Book Review of Haunted Baseball Written by Dan Gordon

Dan Gordon's first book is Haunted Baseball: Ghosts,coaching in Latin America. He reveals coaching in
Curses, Legends, and Eerie Events published byVenezuela where the team bus had to stop at a
Lyons Press. He has a followup book coming out inmountain side shrine for a common ritual, and some
the summer of 2010 called Field of Screams.of his players spotting UFO's.
With his co-author and classmate from Union College,From the reaches of baseball history, Dan touches on
Mickey Bradley, Dan headed off to his first Springthe story of Hall of Famer Sam Rice who settled a
Training with a few ideas and some access tobaseball controversy with a message from the grave!
players. With a bit of apprehension his first interviewAs the story goes, during Game 3 of the 1925 World
was Turk Wendell, one of the most superstitious andSeries, playing right field for the Washington
colorful characters in the game. Turk's initial adviceSenators, Rice went back on a ball hit by Pittsburgh
was to "go talk to the Yankees" which seemed toPirate catcher Earl Smith. As Rice made the catch he
be a common response.tumbled over the wall and out of sight. Upon
The book opens with the Yankees in their Springstanding, he had the ball in his glove and it was ruled
Training facility called Huggins Stengel Field. The teaman out by the umpire.. causing a controversy.
trained there from the 1920's up through the Sixties,Rice vowed to take the true answer "to his grave"
and carries many stories from local residents andas to whether he made the catch or not. Magazine's
grounds crew. Dan always makes it a point to visitoffered money for the story but he refused to
some of the old facilities around baseball since theydivulge his answer. He left a letter with the Baseball
have a great chance of catching a glimpse ofHall of Fame to be opened upon his death, and in
nostalgia. It is said at Huggins Stengel that you can1974 the letter revealed "At no time did I lose
see Babe Ruth's apparition and Casey Stengel sittingpossession of the ball.".
in the dugout, as well as noises of card games in theDan is a diehard Red Sox fan, so we ask to hear
clubhouse.about his favorites. One classic tale is the fact that
It is fun to envision players such as Ellis Burks relatingsouthpaw pitcher (and a Baseballisms favorite) Bill Lee
a story to Dan about frightening C.C. Sabathia andthought that departed owner Tom Yawkey was
Coco Crisp while on the Indians. Or the time whenstalking him in the form of a bird! Lee and Yawkey
Jay Gibbons was embarrassed about telling the storyshared a common interest in wildlife and nature, so
of a ghost taking the telephone off the table andwhen Mr. Yawkey mentioned that he used to shoot
turning on the radio in a haunted hotel room.pigeons in Fenway with Ted Williams, Lee warned him
Johnny Damon is a real believer in the paranormal andthat based upon Hindu beliefs he would be
gave the authors many stories of his encounters inreincarnated as a bird as a form of justice.
the stadiums and hotels he frequented.On the day that Yawkey died, a pigeon landed at Bill
Another surprise contributor to the book was BobbyLee's feet as he was heading in to Fenway. Lee felt
Cox. Rather than the "nothing but business" on thethat he saw Mr. Yawkey on many other occasions.
field persona, Bobby was willing to offer up the factThe book Haunted Baseball: Ghosts, Curses, Legends,
that these stories are quite common around baseball.and Eerie Events by Dan Gordon is available at
He described not only some of the superstitionsbookstores everywhere.
around the game, but also details of his days