The first complete biography of the greatest defensive third baseman of all time, Baltimore Orioles’ Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson.
“An unabashedly affectionate life of and tribute to a man who deserves every good word that ever has been said or written about him.” —The Washington Post
Finalist for the 2014 Casey Award
Selected by the National Baseball Hall of Fame for the 2014 author’s series
Brooks Robinson is one of baseball’s most transcendent and revered players. He won a record sixteen straight Gold Gloves at third base, led one of the best teams of the era, and is often cited as the greatest fielder in baseball history. Credited with almost single-handedly winning the 1970 World Series, this MVP was immortalized in a Normal Rockwell painting. A wholesome player and role model, Brooks honored the game of baseball not only with his play but with his class and character off the field.
Author of The Bird: The Life and Legacy of Mark Fidrych, Doug Wilson returns to baseball’s golden age to detail the birth of a new franchise through the man who came to symbolize it as one of baseball’s most beloved players. Through numerous interviews with people from every part of the legendary player’s life, Wilson reveals never-before-reported information to illuminate Brooks’s remarkable skill and warm personality. In the current climate of astronomical salaries, steroids, off-field troubles, and heroes who let down their fans, Brooks reminds fans of the honor and glory at the heart of America’s favorite pastime.
“A nice tribute to a bygone era of baseball and one of its classiest representatives.” —Publishers Weekly