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44th out of 242 books
—
315 voters
The Bad Guys Won!
In The Bad Guys Won, award-winning former Sports Illustrated baseball writer Jeff Pearlman returns to an innocent time when a city worshipped a man named Mookie and the Yankees were the second-best team in New York.
It was 1986, and the New York Mets won 108 regular-season games and the World Series, capturing the hearts (and other assorted body parts) of fans everywhere. B...more
It was 1986, and the New York Mets won 108 regular-season games and the World Series, capturing the hearts (and other assorted body parts) of fans everywhere. B...more
Paperback, 304 pages
Published
April 26th 2005
by Harper Perennial
(first published 2004)
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I've been a Mets fan since 1964, when I was 6. The 1986 season was, of course, Amazin'. While this book provides accurate descriptions of key moments in that championship season, and a literally gut-churning, pee-in-your-pants funny recounting of the various puerile shenanigans surrounding the '86 ballclub, the writing is geared towards your average 14-year-old male too young to identify with Jim Bouton's "Ball Four." There are more cheesy metaphors and similes on each page than maggots stuck to...more
The 1986 Mets: 108 wins, two incredible play-off series that included the infamous Bill Buckner error that prolonged the "curse of the bambino", the beginning of the fall of Daryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden, both of whom had such potential and such a meteoric rise to fame that their falls take on the dimensions of Shakespearean tragic heroes.
This story deserved so much better. The ingredients are there for a serious work that transcends sports journalism, such as "The Summer of '49". If writin...more
This story deserved so much better. The ingredients are there for a serious work that transcends sports journalism, such as "The Summer of '49". If writin...more
Lenny Dykstra spits tobacco juice all over everything. Kevin Mitchell (allegedly) decapitates a cat. Gary Carter is just sort of awesomely Caucasian. Doc Gooden does coke. Darryl Strawberry hits towering homers and is nicknamed the black Ted Williams. A ground ball rolls through Bill Buckner's legs. Doc Gooden does more coke.
Ah, the 1986 Mets. A beautiful combination of talent, arrogance, and self-destructiveness. Clearly a can't-miss topic for a biography, right? Wrong.
This book missed the mar...more
Ah, the 1986 Mets. A beautiful combination of talent, arrogance, and self-destructiveness. Clearly a can't-miss topic for a biography, right? Wrong.
This book missed the mar...more
Full disclaimer: I'm a third generation Mets fan, but I wasn't around yet for the '86 Mets.
As someone that has grown up with a mediocre team that has occasionally shown moments of greatness, I loved reading about the Mets in their heyday. I knew that the '86 team was a bit raucous (you only need to have read a newspaper in the last few years...the names Dykstra, Gooden, Strawberry, etc., haven't exactly been attached to feel-good stories). But as much as they were a bunch of jerks back in the da...more
As someone that has grown up with a mediocre team that has occasionally shown moments of greatness, I loved reading about the Mets in their heyday. I knew that the '86 team was a bit raucous (you only need to have read a newspaper in the last few years...the names Dykstra, Gooden, Strawberry, etc., haven't exactly been attached to feel-good stories). But as much as they were a bunch of jerks back in the da...more
This book was special to me because it of the memories it summoned. The Summer of 1986. My father had passed away two years earlier, and my mom and I were just starting to put our respective lives back together. We spent the summer at our beach house in Galveston, Texas. I turned 12 and fell in love with baseball. I fondly recall long days spent at the beach, diligently constructing sand cities in the hot Gulf sun, my imagination often my only companion. Nighttime would usually find me in the ca...more
I loved it. The 1986 Baseball season was the most memorable for me because I was a softball player at the time and was interested in the sport, but more so because the games were amazing. The National League championship series with the Astros and Mets and the World Series with the Mets and Red Sox had such close, exciting games- there has been nothing comparable to me since then. The only series close to that was the worst-to-first run on the Braves while I was in Atlanta (I skipped Calculus cl...more
I hated this team, but I wanted to know more about them so I picked up this book by Jeff Pearlman. I had enjoyed his biography of Barry Bonds, someone else I detest, so I thought he might help me understand why this team was so abhorrent.
It turns out the team was pretty much an extension of their manager, Davey Johnson, who promoted the idea from the spring training that they would be a team that didn't just win, but crushed their opponents.
There was a lot of talent here (probably one of the 15...more
It turns out the team was pretty much an extension of their manager, Davey Johnson, who promoted the idea from the spring training that they would be a team that didn't just win, but crushed their opponents.
There was a lot of talent here (probably one of the 15...more
This is an account of the 1986 Mets, they beat the Red Sox in the World Series. The Red Sox almost won it in game six, an error that created the word "Bucknered" allowed the Mets to win and go to game seven.
Jeff Pearlman is a Mets fan, you find this out in the beginning of the book, and grows up to be a sports writer. Then he goes on to Cashen, GM of the Mets when he started with the organization and his efforts to build a championship team.
The '86 Mets were not nice guys, they drank, did drug...more
Jeff Pearlman is a Mets fan, you find this out in the beginning of the book, and grows up to be a sports writer. Then he goes on to Cashen, GM of the Mets when he started with the organization and his efforts to build a championship team.
The '86 Mets were not nice guys, they drank, did drug...more
Not bad. In keeping with the persoanlity of the team this presents itself as a warts and all account of the Mets 1986 world series win and the season that led up to it.
Not sure if Pearlman has an admiration for the antics of this bunch of ball players or not. He presents it fairly matter of fact without judgement either way, although he is not afraid to call the players jerks (even if it is through the quotes of others).
All in all its an interesting read but without a rooting interest and with...more
Not sure if Pearlman has an admiration for the antics of this bunch of ball players or not. He presents it fairly matter of fact without judgement either way, although he is not afraid to call the players jerks (even if it is through the quotes of others).
All in all its an interesting read but without a rooting interest and with...more
This was my favorite team when I was a kid and the 1986 season was a dream come true after suffering through all the terrible teams of the late 70s and early 80s. It's funny to read what absolute jerks they all were but I imagine many sports teams had the same problem.
There are a lot of good anecdotes in there I'd never heard before - like about the music recording, "Get Metsmerized." Pretty hilarious.
There are some weird bits where he'll describe Boston fans as "the worst in the world" but then...more
There are a lot of good anecdotes in there I'd never heard before - like about the music recording, "Get Metsmerized." Pretty hilarious.
There are some weird bits where he'll describe Boston fans as "the worst in the world" but then...more
This book is about the New york mets winning the world championship in 1986 and about how they were before they won the championship. I have a text to self connection for this book. This book reminds me of the time when I was playing in a baseball league and at the beginning my team wasnt good but towards the end of the season we got better and one the championship. This connects to this book because at first they were bad but as the year progressed the got better and soon one the championship...more
A collection of columns about the 1986 Mets, very much from the Met's perspective. There is a rough chronological order to the chapters, from the historical Mets, to the middle of the season, to the greatest World Series in the last 50 years. But they don't really link together: for example, the article about Daryl and Dwight didn't seem to link up with any of the later articles. The drunken antics on the field did not seem to have any impact on the events on the field. The best story was of Geo...more
I became a Mets fan during their '86 World Series victory year. This book provided a human side to the gong show that was their successful rise and fast descent. At 12 years old, I was too young (and the media was not as prevalent as the Internet is today) to understand what went on with the team off of the field. Jeff Pearlman's writing is fantastic - it provides an intimate glimpse into the whirlwind year that was.
This book was a wholly entertaining read - especially as baseball fans get ready...more
This book was a wholly entertaining read - especially as baseball fans get ready...more
Pretty impressive, entertaining book. Remember seeing this team play several times that season. Have family that live in New York and spent a good bit of time that summer up there. They had several bench-clearing brawls that season and I was lucky enough to see one of those live. A Friday night at Shea Stadium the Mets vs. the Braves. They really were the team everyone loved to hate and they represented New York to the hilt. Enjoyed reading about their escapades on and off the field. Lots of fol...more
Like many of us I love reading about out of control humanity. This is a special book about a special bunch of assholes who happened to beat the Red Sox in the World Series of 1986. I watched every game and was crushed by Buckner's between the legs error in game 6. Just crushed. Dude should NOT have been on the field. BTW - this is not about the Red Sox.
This kind of behavior is not sustainable - so perhaps it's why the Mets haven't won a series since then - but still - it's pretty fun to read ab...more
This kind of behavior is not sustainable - so perhaps it's why the Mets haven't won a series since then - but still - it's pretty fun to read ab...more
I'm barley old enough to even remember this era much less the season. But even as a die hard Astros fan I found this book extremely entertaining even though it is about the team we all hate only second to the cubs and cardinals. Gary Carter was a whiny little girl who couldn't get over Mike Scott's dominance of his team. Ah, what could have been in game seven. That was the extent of my knowledge.
But this book told so much more about a truly colorful collection of characters. If you like basebal...more
But this book told so much more about a truly colorful collection of characters. If you like basebal...more
I grew up a Mets fan. I've seen the photo of infant me wearing a little hat on my father's lap as we rooted for the Amazins in the '88 playoffs. This is one of those books that makes you realize the people you knew were flawed, the men of the '86 Mets, weren't just flawed. They were horrible human beings. The '86 Mets were the bad guys. They wore the black hats, got into bar brawls, did cocaine, trashed planes, but you know what? They won. The '86 Mets aren't people that should be emulated, but...more
fine, but i'd recommend skipping it unless you've got vivid memories of the 1986 Mets and want to relive their last World Series win. the Mets were my favorites growing up (and are still my "other team"), so i remember Gooden & Strawberry just fine, Mookie Wilson & Lenny Dykstra are familiar, and many other names were at least vaguely recognizable, so i followed along ok. but we're talking about a roster full of really obnoxious people, which gets a little hard to read about after a whil...more
Blah. I laughed a few times, and some of the stories were a little funny. But I don't have much else positive to say about it. This was about as exciting as a collection of disjointed anecdotes about unlikeable people and pedestrian play-by-plays of games that would have been thrilling at the time can be 25 years later to someone who wasn't there and doesn't have any connection with any of the players. I'm fond of the Mets, but I'm fond of the current team, which has more in common with the ridi...more
A hilarious, impressionistic smattering of stories about a gang of ballplayers and a must-read for any Mets fan.
Pearlman deserves many thanks for collecting the memories and opinions of many members of the Mets organization and around baseball in the early- to mid-80s (his afterword describes nearly 200 interviews), as well as contemporary accounts. His effort to get inside the players' heads and convey their attitude to the game is convincing -- there are some remarkably candid quotes about who...more
Pearlman deserves many thanks for collecting the memories and opinions of many members of the Mets organization and around baseball in the early- to mid-80s (his afterword describes nearly 200 interviews), as well as contemporary accounts. His effort to get inside the players' heads and convey their attitude to the game is convincing -- there are some remarkably candid quotes about who...more
Pearlman does an excellent job giving you a behind the scences glimpse at the 1986 Mets. Who could ever forget the comeback by the Mets with Boston on the verge of winning the World Series. Mookie Wilson hitting a ball through the legs of Bill Buckner to cap the comeback in game 6 and send the Series to game 7 which the Mets win is something I will never forget.
You get to really know the Mets circa 1986 and quite frankly they weren't a likeable group. Gooden and Strawberry were the young stars w...more
You get to really know the Mets circa 1986 and quite frankly they weren't a likeable group. Gooden and Strawberry were the young stars w...more
i read this fantastic awesome book last year. it was about one of the best teams in mlb history. the '86 mets. they won the world series to the redsox, and they finished like 30 games ahead of the second place team. so this book is about the players and the season that the mets had in '86.
i recommend this book to mets fans number 1, also to people who like nonfiction/sports books. also its really good so everyone should read it.
I really liked this book, and it is one of my all time favorites.
i recommend this book to mets fans number 1, also to people who like nonfiction/sports books. also its really good so everyone should read it.
I really liked this book, and it is one of my all time favorites.
Certainly not the finest literature. Yet, the priceless characters on this club shine through no matter sophomoric Pearlman's writing was. For me, it was not so much amazing that these guys only won one World Series championship, but survived through one season to win in '86. Guys that I knew solely by the baseball card now belong to a consortium of drunks, lunatics and oddballs. NB: It was painful to have read through these final chapters. I knew how it ended. This World Series was amongst my f...more
Talk about the rowdiest, undisciplined athletes that ever took the field. The 1986 Maets were alcoholics, womanisers, and drug addicts. Led by Dave Johnson, who after his team totally trashed a jet after winning the 1986 ALCS, tore up the $10,000 bill and stated their playoff pay would pay for it. Also with the talent od Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden, these mischievous bunch won the 1986 World Series on the ball that rolled through Bill Buckner's legs. Read how
The story of the 1986 New York Mets...my all time favorite team. I loved these guys as a youngster, and this revealing book shows just how big a bunch of A-holes most of them were...I still love them. This book details everything in the 1986 season in which the Mets won the World Series. From the incredible players, all night cocaine fueled parties, non stop drinking, multiple fights (on the field and off), a very entertaining read.
I am a Yankees fan, but more importantly, I am a baseball fan. This book was written by a Red Sox fan about the 1986 Mets. It was an interesting take on the team, but it was done very well. Living in the New York area, this 1986 team is loved by everyone, but this book shows how dysfunctional the team was and all the problems the team actually had, yet they were still able to knock off the Red Sox in 7 games.
The story of the 1986 Mets is one filled with characters behaving badly and winning it all in spite of it. An already colorful, fascinating tale that Jeff Pearlman wisely allows to unfold under its own charm and momentum. Where Pearlman excels is in the way he organizes the multiple strands into a coherent story. He also has a remarkable talent for telling the story of baseball games. Which comes in handy as this story climaxes with games 6 and 7 of the World Series. An enjoyable read and an ant...more
First off, I'm not a Mets fan, so you won't get a homer review. But I loved this book. I was only five in 1986, so I can vaguely remember them winning it all, but not enough to appreciate what was really going on. This book almost read like a comedy novel. The cast of characters are all very real, and so are the situations they're in, but you'd almost swear that they weren't. Everything was over the top and insane, including how Boston eventually blew it all. I'm a baseball fan in general, so th...more
I was seven when the Mets won the '86 world series and I think I remember stories about that season more than the season itself. The first year I can clearly recall is 1988 when Hershiser and Kirk Gibson ripped my heart out. That being said, a lot of what I thought I knew about this incredible season was completely wrong, including even the players on the team themselves (HoJo was a bit player and Kevin McReynolds didn't show up until '87, I had never even heard of George Foster).
This is a must...more
This is a must...more
This account of the 1986 New York Mets is a really well written sports book. It takes you through the highs of an amazing season and the lows of arrests, drug addiction and alcohol. It is a great account of the team of the mid 80's and explains why the Met's were unable to build the sort of the Dynasty that their near neighbors the Yankee's manage so often.
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straw is writing a tell about the 80's mets due out in april
Feb 12, 2009 06:20am