Early Wynn, the Go-Go White Sox and the 1959 World Series

by Lew Freedman

This is the story of how the hapless Chicago White Sox, badly hurt by the banning of players after the 1919 Black Sox Scandal, floundered until the 1950s when they were finally rebuilt and had their first success in 40 years. The culminating event was the capture of the 1959 American League pennant, made possible by aging pitcher Early Wynn. Wynn, nearly 40, was the best pitcher in the game that season, winning 22 games and the Cy Young Award. He was the last piece in the puzzle that put the Sox over the top and, in addition to the team's historic season, the book tracks his life before, during and after baseball.

223 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Tom Gase · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent book on Early Wynn, an underrated pitcher that won exactly 300 games. However, I wish there was a little more on the 1959 World Series. That part of the book was only a short chapter and felt rushed. There are some good stories on the season, especially on players such as Wynn, Nellie Fox, Luis Aparicio, Al Lopez, Billy Pierce, Bill Veeck and some others, but some of those stories were repeated a few times. Still, not bad. A few errors though -- Minnie Minoso did NOT play in seven decades. I mean, just the thought of that is absurd. It's amazing that the correct answer is five, but seven?? White Sox fans will probably really enjoy this book.

[Joseph Hageman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable, accurate and well written.