Chasing Steinbrenner: Pursuing the Pennant in Boston and Toronto

Though the Red Sox finally "caught" Steinbrenner (for one year at least), the frustrations and challenges of being a franchise forever obsessed with the Bronx Colossus remain. This book is as relevant now that the Red Sox have won their World Series title as it was when the sting of Aaron Boone was fresh. Rob Bradford provides the reader an entertaining look into the sub-$200 millon world of Red Sox GM Theo Epstein and his Toronto counterpart J.P. Ricciardi, Massachusetts natives both, who work to overcome Yankee dollars with good old-fashioned Yankee ingenuity , and yes, luck. After all, Theo was heartbroken over losing Jose Contreras to the Yankees. It's all in the book. A good read.

Picked this up after reading Peter Gammons' recommendation on espn.com last month, and finished it as the Sox were in the middle of the greatest comeback in sports history last week. The timing was perfect, as this postseason is partly the result of the brilliant 2003 teambuilding effort by Theo Epstein and company that is covered here. The chapter on the adventure of signing Kevin Millar alone is worth the cover price. A great look into the inner workings of what may go down in history as one of baseball's best back offices. Reading about the Jays making do with a relatively tiny payroll is interesting too, but it's the Sox that caught Steinbrenner.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. When I bought the book I expected to read stories of behind the door wheeling and dealing, and wasn't disappointed. The part I enjoyed the most was reading about the "real" lives of these people. Bradford does an excellent job portraying the professional and personal sides of these individuals. The whole section on Jose Contreras was intruiging. I highly recomend it.

I just finished this book and thought it was terrific. I would buy this book just for the chapter on Jose Contreras. Bradford goes into great detail about how Theo Epstein and the Sox tried to sign him, only to lose him to the hated Yankees. That chapter reads like a novel, with turns and twists that leave you wanting more. The book focuses on two GM's, Epstein and the Blue Jays J.P. Ricciardi. Both are fully realized characters, and we really get to know both of them as they chase the Yankees but in different ways. Epstein deals with an impatient Red Sox Nation, while Ricciardi rebuilds his farm system as an apathetic Toronto yearns for the Glory Days of the early 90's. The little stories are what makes this book a keeper. Ricciardi being sabotaged by his own scouts, Epstein driving across the country, Theo's first day on the job. An impressive debut book. A fun read.

Moneyball was a great read for me as a diehard baseball fan. Unfortunately it had little or nothing to do with the Red Sox. Luckily, now there is Chasing Steinbrenner. The half of the book that deals with the behind the scenes operations of the Toronto Blue Jays is to be forgiven since it is also interesting.Among the unforegtable stories is when Toronto GM JP Ricciardi gets a phone call from the local Worcester newspaper (JP is a Worcester native). Turns out the reporter was dying for a story about the high school basketball team that Ricciardi was several years removed from being the coach of. The exclusive with the local MLB GM would have been a bigger story, but the reporter is disappointed.This book is a must read for those with any curiosity about what goes on upstairs at Fenway with the Sox brass.