Satchel

The Life and Times of an American Legend

By: Larry Tye

Narrated by: Dominic Hoffman

Length: 13 hrs and 37 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times Best Seller • The superbly researched, spellbindingly told story of athlete, showman, philosopher, and boundary breaker Leroy “Satchel” Paige

“Among the rare biographies of an athlete that transcend sports . . . gives us the man as well as the myth.” (The Boston Globe)

Few reliable records or news reports survive about players in the Negro Leagues. Through dogged detective work, award-winning author and journalist Larry Tye has tracked down the truth about this majestic and enigmatic pitcher, interviewing more than 200 Negro Leaguers and Major Leaguers, talking to family and friends who had never told their stories before, and retracing Paige’s steps across the continent. Here is the stirring account of the child born to an Alabama washerwoman with 12 young mouths to feed, the boy who earned the nickname “Satchel” from his enterprising work as a railroad porter, the young man who took up baseball on the streets and in reform school, inventing his trademark hesitation pitch while throwing bricks at rival gang members.

Tye shows Paige barnstorming across America and growing into the superstar hurler of the Negro Leagues, a marvel who set records so eye-popping they seemed like misprints, spent as much money as he made, and left tickets for “Mrs. Paige” that were picked up by a different woman at each game. In unprecedented detail, Tye reveals how Paige, hurt and angry when Jackie Robinson beat him to the Majors, emerged at the age of 42 to help propel the Cleveland Indians to the World Series. He threw his last pitch from a big-league mound at an improbable 59. (“Age is a case of mind over matter,” he said. “If you don’t mind, it don’t matter.”)

More than a fascinating account of a baseball odyssey, Satchel rewrites our history of the integration of the sport, with Satchel Paige in a starring role. This is a powerful portrait of an American hero who employed a shuffling stereotype to disarm critics and racists, floated comical legends about himself - including about his own age - to deflect inquiry and remain elusive, and in the process methodically built his own myth. “Don’t look back”, he famously said. “Something might be gaining on you.” Separating the truth from the legend, Satchel is a remarkable accomplishment, as large as this larger-than-life man.

©2009 Larry Tye (P)2009 Random House

Critic reviews

"Having known Satchel when I was a young ballplayer, I'm reminded of the man who took over the game with both his superior pitching and his dynamic personality. This book is a must-read that captures the essence of one of the greatest legends in baseball history, Satchel Paige. (Dusty Baker, Manager, Cincinnati Reds)

Great story of one of the greatest of all time

Author did a good job a piecing together a history of fables, legends, and facts. Puts truth to the anecdotes of Satchel Paige better than the others. Satchel Paige is one of my all time favorite baseball players. If you like history, baseball, or stories of overcoming adversity, this story is for you.

**Note to the publisher*** The recording is okay…there’s a spot where the editor didn’t delete a part where the narrator repeated a sentence a couple times trying to achieve a suitable tone or pronunciation was more funny than annoying. I hope they fix it.

Veek or Veck

It was painful to hear Bill Veek’s name mispronounced over and over again. 😣 Who researches these productions???

Very Good, a little shy of Great

It feels like a pretty complete biography of Satchel, and it does a decent job of parsing through that which is probable fact and probable exaggeration. However depending the point of origin for your interest in this legend (baseball fan, civil rights, etc) I think you'll likely be disappointed slightly. It is a book about a baseball legend that never let's you enjoy the game, and also a book about racism that is centered around baseball from the 20s to the 80s. The feats of greatness on the field are there along with homespun stories, but so also are the examples and stories of racism Satchel endured. The author doesn't cover racism in one or two chapters like many other books of black athletes, and then move on to center the rest of the story on their achievements, heartbreaks, and personal lives. Instead this author never seems to let the reader enjoy Satchel's greatness and marvel at it, because as soon as you lose yourself in the moment, the author brings forth another shameful example of racism Satchel had to endure. You end up feeling broken-down after a good listen and just want a break the cruelty. But, perhaps this was the author's intent.

free lance / free man / free agent

? what'd you do with outrageous talent as a black 20 year old in 1926
? how'd you respond to scouts who'd say "...boy, if only you were white..."
? what'd you say if you had to wait until you were 42 to get your chance

born in 1906, leroy robert "satchel" paige faced all these questions and more
blessed with a perfect right arm and cursed with a " jim crow " childhood
he ranked easily among the 20 best baseball players of all time

his life had every sad and varied element of 20th century african-american life
it's no surprise it is so relentlessly hard, paradoxical and counterintuitive
he seemed forever balanced between cold blooded competitor and playful clown

all the showmanship and exaggeration kept the writers and fans amused
and it kept the light focused on satchel and the world at a reliable arms length
the introverted performer treasured the mound as his personal safe stage

so many aspects of his professional behavior pre-date free agency
he never apologized for offering his fantastic talents to the highest bidder
his matter-of-fact mercenary approach would fit in perfectly with today's game

the book helped me see beyond the playful quotes and clowning to the man inside
he sadly burned for the opportunity to just show the world what he could do
he felt sorry, not for himself but for those that never got to see him play

Amazing Story! Well written book!

More than baseball, this book presents an outstanding portrayal of the qualities required to endure difficulties and work around the most outrages regimes to find success in the hands that are been dealt to us.
Amazing talent or not, Satchel Paige fought until the end and got in life, early or late, what was initially denied to him and others despite of preexisting limiting conditions.
While racial bias and its consequences are powerful drags, lack of personal will to rule over those conditions is also a force to reckon with. Satchel will and determination proved to be the right ingredients to advance his personal interest and, by extension, that of an entire generation of segregated individuals.
At the end, understandably, the scares from all those fights caught up with him sadly turning the living legend into a bitter old man. Health issues probably played a big role in that too.
This is a great book for sports' fans and anyone looking for examples of how others have overcome adversity by fighting with the tools circumstances allow and never finding excuses in themselves or the surrounding conditions.

the best biography on Satchel Paige

a beautiful and honest account of a great yet complicated American icon. the best biography available.

Great book

It was a very entertaining and enlightening book. Easy to listen too while telling a sometimes difficult story. Highly recommend

Magnificent and Heartbreaking

Great storytelling about the most mythical pitcher in the history of the game. The author weaves in the facts about Satchel while paying homage to the legendary aspects that have kept fans fascinated for generations. In the end this book is a tragedy of what America missed out on by excluding the greats of the Negro Leagues.

Wonderful Biography

This was an amazing book. I would’ve given it 5 stars except the speaker kept saying “Veek” when referring to Bill Veeck (prounounced Veck). Given how close the two were in each other’s lives and how Veeck’s autobiography is called “Veeck as in Wreck,” seems like a big oversight. Other than that, this had stories I haven’t heard before about the possibly the greatest pitcher to have ever lived, and I’m a big Satchel fan. It also does a great job of telling his failings as well as successes. I can’t imagine how hard this was to research.

Best book I’ve read in years

The story of Satchel was mesmerizing. The author obviously did extensive research. The life of this amazing athlete is so intriguing and legendary that without extensive research it would be almost impossible to believe. Greatest book I’ve read (listened to) in decades. I can’t just recommend this book, I have to say if you don’t read this book you’re missing out.