Big League Busher

by Joe Archibald

College players are breaking into the big leagues of baseball far faster than ever before. These so-called Bonus Babies, spared the grueling climb through the minor leagues, enjoy immediate access to the glitz, glamour and wealth that accompany the storied teams of America’s national pastime. Press clippings and a live arm alone do not make a player, and not every veteran player or manager is so readily accepting of these young hotshots. Ernie Kimball, ace pitcher for Austin College, and now the newest bonus baby for the Houston Longhorns, is arrogant, brash and ready to blaze his fastball past the best that the league has to offer. However, his self-predicted rise to stardom is abruptly interrupted by harsh reality when Ernie is sent packing to the Class B Jayhawks to gain some humility and learn the finer aspects of the game. From dimly lit minor league ballparks to bumpy bus rides, Ernie begins his journey back to the majors. It will take the people he meets—a determined landlord, a broken-down veteran pitcher and a Cuban refugee with stakes far higher than Ernie’s own—to mature and mold him into a true major league pitcher.

187 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1963

About the author

Prolific writer of sports themed books for boys and teens. His first book was published in 1947 (Rebel Halfback) and was followed by more than 50 titles through the 40's, 50's and into the 1960's.

Reviews

[Richard Fonderwhite · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written.

Good story written the way you should write. Better than most youth books written today. Proves that there is a place for the old storylines without crassness of language needed.

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Right-handed pitcher Ernie Kimball was paid a big bonus to sign for the Longhorns fresh out of Austin University. At that time, the rules in the major leagues meant that he was immediately moved up to the parent club. Arrogant, Ernie believes that he is the next Bob Feller, young and armed with a fastball that will make him a star in the major leagues.
His initial success convinces him that he is on the way, even though his manager and teammates try to get him to tone down his belief in himself. It turns out that they are right and Ernie is wrong, for the second time around the league the hitters know what he throws and have adjusted to it. Eventually, Ernie is sent down to a club in the low minor leagues, an event that makes him consider quitting professional baseball.
However, Ernie quickly discovers that the love of the game flows through his blood vessels and he reports to the team. Once again, he is at first arrogant to the point where few on the team can tolerate him. Finally, when he discovers that a teammate has faced much greater adversity with a smile, Ernie rights his personal ship and begins to absorb the instruction. Over the course of the season in the minors, Ernie learns the art of pitching and with the fastball that he already had, he becomes a formidable presence on the mound and a valued teammate.
Archibald wrote many books of sports fiction and one of his trademarks is the inclusion of a moral for the reader. It is laid down very thick in this book, almost to the point of being overdone. There is a reference to the political situation in Cuba, specifically the Bay of Pigs invasion, something the normal young reader of the time may know, but the modern reader will not understand.