The Year I Owned the Yankees

by Sparky Lyle, David Fisher

In a fantasy novel, Yankee superstar Sparky Lyle gets an opportunity to own the 1990 Yankees, finally ousting George Steinbrenner and turning the Bronx Bombers into the team to beat once again

Genres: Baseball, Sports

320 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 1, 1990

Reviews

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's really fun to look back on this book after 20ish years. The premise is simple: for some complicated reasons related to tax loopholes, George Steinbrenner has to give up the Yankees. Sparky Lyle takes them over for a year, ostensibly as owner, though he ends up involved in a lot of smaller decisions, much like George would have been.

The book is set in the early 90s, with a mixture of real players from that era and characters/players that Lyle created. A lot of this book is cliche, based on Lyle's view of the world and the game as he played it. A lot of the players he played with find their way into the story.

Now that time has passed, some of the things in this book seem silly. The players fly commercial, and collecting frequent flyer miles is a key plot point. The idea of using a computer for analysis, something taken for granted now, is a groundbreaking idea.

At times the story devolves into forced situations just so Lyle can tell a story from his playing days. But generally it follows a logical pattern. I have read this book several times over the years, and as long as I approach it from the right perspective, it's pretty enjoyable. But I can understand that it's an acquired taste.

[William]

In some ways, this book is like a baseball Catch-22, except not as good. But, all told, I think I liked it better than The Bronx Zoo. Obviously, Sparky Lyle got some help, but the narrative voice here is often quite similar to that of The Bronx Zoo, so Sparky must be contributing something. This is an easy enough read for the average baseball fan and often provides some decent off-the-cuff absurdist satire of the contemporary sports media and the economics of baseball. Also, written in 1990, it pretty remarkable how this book seems to foretell both the statistical revolution and the steroid scandal in certain ways. Catch-22 comparison notwithstanding, this book is not great literature. But it still makes for an interesting read for the fan of baseball fiction.

[Tom · Rating 2 out of 5]

I spent a few agonizing minutes trying to decide if this book deserved a "whimsical summer read" pass to gain 3-star status. The premise is great for an easy July book: Eccentric former player gets to run the Yankees for a season. In the end, however, the moments of clever humor are the exception rather than the rule. If we accept the definition of a "2-Star" book as "It was ok," then tonight I will rest easy over having said that this story is simply ok.

[Karl Kronlage · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comical. At it's best it's funny. I like the part where he has his hitters not swing at any pitches. Farfetched and reads like a fantasy, but I like Bronx Zoo, so I gave this one a chance and was amused.

[Andrew M · Rating 5 out of 5]

so far it is a very good book