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A Time for Reflection: The Parallel Legacies of Baseball Icons Willie McCovey and Billy Williams
300 pages, Hardcover
Published February 4, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 16, 2025
If you love sports, you probably have one that you prefer over the others. For me it is baseball, which I first enjoyed in the early 1950s when I sat in the right field bleachers of Wrigley Field as the Chicago Cubs played the Brooklyn Dodgers.
In many respects, following a baseball season is like reading a novel. The story unfolds over some length of time, each day bringing new elements into the plot that ultimately will evolve into the postseason and the World Series. Just as in an exciting work of literature, you will encounter twists, turns, surprises, happiness and sadness. Perhaps because it is the longest of sports seasons (and it seems to get longer every year) and it offers so many unique occurrences, baseball is a game of memories for a lifetime. Even today, I still recall events that I witnessed live at baseball games in the ’60s and ’70s.
In A TIME FOR REFLECTION, Jason Cannon celebrates the lives and careers of two baseball icons: Hall of Famers Willie McCovey and Billy Williams.
As a member of the San Francisco Giants, McCovey hit more than 500 home runs and was voted Most Valuable Player in the National League in 1969. He and Willie Mays dominated the Giants lineup in the ’60s. Ironically, McCovey may be best known for making the final out of the 1962 World Series. With two runners on and the Yankees ahead 1-0 in the bottom of the ninth, McCovey smashed a line drive that was caught by Yankees second baseman Bobby Richardson. Inches either way, and the Giants would have won the World Series.
Williams never made it to the World Series as he spent most of his career with the Chicago Cubs. The National League Rookie of the Year in 1961, he was a consistent .300 hitter and run producer for the Cubs. From 1963 to 1970, he played 1,117 consecutive games, a National League record that stayed intact until 1983.
Cannon does a remarkable job of researching and putting into words the numerous achievements of McCovey and Williams. He benefited from interviewing many of their teammates, who willingly talked about their contributions to baseball as well as the adopted communities of San Francisco and Chicago. But the story truly begins in Mobile, Alabama, in 1938. The McCovey and Williams families experienced the evils of the segregated South and the economic struggles of the era. Both men grew up in strong families where hard work and Sunday church attendance were the rules. They would develop their baseball skills playing with Black teams made up of players who were many years older than them.
When McCovey and Williams were nine years old, their world suddenly changed. The Brooklyn Dodgers signed Jackie Robinson in 1947, and Major League Baseball became a dream for every young player regardless of race.
By the time McCovey was old enough for a professional contract, the Giants were actively scouting and recruiting Black players. At the age of 17, he traveled to a tryout camp and was signed by the Giants, who were still playing in New York. There he met Orlando Cepeda, who would be a teammate and lifelong friend. Both had very brief minor league careers, and by 1959 they were playing for the San Francisco Giants.
As a teenager, Williams barnstormed with Black professional players, including Satchell Paige. In 1956, he signed with the Chicago Cubs for $200 a month and a bus ticket. He became a full-time major leaguer just five years later.
A TIME FOR REFLECTION clearly recounts the racism that both players experienced. In the Texas League, they could not travel to games in Louisiana because state law prohibited mixed-race athletic contests. In other states, they stayed in separate hotels and ate in different restaurants than their teammates. At one point, Williams almost quit. But he was convinced by Buck O’Neil, who would become the first Black coach in the major leagues, to stay the course.
Willie McCovey and Billy Williams were humble and kind men whose stories are wonderfully told in this exceptional biography.
Reviewed by Stuart Shiffman
In many respects, following a baseball season is like reading a novel. The story unfolds over some length of time, each day bringing new elements into the plot that ultimately will evolve into the postseason and the World Series. Just as in an exciting work of literature, you will encounter twists, turns, surprises, happiness and sadness. Perhaps because it is the longest of sports seasons (and it seems to get longer every year) and it offers so many unique occurrences, baseball is a game of memories for a lifetime. Even today, I still recall events that I witnessed live at baseball games in the ’60s and ’70s.
In A TIME FOR REFLECTION, Jason Cannon celebrates the lives and careers of two baseball icons: Hall of Famers Willie McCovey and Billy Williams.
As a member of the San Francisco Giants, McCovey hit more than 500 home runs and was voted Most Valuable Player in the National League in 1969. He and Willie Mays dominated the Giants lineup in the ’60s. Ironically, McCovey may be best known for making the final out of the 1962 World Series. With two runners on and the Yankees ahead 1-0 in the bottom of the ninth, McCovey smashed a line drive that was caught by Yankees second baseman Bobby Richardson. Inches either way, and the Giants would have won the World Series.
Williams never made it to the World Series as he spent most of his career with the Chicago Cubs. The National League Rookie of the Year in 1961, he was a consistent .300 hitter and run producer for the Cubs. From 1963 to 1970, he played 1,117 consecutive games, a National League record that stayed intact until 1983.
Cannon does a remarkable job of researching and putting into words the numerous achievements of McCovey and Williams. He benefited from interviewing many of their teammates, who willingly talked about their contributions to baseball as well as the adopted communities of San Francisco and Chicago. But the story truly begins in Mobile, Alabama, in 1938. The McCovey and Williams families experienced the evils of the segregated South and the economic struggles of the era. Both men grew up in strong families where hard work and Sunday church attendance were the rules. They would develop their baseball skills playing with Black teams made up of players who were many years older than them.
When McCovey and Williams were nine years old, their world suddenly changed. The Brooklyn Dodgers signed Jackie Robinson in 1947, and Major League Baseball became a dream for every young player regardless of race.
By the time McCovey was old enough for a professional contract, the Giants were actively scouting and recruiting Black players. At the age of 17, he traveled to a tryout camp and was signed by the Giants, who were still playing in New York. There he met Orlando Cepeda, who would be a teammate and lifelong friend. Both had very brief minor league careers, and by 1959 they were playing for the San Francisco Giants.
As a teenager, Williams barnstormed with Black professional players, including Satchell Paige. In 1956, he signed with the Chicago Cubs for $200 a month and a bus ticket. He became a full-time major leaguer just five years later.
A TIME FOR REFLECTION clearly recounts the racism that both players experienced. In the Texas League, they could not travel to games in Louisiana because state law prohibited mixed-race athletic contests. In other states, they stayed in separate hotels and ate in different restaurants than their teammates. At one point, Williams almost quit. But he was convinced by Buck O’Neil, who would become the first Black coach in the major leagues, to stay the course.
Willie McCovey and Billy Williams were humble and kind men whose stories are wonderfully told in this exceptional biography.
Reviewed by Stuart Shiffman
October 19, 2024
You can also see this review, along with others I have written, at my blog, Mr. Book's Book Reviews.
Thank you, Rowman & Littlefield, for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Mr. Book just finished A Time For Reflection: The Parallel Legacies of Baseball Icons Willie McCovey and Billy Williams, by Jason Cannon.
This book will be released on February 4, 2025.
There were so many good stories in this book, such a shooting at a minor league game that was provoked by a Williams walk-off hit, kids in Mobile playing “tops” as their form of baseball, the 1962 World Series, Williams’s consecutive game playing streak, Williams playing in Koufax’s perfect game, McCovey’s success off Don Drysdale, McCovey’s 1969 MVP season, the Cubs losing the 1969 division title and many others.
In addition to their baseball greatness, a recurrent theme throughout the book was the racial discrimination that McCovey and Williams were unfortunately forced to endure from time to time throughout their careers.
One does not have to be either a Giants or Cubs fan to be able to enjoy this book.
I give this book an A. Goodreads and NetGalley require grades on a 1-5 star system. In my personal conversion system, an A equates to 5 stars. (A or A+: 5 stars, B+: 4 stars, B: 3 stars, C: 2 stars, D or F: 1 star).
This review has been posted at NetGalley, Goodreads and my blog, Mr. Book’s Book Reviews.
Mr. Book finished reading this on October 19, 2024.
Thank you, Rowman & Littlefield, for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Mr. Book just finished A Time For Reflection: The Parallel Legacies of Baseball Icons Willie McCovey and Billy Williams, by Jason Cannon.
This book will be released on February 4, 2025.
There were so many good stories in this book, such a shooting at a minor league game that was provoked by a Williams walk-off hit, kids in Mobile playing “tops” as their form of baseball, the 1962 World Series, Williams’s consecutive game playing streak, Williams playing in Koufax’s perfect game, McCovey’s success off Don Drysdale, McCovey’s 1969 MVP season, the Cubs losing the 1969 division title and many others.
In addition to their baseball greatness, a recurrent theme throughout the book was the racial discrimination that McCovey and Williams were unfortunately forced to endure from time to time throughout their careers.
One does not have to be either a Giants or Cubs fan to be able to enjoy this book.
I give this book an A. Goodreads and NetGalley require grades on a 1-5 star system. In my personal conversion system, an A equates to 5 stars. (A or A+: 5 stars, B+: 4 stars, B: 3 stars, C: 2 stars, D or F: 1 star).
This review has been posted at NetGalley, Goodreads and my blog, Mr. Book’s Book Reviews.
Mr. Book finished reading this on October 19, 2024.
March 5, 2025
Jason Cannon’s latest book, A Time for Reflection: The Parallel Legacies of Baseball Icons Willie McCovey and Billy Williams, is a deeply researched exploration of the lives and careers of two baseball Hall of Famers. Serendipitously, Cannon found himself considering two different projects on McCovey and Williams before releasing the merits of a combined approach. In A Time for Reflection Cannon tells the stories of their lives from their births in 1938 as they grew up in the same area, faced similar obstacles to both became left-handed power hitters in the major leagues and both make the baseball Hall of Fame.
The book provides a deep dive into the cultural and historical context of the times in which they lived and played. I was fascinated how Mobile, Alabama proved to be a remarkable breeding ground for baseball talent. As well as McCovey and Williams, both Hank Aaron and Satchel Paige grew up in the area. Cannon examines how the social and cultural environment of Mobile contributed to the development of these legends.
Cannon’s previous work, Charlie Murphy: The Iconoclastic Showman Behind the Chicago Cubs, showcased his ability to bring historical figures to life with depth and nuance and combining a scholarly take with a readable style. In A Time for Reflection, Cannon manages this difficult task again providing a detailed and engaging portrait of both McCovey and Williams. Neither player gets lost or subsumed into the other with both men’s talents and personalities shining through. This is a really solid biography.
The book provides a deep dive into the cultural and historical context of the times in which they lived and played. I was fascinated how Mobile, Alabama proved to be a remarkable breeding ground for baseball talent. As well as McCovey and Williams, both Hank Aaron and Satchel Paige grew up in the area. Cannon examines how the social and cultural environment of Mobile contributed to the development of these legends.
Cannon’s previous work, Charlie Murphy: The Iconoclastic Showman Behind the Chicago Cubs, showcased his ability to bring historical figures to life with depth and nuance and combining a scholarly take with a readable style. In A Time for Reflection, Cannon manages this difficult task again providing a detailed and engaging portrait of both McCovey and Williams. Neither player gets lost or subsumed into the other with both men’s talents and personalities shining through. This is a really solid biography.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews