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Phenom: The Making of Bryce Harper
"The remarkable story of Bryce Harper's unforgettable ride from Morse Stadium to the top of the baseball draft" (Jayson Stark, ESPN.com) updated from the hardcover edition ( The Last Natural) to include his Rookie of the Year season!
Sporting a fresh cover and a bonus chapter that covers Harper's award-winning rookie season with the Washington Nationals, this expanded edition of Phenom (originally published as The Last Natural ) gives fans an all-access pass to baseball's newest rising star.
Before he famously became a Major League All-Star as a teenager, Harper already had dominated high school competition like Mickey Mantle on the playground and appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated , which dubbed him the "most exciting prodigy since LeBron James." Seeking greater tests as a hitter, the precocious star got his GED after his sophomore year and enrolled at the College of Southern Nevada, where he would face future pro pitchers in a difficult wooden-bat league. Sportswriter Rob Miech was "embedded" with the team―in the dugout and locker room and on team buses and in motel rooms―to provide a warts-and-all account of a boy among men playing like a man among boys. Amid fascinating personal stories including the dynamics between a veteran coach and Harper's overprotective father, the jealousies of teammates and opponents, and the sudden descent of press armies on a tiny college field, the author chronicles a season-long experiment that culminates in Harper leading the Coyotes to the Junior College World Series and signing a $9.9 million contract negotiated by notorious agent Scott Boras.
Sporting a fresh cover and a bonus chapter that covers Harper's award-winning rookie season with the Washington Nationals, this expanded edition of Phenom (originally published as The Last Natural ) gives fans an all-access pass to baseball's newest rising star.
Before he famously became a Major League All-Star as a teenager, Harper already had dominated high school competition like Mickey Mantle on the playground and appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated , which dubbed him the "most exciting prodigy since LeBron James." Seeking greater tests as a hitter, the precocious star got his GED after his sophomore year and enrolled at the College of Southern Nevada, where he would face future pro pitchers in a difficult wooden-bat league. Sportswriter Rob Miech was "embedded" with the team―in the dugout and locker room and on team buses and in motel rooms―to provide a warts-and-all account of a boy among men playing like a man among boys. Amid fascinating personal stories including the dynamics between a veteran coach and Harper's overprotective father, the jealousies of teammates and opponents, and the sudden descent of press armies on a tiny college field, the author chronicles a season-long experiment that culminates in Harper leading the Coyotes to the Junior College World Series and signing a $9.9 million contract negotiated by notorious agent Scott Boras.
384 pages, Paperback
First published March 12, 2013
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59 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
September 14, 2018
If you like baseball and its players, especially Bryce Harper, you will definitely like this book. This book gives an insight of everything that goes on that people don't normally hear about or is hidden from the public. This book goes all the way back to when Bryce started to rise to the top while he was in Nevada. It takes you to the bus rides of the team, the opponents they face and also the views his teammates had on him. A decent amount of the players resembled some jealousy as Bryce began to rise and get bigger after that. He leaves his high school as a sophomore in hopes to make the big leagues sooner and he then begins to carve his path as an all-star. Then it follows with him signing different contracts and eventually making the Washington Nationals and playing his first MLB game at the age of 19. This turned many heads and made people think of him differently. Then it goes in depth with all the differences that he had with many of the players including many arguments and eventually fights. As a 19-year-old, he was considered overrated and shouldn't have been where he was at that time. Now he leads the Nationals as a star player, making the Allstar game multiple years in a row and also winning the 2018 Home Run Derby. Although the Nationals will most likely not make the 2018 Postseason and will probably leave the organization, it is cool to see how he developed his path and his drive as a competitor took him somewhere in life that people will remember.
May 11, 2017
I thought this book was fantastic i would defiantly recommend it to anyone who loves baseball, sports, or Bryce Harper. I liked how it not only told the life story of Bryce Harper but also it incorporated his peers and coaches into the book as well. I also loved how it told about the sacrifices he to make like when he didn't want to go to the school dance because he didn't want to leave practice that just shows me dedication and sacrifice. Also like i said about the way the book incorporates his peers such as his teammates when they are acting jealous and the coach says Bryce is the reason they have new seats, scoreboard, etc. I'm also impressed how the book showed about half way through pictures of Bryce as a teenager along with his teammates. This book was truly awesome and id defiantly recommend it to just about anyone.
March 23, 2014
Clown book, bro! That's right I said it. This book was kind of all over the place. Apparently, there is not as much to right about Bryce Harper at this point as some would think or hope for. 355 pages of a player throwing fits, then denying that he's not that kind of ball player, then going back to throwing fits. No question about ability. Temperament is a different thing all together.
There's a reason this book was repackaged from being called the Last Natural to Phenom. It's not a good book. More interesting would be following Harper from junior college to minors to pro. Not just one year of junior college ball where the actual subject of the book doesn't come off looking to well. Nothing was written here that actually made you feel for Harper or anybody on the College of Southern Nevada team. I'm trying to figure out way ANYBODY outside of that area would even care about this book. I had to google David Segui just to figure out why he was mentioned in here, twice. The autor doesn't tell you. (He has a son on the team.)
Again, not knocking Harper's ability but what he was doing, while being successful, was not exactly the most noble of causes. Most players just want a crack at the majors. Harper was doing what he did to circumvent a change in the draft that would have paid him less if he had waited another year to be picked.
There's a reason this book was repackaged from being called the Last Natural to Phenom. It's not a good book. More interesting would be following Harper from junior college to minors to pro. Not just one year of junior college ball where the actual subject of the book doesn't come off looking to well. Nothing was written here that actually made you feel for Harper or anybody on the College of Southern Nevada team. I'm trying to figure out way ANYBODY outside of that area would even care about this book. I had to google David Segui just to figure out why he was mentioned in here, twice. The autor doesn't tell you. (He has a son on the team.)
Again, not knocking Harper's ability but what he was doing, while being successful, was not exactly the most noble of causes. Most players just want a crack at the majors. Harper was doing what he did to circumvent a change in the draft that would have paid him less if he had waited another year to be picked.
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February 19, 2014Phenom, Robb Miech is a story that follows Bryce Harper's freshman season at the College of Southern Nevada. This book would appeal to anyone who enjoys baseball or just enjoys college sports in general.
Bryce Harper leaves high school after his sophomore year to attend a junior college with the hope that it will hasten his route to the MLB by one year. MLB rules state that a player is eligible for the draft one year after they leave high school, and this will make Bryce eligible to be drafted one year earlier than the rest of his high school class. This book follows his quest along with the rest of the CSN Coyotes to bring the Junior College World Series Championship back to Nevada.
Throughout the story, Bryce learns that in order to play Major League Baseball, he must mature. But what Bryce has to first learn is what is considered mature and what isn't. Is arguing a call? Is breaking your bat on home plate after you strike out? Is smearing eyeblack on your face like war paint? Bryce also learns how humbling the game of baseball is. He learns to just go with the call and not argue, or else he will get suspended.
Bryce Harper leaves high school after his sophomore year to attend a junior college with the hope that it will hasten his route to the MLB by one year. MLB rules state that a player is eligible for the draft one year after they leave high school, and this will make Bryce eligible to be drafted one year earlier than the rest of his high school class. This book follows his quest along with the rest of the CSN Coyotes to bring the Junior College World Series Championship back to Nevada.
Throughout the story, Bryce learns that in order to play Major League Baseball, he must mature. But what Bryce has to first learn is what is considered mature and what isn't. Is arguing a call? Is breaking your bat on home plate after you strike out? Is smearing eyeblack on your face like war paint? Bryce also learns how humbling the game of baseball is. He learns to just go with the call and not argue, or else he will get suspended.
May 6, 2016
This is a great story about how young 17 year old Bryce Harper's journey from a junior college athlete into a MLB superstar. Bryce Harper already mad headlines when he was on the cover of Sport Illustrated Magazine at just 16 years old. Bryce Harper took giant risk in his athletic career when after his sophomore year at high school he decided to drop out and go straight to a JC so he could be drafted one year earlier in the draft. The story starts in his freshman year at CSN (College of Southern Nevada) where he has a monster season and hopes to impress major league GM's minds. Will he be the next Babe Ruth, or will he just be another young athlete that had potential to make it to the hall of fame. All in all, great book.
November 12, 2014
This book was fantastic! Phenom talks about the journey of Bryce Harper, and how focused he was on his dream to play in the MLB. The book was amazing on telling the reader the work and dedication he put in. There are many life lessons in this book. I loved this book! I would give this book 5/5 stars. I would recommend this book to anyone that loves sports, and wants to know what it takes to make the pros.
October 30, 2012
I thought it was a good book overall. Bryce harper was mainly telling the story about his life and how he wanted to be a professional baseball player, he told the reader what he had to do to get too his position on life and how much work he had to do. The best line he said in the book i thought was "To do what you want you have to put forth the effort and work hard."
May 14, 2015
This book was great. If you're a baseball player looking for motivation or just want to read about a very good ball player it the book for you. I enjoyed it because it told a story about my favorite player and how he made baseball a lifestyle. Overall it was good.
April 11, 2014
Not just a good book about Bryce Harper, but a good book about baseball and people in general. I was sad when it ended. I wish Miech could add an addendum for each additional season.
October 14, 2014
No. I don't like Harper. Yes I do like this book
January 30, 2015
I really enjoyed this book in many ways. This book really put into detail how hard it is to make it into the MLB and how hard it is to work.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews