I was lucky enough to meet famed announcer Vin Scully at the groundbreaking for the stadium here. And, Jim and I were Dodgers fans for years, until they traded my beloved catcher, Mike Piazza. So, it was natural to pick John Snyder's 365 Oddball Days in Dodgers History as a memorial book for Jim.I'm sure it's difficult to come up with 365 interesting stories about a team, even with the history of the Dodgers. So, some of the book became a little repetitious. But, there were enough interesting facts to make the book interesting. There were questions of the day for the winter months, and, often "On this day" events during baseball season. For instance, May 14, 1998 is the day the Dodgers traded Mike Piazza to the Marlins for four players. Snyder says, "In retrospect, the Dodgers should have paid Piazza the money he wanted and kept him in Los Angeles for six more years." There are stories of Sandy Koufax, Ebbets Field, Jackie Robinson, and my favorite moment from baseball, Kirk Gibson's home run trot. There's Don Larsen's perfect game in the World Series. The Dodgers even have a connection to the Frisbee Dog World Championship.
With enough facts for even the diehard fanatic, 365 Oddball Days in Dodgers History is a fun compilation for the Dodgers fan, or the baseball trivia fan.
365 Oddball Days in Dodgers History by John Snyder. Clerisy Press, ©2010. ISBN 9781578604524 (paperback), 384p.
*****
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