The Tao of the Backup Catcher
Playing Baseball for the Love of the Game
In baseball there are superstars, stars, and everyday playersâand then there are the rest. The Tao of the Backup Catcher is about them, the backup catchers, who exist near the bottom of the roster and the end of the bench and between the numbers in a sportâand a societyâincreasingly driven by cold, hard analytics. The Tao of the Backup Catcher is a story of grown men who once dreamed of stardom and generational wealth. Instead, they were handed a broom and a deeper understanding of who wins and why, who stands tall and who folds, and who will invest their own lives in catching bullpens and the back ends of doubleheaders.
Backup catchers survive in part because every team needs one. They are necessary, once or twice a week. They are sports' big brothers, psychologists, priests, witch doctors, player coaches, father figures and drinking buddies, all wrapped in a suit of today's polycarbonate armor and yesterday's dirt. They come with a singular goal: to win baseball games. They play for the greater good. After that, they play for themselves.
A reverie on loving the grind and the little things baseball can teach us, The Tao of the Backup Catcher profiles Erik Kratz, Josh Paul, AJ Ellis, Bobby Wilson, Drew Butera, Matt Treanor, and John Flaherty to name a few.
"This isn't just a story about baseball. It's about life and the beauty of knowing and accepting who you are." âJeff Passan
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
July 11, 2023 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781668619537
- File size: 274646 KB
- Duration: 09:32:10
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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Publisher's Weekly
May 8, 2023
Journalist Brown (coauthor of The Phenomenon) teams up with retired Major League Baseball catcher Kratz for a compassionate look at the life of a journeyman professional athlete. During his 19-year career as a pro, Kratz played for 15 teams and never rose above the rank of second-stringer before he retired in 2020. Brown chronicles the highs, which included batting .367 during a stint with the Yankees, and the lowsâwhile with the Brewers, Kratz was barred from a team meeting because everyone expected heâd be traded and couldnât be trusted with the teamâs protocol for using players on second base to communicate their opponentsâ pitch signs to batters. Passion for the game kept Kratz going; he taught batting lessons to make ends meet while playing in the minor leagues and learned to view trades to bottom-dwelling teams as opportunities for âmore at-bats.â Diverting anecdotes about other backup catchers entertain (Cincinnati Reds second-stringer Bill Plummer took pains not to snore when sharing a hotel room with the teamâs celebrity starting catcher: âJohnny Bench needed his restâ), but this focuses squarely on Kratz, finding pathos in his unglamorous fight to stay in the game. The result is an empathetic tribute to athletes who spend their lives just outside the spotlight. -
Library Journal
Starred review from June 1, 2023
Many children worldwide dream of becoming baseball stars and making loads of money. In reality, however, only a tiny percentage of those actually achieve this dream. Sports journalist Brown (The Phenomenon), cowriting with former pro baseball player Eric Kratz, tells a story about men who have pursued a baseball career into adulthood but who ultimately didn't achieve the hoped-for superstar status. It is told mostly through the eyes of Kratz, a former catcher who, after realizing that superstardom would elude him, still found the goodness that can come from helping others achieve success in a sport that often seemed heartless and unforgiving to him. Kratz's experiences are woven together with interviews of several other professional baseball players and managers. This highly recommended book is a refreshing and inspiring baseball story that will resonate with the 99 percent who never make it big. It will likely enlighten and inspire baseball players and non-athletes alike into learning that greater joy can come from serving others instead of just being served. VERDICT Baseball and sports lovers will likely forever revere and quote this book. It belongs in all general and many academic libraries.--Steve Dixon
Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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AudioFile Magazine
This audiobook takes a dramatic approach to the often unsung role of baseball's backup catchers, who may play only a few innings a week--or not at all. Narrator Justin Price gives them the emotion and drama they deserve, in part by slightly altering his voice for quotes. His delivery is a great example of how a narrator can use technique to capture the writing. Brown and Kratz--writer and catcher, respectively--have teamed up to reveal to baseball fans the challenges these journeymen go through day in and day out. It's tough to imagine any other approach for these stories. Listeners will enjoy--and gain new respect for--players who are rarely in the limelight. M.B. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
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Formats
- OverDrive Listen audiobook
Languages
- English
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