Switch Hitter

by Duane Decker

Rookie Russ Woodward was going to be one of the greatest baseball players. He knew he was potentially worth a million dollars - all you had to do was ask him. He was fast, a natural and great fielder, could bat equally well right or left handed, and his greatest enemy was himself. He disobeyed orders, ignored instructions in his first season in the major league, and created dissension within the team by being a lone wolf. His patient manager tried everything from fining him, sending him back to the farm team to banishing him, but he couldn't succeed in knocking off that big chip Russ had on his shoulder. He finally learned what "team" meant, but it was a long time before he could work it out for himself.

Genres: Sports

218 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1953

About the author

Duane Decker wrote a beloved series about an imaginary major league baseball team called the Blue Sox from 1947 to his death in 1964. During World War II, he served in the Pacific with the Marine Corps. After participating in several island invasions, he became a combat correspondent on the Leatherneck, the official Marine Corps publication, where his tour of duty took him to Peleliu, Saipan, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. One of the highlights of his military career came when he witnessed the formal surrender of Japan aboard the U.S.S. Missouri in Tokyo Bay as a Staff Sergeant and editor of Leatherneck.

After the war, he had a notable career writing for leading magazines, residing in New Hampshire. An enthusiastic baseball fan, his books have been enjoyed by thousands. He was a graduate of Colgate University.

Reviews

[R.G. Belsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

OMG! These were the books from my youth in the late 50s and early 60s. Duane Decker wrote a whole series of sports books for young people about the imaginary Blue Sox for a generation of young sports fans like myself. These books made me want to become a writer. Decker died in 1964,and some of this might be a bit dated now. But these are wonderful books about a different time in America.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

I consider it the weakest of the Decker series

Russ Woodward is a tremendous baseball player, a switch hitter who can hit with power from both sides, he is also fleet afoot and a superb center fielder. With all-star and even Hall Of Fame written all over him, it appears that he has it made. However, he also suffers from the world's worst attitude problem. Totally convinced that everyone is out to get him, he argues with the fans, sportswriters, Blue Sox management and even his teammates. Eventually, he leaves the team and goes back to his hometown. Everyone there is cordial, but it is clear that they all consider him a quitter. The low point comes when a young boy returns an autographed baseball, telling Woodward that his dad considered him a quitter. Eventually, Woodward realizes his mistakes and comes back to the Blue Sox on his own, apologizing for his errors.

It is clear that Woodward is largely a composite of Mickey Mantle and Ted Williams. Mantle because of his switch hitting, position, power and speed. He is modeled after Williams because of his temperament and hostility to everyone. Ted Williams was disliked by many of his teammates, as he was known to criticize himself after getting a key hit, telling all who would listen that he should not have swung because the pitch wasn't even a strike.

I consider this the weakest of the Decker stories about the mythical Blue Sox. Woodward is such a baby that the story is the most difficult to believe of all those in the series.

This review also appears on Amazon.

[Steven Peterson · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a high school student, I loved reading the Blue Sox stories of the team and its players. This was one of my least favorite. Russ Woodward was a fine player, a power hitting switch hitter. However, he had a BAD attitude, semi-paranoid and a whiner. At one point, he quits the team and goes back home. A variety of experiences "wake him up" and he returns, making amneds to his teammates. The story is pretty much "Johnny one note" and one of the least enjoyable in the series. . . .

[CLM · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rookie Russ Woodward has the potential to be a huge star for the Blue Sox - if he can learn to keep his temper and understand that baseball is a team sport. Manager Jug Slavin is determined to help Russ lose the chip on his shoulder so Russ can take over center field and the team can contend for the pennant.

[Chuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book sixty years ago and as a teenager, I was captivated by the action and an insight to my favorite sport. I am certain that if I read this book today, I would find it simple and even for a younger audience because they seem to grow up at a much faster rate these days. In any case, the rating belies the memory of a thirteen year old boy in 1954.

[Steve Mccormick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another classic Blue Sox novel. Check out my Duane Decker facebook page.

[Ronald]

possibly read in winter 1967