HOTSHOTS BASEBALL

A ramble through baseball history, focusing on the youths of players from Babe Ruth to Jim (``I try to remember that I didn't get here single-handedly'') Abbott. These players come from many backgrounds. Some were baseball hotshots from the outset: Satchel Paige was pitching at ten, the age when Tom Seaver won his one and only perfect game. Others, such as Sandy Koufax and Bo Jackson, excelled in many sports and took their time choosing careers. Despite an occasional homily and a fondness for neatly wrapped stories (Roberto Clemente is first seen organizing his classmates to clean up a play area, and dies years later while running a relief effort), the author's style and selection of material are always lively. She finishes each portrait with career highlights and includes a chapter on brothers and father-son combinations (mentioning the Griffeys but not the fact that they now play on the same team). Large photos (several of them baby pictures), mostly in black and white, are brightened by colorful borders and caption boxes. The last part of this will age rapidly, since it deals with active players; the book as a whole may entice readers into picking up classics such as Ritter's The Story of Baseball (rev. ed., 1990). (Biography. 10-13)