Where Nobody Knows Your Name: Life In the Minor Leagues of Baseball Hardcover – February 25, 2014

I devour most everything about baseball. This book gave me great insights into a side of baseball I really didn’t know well or appreciate.By closely following the lives and baseball journeys of a core group of players and an umpire I cheered for and suffered with them. Their love for the game was paramount as they dealt with failures that come eventually to all in baseball. Aging, money needs, and family responsibilities weigh heavily on each of them.I gained a new appreciation of the emotional toll the game presents to players. Many were appreciative of the small taste of success they experienced with even brief visits to the major leagues.Oh, and John Feinstein is an excellent writer. Much of the book captures the actual dialogue of the player experience. His writing traverses throughtheir baseball season experience and has you page turning.The sporting life is challenging. Striving for success with aging bodies always getting in the way is a story line. At the end I was left saddened for many because Feinstein’s intimate portrait had you caring for each of themJohn, this would not be quite like the Boys of Summer story of some Brooklyn Dodgers many years later but similarly I would like to know how these guys are all doing now. Wishful thinking it seems but also a tribute to the quality of this book.

When it comes to sports books, John Feinstein is practically a one-man factory. He cranks out a new publication every so often, and you know it's going to be well done.Feinstein has covered a variety of areas over the years since his first such effort, the classic "Season on the Brink." (Talk about a tough act to follow.) I've read just about all of them. Now Feinstein is back with another book, "Where Nobody Knows Your Name." It's about life in Triple-A baseball, which according to the title is the opposite of "Cheers." There's a lot of truth in that.As Feinstein mentions several times in the course of the book, no one wants to be in Triple A - at least for very long. The quality of play is quite good; the jump from Double A is surprising large. There are people in baseball's highest minor league that are good enough to be on a major league roster in some cases, but for one reason or another aren't. The financial rewards of making that last step is huge, but it's not easy to take it.Feinstein talks to all sorts of people in Triple A's International League, from players to managers to umpires to announcers. He concentrates on nine. The list includes Scott Elarton, who once won 17 games in a season but fell on hard times; Jon Lindsey, a professional hitter who just hasn't been quite good enough, or young enough, to reach the majors; Scott Podsedik, who you might remember for his walk-off homer in the 2005 World Series; and Chris Schwinden, who bounced all over the baseball map during the 2012 season. If you get the idea that Feinstein likes to talk to veterans who can provide a little perspective on the situation, you're right. Others get short chapters along the way.Some of the best stories come from managers like Ron Johnson and Charlie Montoyo. They are put in an unusual position, professionally speaking. Yes, they have a better time and outlook when their teams win, but that's not their biggest task. They are there to help players get ready to contribute to the major league team. Every player loves to talk about the time that they were called into the manager's office for the first time and told they were headed to the big leagues. Managers love to see the reaction too. It sure beats telling players they have been released, and that their baseball dreams may be over. Hearing about players who find out they've reached their dream is always heart-warming.There are plenty of stories about how Triple-A baseball works - salaries, travel, recalls, life's logistics under the circumstances, etc. It's easy to root for the players, who come across well here. I'd guess Feinstein didn't have to do much searching for subjects. Since the book was written about 2012, the book ends with what happened to them all in 2013. Sometimes that extra year can hurt a reader's enjoyment, but in this case it ties up some stories with a nice bow. One of the minor characters in the narrative even wound up with a World Series ring for his efforts.There is one problem with the book, and Feinstein certainly knew this going in. This is a story of a season, and the season really doesn't play much of a part in the story. In other words, few remember what teams win a Triple-A championship unless you happen to live in that city. As I'm fond of saying, media members are about the only ones who pay close attention to the standings during the course of the season. The players and manager want the team to do well, but mostly because it's a sign that good players are making progress toward the goal of helping the parent team.That means there's no dramatic arc to the story as a whole, as there is in a book about a major league season or even a golf tournament. That makes the book a collection of individual stories - still interesting, but without the punch that an overriding climax can provide.Still, Feinstein uncovers plenty of good information here, and it's easy to root for those mentioned in "Where Nobody Knows Your Name." The author opens the door on minor league baseball's life, and many will want to take a peak inside.

A great read for any baseball fan interested in minor league baseball. Years ago, whenever we would attend a minor league baseball game, my son would inevitably post up next to the bullpen and chat up anyone willing to talk to a young college baseball "prospect". The stories my son relayed to me were many times the highlight of our trip home from the park, we would laugh at the stories of bus rides, fast food diets, townies, practices, roomates, etc ..... a " sobering reminder" of life in the minor leagues. I enjoyed Feinstein's entertaining and insightful snapshots of the ups and downs of both players and managers, then taking us the behind closed doors into "the business" side of professional baseball. He describes why urgency, not patience is a virtue, that success is not always in your control and the bottom line is frequently, "If you don't like it here play better". My biggest take away were the amazing stories of mental toughness and disiplined will required by the players just to maintain. I consider books like this good reading for any parent who has a child "living the dream" and wants to further educate themselves or just needs a sobering reminder of the challenges that lay ahead for their child. Speaking from experience . . . ."a majority of NCAA student-athletes go pro in something other than sports".

The minor leagues are tough in many ways and we know too little about them. This book details that life through the stories of a group of minor leaguers (including an umpire). It's not an easy life. Feinstein is a super sportswriter and a marvelous story teller. A really good read!

A collection of stories about life in the minors from different perspective (prospects, former stars, career minor leagues, injured players coming back)

This isn’t just a book about baseball, it’s a book about the ‘so-near-and-yet-so-far’ nature of professional sport in all its heartbreaking and heartwarming magnificence.Although Feinstein nominally focuses on a cast of nine principal characters – six players, two managers and an umpire – there are dozens of stories of players who have dutifully (often in the face of all logic) pursued the dream of the major leagues for years without quite getting the call. When they finally get their ‘cup of coffee’, it’s impossible not to be moved by stories like that of Rich Thompson who waited seven years from his first major league at bat until his second. Or JC Boscan who finally made it (for one game) after 16 years in the Minors.Beautifully written, it captures the essence of MiLB. My only gripe is that there are so many hundreds of different characters he mentioned that I lost track on more than one occasion. The index was helpful but the roll call left my head spinning at times.A great read that made me respect those poor souls who seem to spend whole careers being called up and sent down again before the inevitable trade and retirement. Thoroughly recommended

One of the best sports and life books I've ever read. If you like baseball you need to read this. If you like sports stories you need to read this. If you like stories about struggle, dreams and what if's you have to read this. This is a must read. List at the top of your reading this summer.

If you love Baseball but want to dig a little deeper in to stories at the lower level ,no super stars here but plenty of interesting stories of guys striving for major league or just hanging on to play for as long as they can, Feinstein is a great writer ive read a number of his books & this is up there with the best of them.