The Bad Guys Won! by Jeff Pearlman Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Bad Guys Won!
Book Review: Pond Scum
Summary: 4 Stars
I came at this book from a different direction, being a diehard Cardinals fan. I was a big Mookie Wilson fan, and Hernandez had been one of my two favorite players, but those two aside, I loathed every member of the '86 Mets squad. Pearlman's account of the season is thorough, and I enjoyed going inside the enemy clubhouse. I love colorful characters (Joaquin Andujar is my favorite player of all time), but you can be exciting to watch and still, as Ozzie Smith said, "have class." Great book about a classless team of @ssholes whose dynasty quickly dissolved. Team of the '80s? That would be the Cardinals.Book Review: Really Entertaining Little Baseball Story
Summary: 4 Stars
So good, it almost seemed like it wasn't about real people. But then, baseball players seldom behave like normal people, right? There's a good bit of stuff about the actual 1986 season on the field, but mostly this was a really fun book about a whole group of large boys. I really liked this book, and will definitely keep it around to read again sometime. It will always remind me why my Mom told me to stay away from professional athletes and movie stars.Book Review: Revealing
Summary: 4 Stars
Definitely not what I expected. The author brilliantly mixes the action of the New York Mets' Champion World Series 1986 Season and the behind-the-scenes doings that the fans generally don't see. The book is a great review of the entire season, and brings back lots of memories. Hearing what Gary Carter, Kevin Mitchell, and Ray Knight said to first-base coach Bill Robinson after getting on base in the sixth game of the World Series was amusing. But some of the other revelations, particularly regarding the players' social behavior, were more startling. For the most part, the book is a look-back at the 1986 season, which any true Mets fan will love. Just be prepared for the unexpected.Book Review: THE "I WASN'T THERE" SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM
Summary: 3 Stars
The 1986 Mets were the "dynasty" that wasn't. In Jeff Pearlman's book about the Mets 1986 season the emphasis is on the "nasty". This account of the Mets second championship season recounts the carousing that highlighted this hated team. That the Mets were, for a brief time, more hated than the Yankees seems like an abberation.
Pearlman follows the Jimmy Breslin rule of reporting. He talks to the guys on the scene getting paid the least. Never have I seen more a baseball book related by the equipment and clubhouse personnel. These provide insights that have not been related elsewhere.
This journalistic approach serves as both the books strength and it's undoing. Jeff Pearlman is searching for a baseball Rosebud. He wasn't there, but he is trying to cover these events as if he were. The unreliability of this technique is exposed by two things. First, the opening chapter describes the Mets Roman orgy airplane flight after defeating the Astros in the National League playoffs (disclaimer:I hate the term "league championship series or "LCS"-as far as I'm concerned, post season games leading up to the World Series are Playoffs.). Trying and purporting to give an accurate account when none of the individuals could ever be expected to remember many specifics gets the book off on a titillating, but false, note.
This would not be so bad if Pearlman could earn our trust by at least getting his facts straight, but every so often he throws in a factoid that makes a close Met follower like myself react with the "huh" word. Ed Lynch did not pitch the most games for the Mets between 1982-1985 (he did have the most "Games Started"). Mike Scott is "credited with having the National Leagues highest earned run average in 1982, when it was in fact none other than Tom Seaver. Granted, these are small details, but that is the point. If we can't trust Pearlman with what can be verified, has he earned our trust with what can't be verified? This is the second thing that undermines Pearlman's "You Are There " approach.
The book is worthwhile for the coverage of the lesser lights, and the competent recap of the Met's postseason. This book would be better served by someone with Pearlman's ambition who was there.
Book Review: Thank you sir, may I have another?
Summary: 5 Stars
Someone gave me this book at the same time as the Buster Olney "Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty" book. Olney's writing was better, and even though he was chronicling the downfall of the Yankees--which is always fun--I'm a Mets fan so my vote goes to the guy writing about the Mets winning a World Series, even if they were arrogant coked up jerks.
Advantage: Pearlman.