Seasons in Hell by Mike Shropshire

Seasons in Hell

With Billy Martin, Whitey Herzog and "the Worst Baseball Team in History"—the 1973-1975 Texas Rangers

Mike Shropshire

Bison Books · Print & ebook · March 1, 2005

“Disastrously hilarious.”—USA Today “Even before the start of spring training, Herzog had said, ‘If Rich Billings is the starting catcher again, we’re in deep trouble.’ When that evaluation was passed along to Billings, he simply nodded and said, ‘Whitey, obviously, has seen me play.’” In early 1973, gonzo sportswriter Mike Shropshire agreed to cover the Texas Rangers for the Fort-Worth Star-Telegram, not realizing that the Rangers were arguably the worst team in baseball history.

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Who it’s for
A candid, irreverent look at a famously troubled Rangers team and baseball’s mid-seventies culture.
Themes
1970s major-league baseball, The Texas Rangers, Baseball personalities
Genres
Baseball Essays, Baseball History, Sports Humor

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About this book

“Disastrously hilarious.”—USA Today “Even before the start of spring training, Herzog had said, ‘If Rich Billings is the starting catcher again, we’re in deep trouble.’ When that evaluation was passed along to Billings, he simply nodded and said, ‘Whitey, obviously, has seen me play.’”

Continue reading

In early 1973, gonzo sportswriter Mike Shropshire agreed to cover the Texas Rangers for the Fort-Worth Star-Telegram, not realizing that the Rangers were arguably the worst team in baseball history. Seasons in Hell is a riotous, candid, irreverent behind-the-scenes account in the tradition of The Bronx Zoo and Ball Four, following the Texas Rangers from Whitey Herzog’s reign in 1973 through Billy Martin’s tumultuous tenure. Offering wonderful perspectives on dozens of unique (and likely never-to-be-seen-again) baseball personalities, Seasons in Hell recounts some of the most extreme characters ever to play the game and brings to life the no-holds-barred culture of major league baseball in the mid-seventies.

Baseball’s Rough Edges

A candid, irreverent look at a famously troubled Rangers team and baseball’s mid-seventies culture.

Come here for

  • Behind-the-scenes baseball told with a sportswriter’s comic eye
  • A cast of singular characters, from Whitey Herzog to Billy Martin

Expect

  • Candid, riotous storytelling rather than polished nostalgia
  • A vivid portrait of major-league baseball’s no-holds-barred culture

Where it sits

Baseball Essays67%
Sports Humor61%
Baseball History40%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Sports Lives
  • Sports Humor
  • Sports & Recreation
  • Baseball
Show all 6 publisher categories
  • Baseball Essays
  • Baseball History
Authors
Mike Shropshire
Publisher
Bison Books
Published
March 1, 2005
Format
Print & ebook
Theme
1970s major-league baseball · The Texas Rangers · Baseball personalities
Reading lane
Sports Lives