The 50 Greatest Red Sox Games

by Cecilia Tan, Bill Nowlin

Every Red Sox fan cherishes memories of great games that will never be forgotten, and wonders what it would have been like to be in the park for other outstanding moments from the team's checkered past. Were you there when Roger Clemens notched his first 20-strikeout game? Where were you on that incredible day--October 27, 2004--when the curse was shattered? Covering the history of the Boston Red Sox, The 50 Greatest Red Sox Games lets you relive the very best (and worst) moments dating back to 1903. From history-making plays to historic achievements, Cecilia Tan and Bill Nowlin recreate the suspense, excitement, and drama of every game on the list. Drawing on in-depth research, personal player interviews, and newspaper and magazine accounts of the day, they recreate the action on the field and the history surrounding it. Be there as:

* Babe Ruth hurls a stunning, 14-inning complete game in the 1918 World Series
* The struggling 1927 Bosox outgun "Murderers' Row" to beat the Yankees in 18 innings
* The greatest hitter who ever lived slams a home run in his last major league at-bat—for the second time
* Yaz and Gentleman Jim bring the magic back by winning the "Impossible Dream" pennant
* Luis Tiant records a titanic victory to even the 1975 World Series
* Bucky Dent hits "the homer"
* Cy Young meets Cy Old in the 1999 ALCS
* The Red Sox, with their backs to the wall, take four straight from the Yankees to win the 2004 ALCS The 50 Greatest Red Sox Games captures all the mania, mystery, and underdog tenacity of the Olde Towne Team.

Genres: Sports, Baseball

274 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Susie Bright says, "Cecilia Tan is simply one of the most important writers, editors, and innovators in contemporary American erotic literature." Since the publication of Telepaths Don't Need Safewords in 1992, she has been on the cutting edge of the erotic form, often combining elements of fantasy and science fiction in her work. She is also founder and editor of Circlet Press.

RT Book Reviews awarded her Career Achievement in Erotic Romance in 2015 and her novel Slow Surrender (Hachette/Forever, 2013) won the RT Reviewers Choice Award and the Maggie Award for Excellence from GRW in 2013. She has been publishing Daron's Guitar Chronicles as a web serial since 2009 and her Secrets of a Rock Star series (Taking the Lead, Wild Licks, Hard Rhythm) is published by Hachette/Forever. In 2018 Tor Books will launch her urban fantasy/paranormal series, The Vanished Chronicles. In her other life, Cecilia is also the editor of the Baseball Research Journal and publications director for SABR, the Society for American Baseball Research.

Reviews

[Christy B · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 50 Greatest Red Sox Games would be better used as a reference book rather than the sort of book you would read in order – that becomes tedious after a while.

Cutting down over 100 years of games down to 50 memorable ones was, I'm guessing, not an easy task. There is a list of games at the end of the book that didn't make the cut, and any one of them would have fitted right in to the final 50. Not all of the 50 games featured here ended well for the Red Sox, but they were still games that are etched in Sox lore.

One of the chapters I appreciated was the chapter that highlights game six of the 1986 World Series, a game that before 2004 memories led to nothing but anger for Sox fans. What I appreciated was how it talked about how messed up it was that Buckner ended up being the goat for the whole thing, when really he should have never been in the game in the first place. That I knew, what I didn't know, but learned from this book, was that immediately following the loss, Buckner didn't take the blame. Actually, it was years later, after endless re-showing of that ill fated play, and yahoos talking about that stupid 'curse' (which I never believed), that the play became something bigger than the game. Overnight, it seemed, people forgot about all the blunders that led to that play, and the fact that the manager refused to take an injured Buckner out of the game.

I would recommend this to people who are new fans, or just baseball fans in general that don't know much about the history of the Red Sox. It covers from the 1903 Boston Americans (before Fenway even existed) to the 2004 World Series Champs.

[Lori Perkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for every baseball fan. Whether you love them or you hate them, The Red Sox are one of the most storied Franchises in the MLB. This book complies the greatest triumphs and heartbreaks of the legendary Boston team.

[Du · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fan reviews of ball games are alwaysfun and this book demonstrates that. Facts are good, and the box score helps the story, but the best part is the fan punt of view. So...the latter games are the more fun to read about.

[Jason Hatcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a gift. As a Red Sox fan, what can I say? A nice way to read up on some of the history behind a richly historic team.

GO SOX :-)