Lefty Grows: The Life and Times of Lefty Grove

I was particularly happy to receive this book on Lefty Grove because, as with a number of pre-World War II stars, a meaningful biography has been lacking about them. Jim Kaplan's version of Grove's life isn't perfect, but it's close enough, filled with stories about Grove, his teammates and the times. It's an interesting, well-written, thoughtful biography about an outstanding pitcher and one of the best ballplayers ever, and fills a gap in baseball literature that needed to be addressed.

Jim Kaplan sets out in this well-researched book to resurrect the figure of Lefty Grove, a 300-game winner whose career spanned those of Walter Johnson and Ted Williams. For the most part, he convincingly makes his case that Groves deserves to be included among a handful of baseball's elite pitchers and that he was perhaps the best lefthander hurler ever.Whatever shortcomings the book may have, the reader is bound to be impressed by Kaplan's knowledge of Grove's career (he takes us through each of his 17 big league seasons and four that he spent at the minor league level) and his painstaking efforts to convey a sense of the time in which Grove played. When he describes one of Grove's many confrontations with Babe Ruth, the writing has the ring of truth. Particularly effective is his recounting of the famous 1929 World Series game in which Grove's Philadelphia A's scored 10 runs in one inning to wipe out an eight-run Chicago Cub lead en route to winning the world championship.Kaplan brings to life several key figures of Grove's time, most notably Connie Mack, Grove's manager with the A's and a man who not only strongly influenced the lives of his players but also the organizational direction of baseball. Long before the 1997 Marlins were broken up to save money, Mack was doing the same thing, jettisoning big names and large salaries to build teams anew. He also offers a valuable analysis of Mack's and Grove's 1929-1931 Philadelphia A's, convincingly arguing that these teams (that also included Hall of Famers Al Simmons, Mickey Cochrane, to name a few) were the equal of the more celebrated 1926-1928 Yankees, whose 1927 edition is generally considered the greatest in baseball history.Also of note is the final section, which analyzes the careers of Johnson, Grove and Sandy Koufax and offers the reader statistical food for thought in considering who was the greatest lefthander ever. Kaplan's writing is solid but unspectacular and he lapses at times into a cheerleading tone, particularly when he discusses Grove's great achievements (which included nine ERA titles, a 31-4 season, a career .680 winning percentage and a 1935-1939 resurrection of his craft, during which he transformed himself from a fireballer into a finesse pitcher.) Kaplan's otherwise fine description of the last day of the 1941 season, in which Williams secured his .406 average by going six-for-eight after refusing to sit on the bench for a doubleheader, is marred by the writer's tone of breathless admiration for the player's feat. Nothing wrong with being a fan when you write a baseball book, but I prefer that the author for the most part let the facts speak for themselves.All in all, Kaplan produces a portrait of a driven, often disagreeable man who hated losing and was impatient with the shortcomings of mere athletic mortals. The picture of Lefty is convincing, but Kaplan uses the same strokes pretty heavily to produce it.The baseball fan/historian will find this a very useful look a

When I told friend of mine (a sports fan) that I was reading a book about Lefty Grove, he asked "Who is that?" Considering Grove was probably the greatest pitcher who ever lived, this public ignorance is unfortunate. Robert Kaplan in American Original does a very good job of letting us know who Grove was. Grove's terible temper and hatred of losing are brought to life in this book. Kaplan also includes a statistical breakdown of Grove's career and a detailed comparison between him and some other great pitchers. No true baseball fan should miss this book!

I just joined SABR and enjoyed reading the Kaplan book about Lefty Grove. It covered his entire life, and some social background about his home area in Maryland and the places he played ball. The book flowed and I did not put it down. Interesting read about how a great pitcher is made.

Finally, an informative biography of the greatest pitcher of all-time. For the most part the bio is well written and covers the breadth of the long career and life of the greatest southpaw whoever pitched. There are a few grammatical mistakes that take away from the flow of the book, but overall it's clean. Definately well researched. The author interviewed former teammates, his family, and former friends from his hometown in Maryland. This is the only book I've ever seen on Lefty and I would recommend this book if your interested in learning about this tempermental baseball star.