The Complete Game: Reflections on Baseball and the Art of Pitching [Paperback]

World Series champion, former All-Star, and award-winning television analyst Ron Darling gives readers a inside look at one of the most demanding and strategic positions in all of sports: the pitcher. Drawing on vivid situations from his playing days for the New York Mets and the Oakland Athletics, and from moments he has observed as a broadcaster, Darling offers an engaging look at the art, strategy, and psychology of pitching. Throughout, we get a glimpse of what it feels like to stand alone on the mound, the center of attention for thousands of fans. No other book examines the position in such compelling depth—The Complete Game will be an essential book for every fan and aspiring player.“A pitcher’s answer to Ted Williams’s classic, The Science of Hitting. . . . Thoughtful and lively. . . . [Darling is] an affable, frank and witty guide.”
—Bruce Handy, The New York Times Book Review
 
“[Darling] writes soulfully about coming into and leaving the game. . . . When most former major leaguers write memoirs, you wonder why they bothered; with Ron Darling . . . you wonder why it took him so long.”
—Newsday
 
“Incisive, in-depth. . . . The antithesis of the sordid baseball tell-all. . . . Darling’s pitch-by-pitch descriptions . . . illustrate the complexity of baseball. . . . Fascinating. . . . [Darling] seems to have an almost photographic memory of every game he pitched.”
—Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
 
“[Darling] can explain all the cerebral stuff while also answering some questions fans always wonder about. . . . It’s a snapshot inside a pitcher’s head, and for a baseball fan, it’s worth framing. . . . lCn