging style. Hillgartner recognizes that even the duller moments in baseball are bolstered by the legacies of so many who have played the game, and were fortunate to have crossed paths with the author.
Pub Date: April 2, 2019
Duration: 7 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781721342457
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Willie Mays's baseball life was a long and rich one, worthy of multiple biographies. Known as a five-tool player--he could run, field, throw, hit, and hit for power--Mays enjoyed a long career. The tag-team narration here fits wonderfully: Larry Herron speaks in a serious and deep tone that is commanding, with appropriate doses of emotion. Julian McWilliams uses a higher voice for Mays who, in fact, does have a slightly high voice. Often, when people are quoted--like President Obama--imitations are used and fit seamlessly within the story. Off- and on-the-field anecdotes are interspersed with brief pieces of advice and mini-mantras from the baseball great.
Pub Date: May 12, 2020
Duration: 11 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781250240231
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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