Questions and Answers

How did you start off with ‘The Best New York Sports Arguments’?

My publisher first approached me with the idea to cover all of New York’s sports history, in a book covering 100 chapters. I was reluctant to try it at first, if only because of the project’s sheer ambition- they were talking about covering baseball, football, basketball, hockey, tennis, boxing, and racing over more than a century.

Why did you decide to write it?

Oh, the usual reasons- hunger for literary fame and fortune! Seriously, though, I was very intrigued by the concept, not only because it was very ambitious, but it was original. I believe I’ve read most every important sports book published over the last 30 or 40 years, but I’ve never seen a good book tackling all New York sports.

Finally, as I considered it, I got really excited about the prospect of examining the questions and controversies and misunderstood events that have come up over the years. There’ve been more than a few, that’s for sure.

What’s your intended readership?

Age 13 to 83, from kids to die-hard, old-time fans. All along, I tried to set up the chapters so a novice could learn about the topics, while still adding a lot of new facts and opinion for those who were already familiar with the topics.

How would you describe your approach?

‘Serious fun’ is a phrase that fits, I suppose. I wanted to supply some rock-solid research and analysis while, at the same time, maintaining the ‘fun and games’ aspect. More than anything else, I wanted to keep the readers intrigued enough to turn the pages.

What was the greatest challenge in the writing?

I’d have to go back to the ambition, I guess. When you’re talking about 100 chapters, obviously, there’s a whole lot of research and writing involved, but beyond that, there has to be a whole range of approaches. I wanted to be versatile enough to switch around in everything from stat analysis, history, and sociology to media criticism and style. I even wrote a few humor/parody chapters.

Apart from that, I wanted to give both sides of the issues whenever possible. I always present a point of view, and some are straight advocacy pieces, but it was important to acknowledge when reasonable people have disagreed with some of the conclusions.

What was the most rewarding part of the process?

Going in, I thought it might be tough to fill 100 chapters. Heck, it was easy, because there have been so many great teams and athletes and events along the years, all of them permitting new angles for analysis or argument. I loved getting into that.

I’ll freely admit, at the beginning of the process, baseball was, by far, my favorite sport. At the end, though, I came across with an appreciation for just about everything. I liked some athletes more than others, but, for better or worse, I learned to how special all sports can be.

OK, so who gets a ‘for better’ assessment in the book?

Oh, Babe Ruth may have been even bigger than we’ve all been led to believe, both as a ball player and as the true ‘Athlete of the Century’. There are a number of figures that come off great, in my personal view- Lou Gehrig, Jackie Robinson, Allie Reynolds, Bill Belichick, Clyde Frazier, and Mark Messier among them.

Who comes in for some rough criticism?

There’s a dishonor roll, too, and it includes guys like Roger Maris, Joe Namath, Bill Parcells, Patrick Ewing, and Jimmy Connors. Also, polician/fans and broadcaster John Sterling. I don’t want to give away too much- readers have to buy the book to find out for themselves!

Do you anticipate that ‘The Best New York Sports Arguments’ will be controversial?

I guess it will be, at least in some corners. I always wanted to be original, and frequently that means being contrarian, but not reflexively so. I never set out to write something just to be ‘outrageous’. Even those who disagree with the book might concede some pretty good reasons behind the arguments, if nothing else.

At this point, are you more or less of a sports fan?

I’ve always been a sports nut, but now? Forget it. I’m much, much more of a fan. If the public enjoys reading the book as much as I enjoyed writing it, it’ll be a big win-win.

pch@UnitedStatesofBaseball.com

‘The Best New York Sports Arguments:

The 100 Most Controversial, Debatable Questions for Die-Hard Fans’

SourceBooks, Inc. • On-Sale Date: November 28, 2006 • 270 pages

$14.95 • ISBN: 1-4022-0823-5

Posted 9/1/2006 @ 5:16 PM | Questions and Answers