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Ball Four | 
 enlarge | Author: Jim Bouton
Publisher: Wiley
Category: Book
List Price: $15.95
Buy Used: $5.99
You Save: $9.96 (62%)
New (30) Used (28) Collectible (10) from $5.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  91 reviews
Sales Rank: 12919
Media: Paperback
Edition: 20
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 465
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 8.1 x 5.5 x 1.1
ISBN: 0020306652
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.357092
UPC: 021898306654
EAN: 9780020306658
ASIN: 0020306652
Publication Date: July 12, 1990
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Free bookmark with every order. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More.
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
As a player, former hurler Jim Bouton did nothing half-way; he threw so hard he'd lose his cap on almost every pitch. In the early '70s, he tossed off one of the funniest, most revealing, insider's takes on baseball life in Ball Four, his diary of the season he tried to pitch his way back from oblivion on the strength of a knuckler. The real curve, though, is Bouton's honesty. He carves humans out of heroes, and shines a light into the game's corners. A quarter century later, Bouton's unique baseball voice can still bring the heat.
Product Description
Twentieth-anniversary edition of a baseball classic, with a new epilogue by Jim Bouton. When first published in 1970, Ball Four stunned the sports world. The commissioner, executives, and players were shocked. Sportswriters called author Jim Bouton a traitor and "social leper." Baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn tried to force him to declare the book untrue. Fans, however, loved the book. And serious critics called it an important social document. Today, Jim Bouton is still not invited to Oldtimer's Days at Yankee Stadium. But his landmark book is still being read by people who don'tordinarily follow baseball.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 86 more reviews...
 the first to expose how players used the groupies April 5, 2008
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
Jim Bouton is a very bright man who probably could have been a scientist if he didn't go into baseball. In the 1960s when he played nobody wrote colorful exposes of the behind the scenes and road trip life of major league ball players. Bouton was the first with this book. It ended many friendships with teammates and probably broke up his marriage. The book might seem tame by todays standard. Alcohol was the players drug in those days and no one was shooting up steroids back then. But the book was racy, groundbreaking and controversial in its time much like Canseco's books are today.
You will also see that it led to several other books by Jim Bouton and even one by his ex wife (another analogy to Canseco whose ex wife also wrote a book). Bouton was a great pitcher but alas for only the period from 1961-1964. 1963 was his best season but even though he pitched well in that world series the Yankees got steamrolled by the Dodger staff with Drysdale and Koufax leading the way. After retirementhe came back to pitch for the Seattle Pilots expansion team in their first year. He had developed a knuckle ball and that allowed him some limited success. Bulldog Jim wrote a book about that experience too. He had a trick when he pitched for the Yankees. He wouldd deliberately wear a very loose fitting cap that would usually fall off his head as he delivered the pitch. This was distracting for the hitters. But in his day Bouton had a good fastball and a deceptive changeup and he was part of a great pitching rotation in 1963 that included Ford, Downing and Terry.
important book March 17, 2008
even now, the contents of "ball four" are as equally as contrary to what you think about the order of things as say the first time you hear that hawaiians aren't happy about being american. what this book has to say about institutions make it as valuable an american document as "on the road".
the only real debate i think that could be made over this assertion is who took more speed; kerouac or bouton?
the answer is kerouac.
leaving only one other question:
who took more speed; kerouac or doc ellis?
i can't answer that question but i can say that beaning batters successively until you get thrown out of a major league baseball game is much cooler than anything kerouac ever did.
 Ball Four was a HIt February 18, 2008
Ball Four is a journal of Jim Bouton's days in baseball. It is light hearted and pokes fun at himself and tells it like it was in the 1960's. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in the behind the scenes and what happens in the locker room.
Knee Surgery Gift December 30, 2007
Hubby had knee surgery and was laid up for 3 months.. did alot of reading when he wasn't in physical therapy.... GREAT BOOK
Still funny after all these years August 25, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Still Hilarious the second time around. I've always been a baseball fan, coached by Dad and a family tradition. The humanizing of the players made me love it more. Never did understand the controversy, telling the truth about greedy, exploitive owners maybe? But that's true of all big business from ENRON on down the ladder (that was never a secret). Steroids? In this one it's greenies (uppers) pitchers use them in this iteration and made their sore arms and tired muscles disappear. The disappointing thing is no one seems concerned about the health issues. Sports and business all have a history of taking any advantage, cheating is in the eye of the beholder. Heck with records, throw them all out. Baseball is about fun, and parents interacting and enjoying their children.
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