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The Life And Legacy Of Mark Fidrych
Thomas Dunne
April 2013
On Sale: March 26, 2013
320 pages
ISBN: 1250004926
EAN: 9781250004925
Kindle: B009A9LLHI
Hardcover / e-Book
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Non-Fiction Biography
The first biography of the eccentric pitcher, rookie
All-Star starter, 70s pop icon, and first athlete on the
cover of Rolling Stone For those who remember him, Mark Fidrych is still that
player who brings a smile to your face, the irresistibly
likable pitcher whose sudden rise brightened the
star-spangled season of 1976 and reminded us of the pure joy
of the game. Lanky, mop-topped, and nicknamed for his resemblance to Big
Bird on Sesame Street, Fidrych exploded onto the
national stage during the Bicentennial summer as a rookie
with the Detroit Tigers. He won over fans nationwide with
his wildly endearing antics such as talking to the
ball---and throwing back the ones that “had hits in them”;
getting down on his knees to “manicure” the mound of any
cleat marks; and shaking hands with just about everyone from
teammates to groundskeepers to cops during and after games.
Female fans tried to obtain locks of his hair from his
barber and even named babies after him. But The Bird was no mere sideshow. The non-roster invitee to
spring training that year quickly emerged as one of the best
pitchers in the game. Meanwhile, his boyish enthusiasm, his
famously modest lifestyle, and his refusal to sign with an
agent during the days of labor disputes and free agency made
him such a breath of fresh air for fans that not only did
attendance in Detroit increase---by tens of
thousands---for games he pitched, opposing teams
would specifically ask the Tigers to shuffle their rotation
so Fidrych would pitch in their cities, too. A rare player
who transcended pop culture, Fidrych was named starting
pitcher in the All-Star Game as a rookie (the first of his
two All-Star nods) and became the first athlete to appear on
the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. Baseball researcher Doug Wilson delivers the first biography
of this once-in-a-lifetime player. Through extensive
interviews and meticulous research, the author recounts
Fidrych’s meteoric rise from Northborough, Massachusetts, to
the big leagues, his heartbreaking fall after a torn knee
ligament and then rotator cuff, his comeback attempts with
the Tigers and in the Red Sox system, and one unforgettable
night when The Bird pitched a swan song for the Pawtucket
Red Sox against future star Dave Righetti in a game that
remains part of local folklore. Finally, Wilson captures
Fidrych’s post-baseball life and his roles in the community,
tragically culminating with his death in a freak accident in
2009. The Bird gives readers a long-overdue look into the
life of a player whom baseball had never seen before---and
has never seen since.
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