The Pitch That Killed: The Tragic Death of Ray Chapman in the Pennant Race of 1920

On August 20, 1920, Indians shortstop Ray Chapman was killed by a pitch thrown by Yankees pitcher Carl Mays - still the only fatality in a major league baseball game. This event is mentioned in passing whenever someone is seriously hurt by a pitch. It is not, however, a well-chronicled event in the long history of the game. So it's good to see Michael Sowell give this story the attention it deserves in this fascinating book. The book is written as a dual biography of Chapman and Mays. It could be called a triple biography, because Joe Sewell, Chapman's rookie replacement, is also prominently featured. However, the book covers much more than these three men and the events directly concerning the fatal pitch. Sowell captures the flavor of the dead-ball era. But as Mays and Chapman approach their destiny, change is in the air. 1920 was the greatest turning point in baseball history. In that year: The Red Sox sell Babe Ruth to the Yankees. Ruth set a new home run record with 54. (The old one was 29.) Chapman is killed by Mays. The Black Sox scandal breaks. Kennesaw Landis becomes the first commissioner of baseball. The spitball is banned, and dirty baseballs are removed from play. All of this is in the story. Chapman, by the way, was popular. Mays was not, even before the fateful day. As for the details of the pitch that killed, I will leave you in suspense... Amazingly, this tale has not been dramatized. Why not? This story has many ideal elements for the big screen: * We have a tragic hero, a triumphant hero and a villain, yet none are well known. * The villain plays for the Yankees. * Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Joe Jackson, the Black Sox scandal, and the birth of the Yankee dynasty are in the background. * The fatal beaning takes place in the heat of a thrilling pennant race. * The Indians, Yankees, and Mays must cope with something that has never happened before or since. * Despite the tragedy, the good guys win the pennant and the World Series. Somewhere, Chapman is smiling. * Did I mention that in the World Series, our heroes produce the first grand slam, the first home run by a pitcher, and an UNASSISTED TRIPLE PLAY - all in one game? * Chapman becomes a martyr. Sewell becomes a Hall of Famer. Mays becomes a pariah, blackballed from Coopertown. Sounds like good movie material to me. A good director could make his reputation with this.

Take a compelling story - the evil Carl Mays felling the likable Ray Chapman with a pitch - combine it with a brilliant writer, and the result is this book, one of the best-ever baseball reads. Sowell manages to transport the reader back to the period in which the story takes place (1910s and 1920s), while still allowing the tale to play out without clutter or unnecessary writing. Unlike the many one-dimensional portrayals of Mays included in other works, Sowell paints him as a complex character, a great pitcher who obviously battled some emotional issues. The death of Chapman doesn't need to be dressed up to be heartbreaking, and Sowell presents the situation in a straightforward manner. From the first page to the end of the book, it's difficult to find fault with anything. Just a compelling story told by a great writer, this is a book that any fan of baseball should read.

One of the best baseball books ever! If you thought holdouts, violence, labor disputes, money woes were only modern era problems, check this book out. Well organized chapters covering the protaganists in Ray Chapman and Carl Mays but also good stuff on the player who replaced Chapman--Joe Sewell.The whole thing was like a time travel trip back to 1920 and gave me a particularly good feel for the era. (NOTE: The background on the 1919 Black Sox World Series scandal that was exposed during the 1920 season was also revealing in shedding light on the atmosphere surrounding the majors at that time.)

Mike Sowell is a unique baseball writer. He writes on the sport based not solely on the sport itself, but on the historical context in which the events he is documenting take place. Thus, with "The Pitch That Killed", the reader discovers the perspective that each of the principles have in the tragedy, from Carl Mays to the mayor of Cleveland in 1920. In addition, the Communist scare, the Harding administration, and the carefree lifestyle of that era are all examined as to how they apply to the primary topic. Certainly other baseball writers have tried this, but Sowell makes it readable and avoids the trap most writers fall into. In other words, Sowell makes it relevant without reverting and tainting his subject matter with personal nostalgia. And that is why this book is such a great read.