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Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy
“Leavy has hit it out of the park…A lot more than a biography. It’s a consideration of how we create our heroes, and how this hero’s self perception distinguishes him from nearly every other great athlete in living memory… a remarkably rich portrait.” — Time
The New York Times bestseller about the baseball legend and famously reclusive Dodgers’ pitcher Sandy Koufax, from award-winning former Washington Post sportswriter Jane Leavy. Sandy Koufax reveals, for the first time, what drove the three-time Cy Young award winner to the pinnacle of baseball and then—just as quickly—into self-imposed exile.
The New York Times bestseller about the baseball legend and famously reclusive Dodgers’ pitcher Sandy Koufax, from award-winning former Washington Post sportswriter Jane Leavy. Sandy Koufax reveals, for the first time, what drove the three-time Cy Young award winner to the pinnacle of baseball and then—just as quickly—into self-imposed exile.
461 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 17, 2002
199 people are currently reading
3530 people want to read
About the author
Jane Leavy
13 books133 followersJane Leavy is the author of the New York Times bestsellers The Last Boy, Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy and the comic novel Squeeze Play, which Entertainment Weekly called “the best novel ever written about baseball.” Her latest book is The Big Fella. She was a staff writer at The Washington Post from 1979 to1988, first in the sports section, then writing for the style section. She covered baseball, tennis, and the Olympics for the paper. She wrote features for the style section about sports, politics, and pop culture, including, most memorably, a profile of Mugsy Bogues, the 5’3″ guard for the Washington Wizards, which was longer than he is tall.
Before joining the The Washington Post, she was a staff writer at womenSports and Self magazines. She has written for many publications, including The New York Times, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, The Village Voice, and The New York Daily News. Leavys work has been anthologized in many collections, including Best Sportswriting, Coach: 25 Writers Reflect on People Who Made a Difference, Child of Mine: Essays on Becoming a Mother, Nike Is a Goddess: The History of Women in Sports, Diamonds Are a Girls Best Friend: Women Writers on Baseball, A Kind of Grace: A Treasury of Sportswriting by Women, and Making Words Dance: Reflections on Red Smith, Journalism and Writing.
She grew up on Long Island where she pitched briefly and poorly for the Blue Jays of the Roslyn Long Island Little League. On her parents first date, her father, a water boy for the 1927 New York football Giants, took her mother to a Brooklyn College football game. She retaliated by taking him to Loehmanns after the final whistle. It was a template for their 63-year union. As a child, Jane Leavy worshipped Mickey Mantle from the second-floor ballroom in the Concourse Plaza Hotel where her grandmothers synagogue held services on the High Holidays.
Jane Leavy attended Barnard College and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, where she wrote her masters essay (later published in The Village Voice) on Red Smith, the late sports columnist for The New York Times, who was her other childhood hero.
She has two adult children, Nick and Emma, and she lives in Washington, DC, and Truro, Massachusetts.
Before joining the The Washington Post, she was a staff writer at womenSports and Self magazines. She has written for many publications, including The New York Times, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, The Village Voice, and The New York Daily News. Leavys work has been anthologized in many collections, including Best Sportswriting, Coach: 25 Writers Reflect on People Who Made a Difference, Child of Mine: Essays on Becoming a Mother, Nike Is a Goddess: The History of Women in Sports, Diamonds Are a Girls Best Friend: Women Writers on Baseball, A Kind of Grace: A Treasury of Sportswriting by Women, and Making Words Dance: Reflections on Red Smith, Journalism and Writing.
She grew up on Long Island where she pitched briefly and poorly for the Blue Jays of the Roslyn Long Island Little League. On her parents first date, her father, a water boy for the 1927 New York football Giants, took her mother to a Brooklyn College football game. She retaliated by taking him to Loehmanns after the final whistle. It was a template for their 63-year union. As a child, Jane Leavy worshipped Mickey Mantle from the second-floor ballroom in the Concourse Plaza Hotel where her grandmothers synagogue held services on the High Holidays.
Jane Leavy attended Barnard College and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, where she wrote her masters essay (later published in The Village Voice) on Red Smith, the late sports columnist for The New York Times, who was her other childhood hero.
She has two adult children, Nick and Emma, and she lives in Washington, DC, and Truro, Massachusetts.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 326 reviews
June 6, 2021
I enjoyed reading about the legend Sandy Koufax from Brooklyn. Although he had a short-lived career from 1962 to 1966 that saw him lead the National League in ERA all five years, win three Cy Young awards, and pitch four no-hitters including a perfect game. Then he almost completely vanished from baseball. He kept a low-profile except for his induction into the Hall of Fame and occasional appearances at the Dodgers training camps. The importance in his Jewish faith made him refuse to pitch the opening game of the 1965 World Series on Yom Kippur. There's not much out there about Sandy Koufax except for his 1966 autobiography. I found myself immersed in his story and enjoyed it very much. I recommend this one to anyone who loves baseball or a good sports biography. Thanks!
September 25, 2024
Over the summer I had the z’chus (merit) to help out at the Jewish book club here on goodreads. One of my roles was to help select a category for the book that the group would read in October, the month this year when all of the holidays will take place. In light of all that has happened over the past year, I desired that the group start the new year on a positive note. We should read a book about a Jew who has inspired others in his/her achievements. While I did not include the caveat of a non Holocaust related book because I wanted the book to be more on the happier side, a Holocaust book won none the less. I am not one to kvetch as overcoming the atrocities of the Holocaust is indeed an uplifting moment in recent Jewish history. As a moderator I could not nominate a book other than give an example to the members. The consummate baseball fan in me could only think of one such example, and that is in the person of Sandy Koufax, my all time favorite non-Cub player even though he retired a decade and a half before I was born. Koufax was the Jewish star of stars, and I chose to reread this account of his achievements to give me koach (strength) as I move into the new year.
Jane Leavy grew up in the Bronx. Her grandparents’ apartment was a stone’s throw from Yankee Stadium, and the Bronx Bombers were her team. If the Yankees happened to be playing on Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur, Leavy would skip tuning into the game to attend services with her family. As a Jew this is what one does. Many times in her youth, Leavy witnessed the Dodgers, then of Los Angeles, play against the Yankees in the World Series, and her family was faced with a conundrum. How could they root against Koufax, the best Jew of them all. As an adult, Leavy remembered that Koufax one time famously did not pitch on Yom Kippur. At that one moment in time, she made the decision never to work on Yom Kippur again. Jane Leavy does not consider herself to be a religious person but she is inherently Jewish; so is Koufax, a nice Jewish boy hailing from Brooklyn. In his generation, if you came from Brooklyn, you were Jewish, lox, bagels, and all, no need for more observance than that. Leavy desired to write a piece on Koufax from both the angle of his Jewishness and the perfect game that he threw while in agonizing pain. Although he did not authorize the biography, he noted that if she wanted to go ahead with the project, it should be done correctly, and he leant himself to edit the biographical moments of his life. What followed is the inspirational book that I had been looking for.
Sandy Koufax is in the hall of fame because he was blessed with the left arm of G-D. Although Leavy writes about his early life, which influenced the man he would become, the bulk of her findings is about his time as a Dodger and the hope that he brought to his Jewish breathren. Koufax’s career spanned two halves, as the hometown kid in Brooklyn and the star of Dodger stars in Los Angeles who made it big. This was Hollywood of the 1960s when being a star meant something. He was also a Jew, who was not in the inner circle of most of the other white players. Only two decades removed from the Holocaust, antisemitism still existed in America. His closest teammates on the Dodgers were the black players who understood his position as a minority and went out of their way to make him feel welcome. Leavy cites a meeting between Hank Greenberg and Jackie Robinson during Jackie’s first year and Hank’s last; Greenberg told Jackie he understood what he would be going through and he had his support. By the time Koufax came up as rookie toward the end of Robinson’s career, Robbie, named so by broadcaster Vin Scully, took him under his wing so to speak. Although he did not get much playing time until the team moved west, Koufax had supportive teammates and stayed on as a baseball player rather than returning to college to study architecture. We are the people of the book after all, but Koufax’s career lied down a different path.
According to physicians, Koufax should not have been a pitcher. His arm was too muscular and too susceptible to injury. Between 1961 and 1966, he was untouchable. In those same years, his arm deteriorated and he had to take a cocktail of pills and treatments just to be able to pitch. His record and dominance speak for themselves but his arm looked like a balloon after starts and he knew that he was pitching on borrowed time. Those Dodgers relied on pitching and he was the leader. Without him there would be no World Series for those light hitting teams of the early 1960s. He never pitched on Jewish holidays and over time became the most eligible Jewish bachelor in America. One time he started a game against fellow Jewish pitcher Ken Holtzman. Holtzman’s mom was in a quandary: she wanted both her son and her favorite star to win and hoped for a no decision. At his peak, Koufax received more invitations to bar mitzvahs than pulpit rabbis, the majority of which he declined. Leavy notes that at a time only two decades after the Holocaust when Jews started to assimilate in America, Koufax showed that it’s ok to follow one’s dream and be Jewish. Jewish mothers everyone shepped nachas from this nice Jewish boy from Brooklyn, who would be the dream son-in-law for all of them.
He pitched because he loved it, loved the camaraderie of being on a team. Otherwise he would have become a doctor or lawyer or architect, professions more befitting of Jews. Leavy has the narrative come to a climax at the height of Koufax’s powers in 1965. On September 9, his arm in immense pain and the Dodgers in a pennant race, Koufax pitched a perfect game against my beloved Cubs. For a more descriptive account of the game itself, a wonderful read is Perfect Eloquence, which details the life of Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully. For the batter by batter account, Leavy breaks the game down inning by inning, leaving me on the edge of my seat while reading, even though I knew who won. There is a grainy video available on YouTube and it is wonderful. Somehow, Koufax lead the Dodgers back to the World Series. The first game fell out on Yom Kippur, and he declared that he would not pitch. Although Minnesota area rabbis claimed that he attended services at their congregations, Koufax spent the day of atonement reflecting in his hotel room. By not pitching, Leavy states that this is symbolic of the 1960s rebellion movements, but it stands for something more, that Sandy Koufax is a Jew, although not religious, but he is making a statement for Jews that on Yom Kippur we do not work because this is what we do as a people. The following day, Koufax pitched and lost but would lead the Dodgers to the title pitching three times in eight days, his left arm all but done.
On October 7, 1965 Minnesota rabbi Moshe Feller presented Koufax with a pair of tefillin (phylacteries) as a gift of appreciation for not pitching on Yom Kippur. Koufax told the rabbi that he is not religious and might not lay the tefillin regularly, but he never pitched on Yom Kippur because it is not the right thing to do. His act brought hope to Jews that they can show pride in America at a time when anti semitism still abounded. One young man who idolized Koufax was Ira Green, whose son Shawn went on to play for the Dodgers later in his career. I doubt we will ever have another Jewish star like Koufax. There are not many Jews who are athletic stars as we are known for our brains more than for our brawn. During the 1960s Koufax made it ok to be Jewish when a younger generation more removed from immigration culture had began to assimilate. Jane Leavy interviewed Koufax’s friends, family, and teammates. She honored his privacy while still crafting a poignant picture of a man who is still regarded as the Jewish star of stars, not just in baseball but in all sports. From a purely baseball perspective, Jackie Robinson inspired me more so than Koufax. As a Jew, Koufax inspired a generation. When I read about the man or watch the grainy video footage, I can’t help but kvell.
Lshana tova u’mesuka. May you be inscribed for a good year in the book of life.
4.5 ✡️ stars
Jane Leavy grew up in the Bronx. Her grandparents’ apartment was a stone’s throw from Yankee Stadium, and the Bronx Bombers were her team. If the Yankees happened to be playing on Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur, Leavy would skip tuning into the game to attend services with her family. As a Jew this is what one does. Many times in her youth, Leavy witnessed the Dodgers, then of Los Angeles, play against the Yankees in the World Series, and her family was faced with a conundrum. How could they root against Koufax, the best Jew of them all. As an adult, Leavy remembered that Koufax one time famously did not pitch on Yom Kippur. At that one moment in time, she made the decision never to work on Yom Kippur again. Jane Leavy does not consider herself to be a religious person but she is inherently Jewish; so is Koufax, a nice Jewish boy hailing from Brooklyn. In his generation, if you came from Brooklyn, you were Jewish, lox, bagels, and all, no need for more observance than that. Leavy desired to write a piece on Koufax from both the angle of his Jewishness and the perfect game that he threw while in agonizing pain. Although he did not authorize the biography, he noted that if she wanted to go ahead with the project, it should be done correctly, and he leant himself to edit the biographical moments of his life. What followed is the inspirational book that I had been looking for.
Sandy Koufax is in the hall of fame because he was blessed with the left arm of G-D. Although Leavy writes about his early life, which influenced the man he would become, the bulk of her findings is about his time as a Dodger and the hope that he brought to his Jewish breathren. Koufax’s career spanned two halves, as the hometown kid in Brooklyn and the star of Dodger stars in Los Angeles who made it big. This was Hollywood of the 1960s when being a star meant something. He was also a Jew, who was not in the inner circle of most of the other white players. Only two decades removed from the Holocaust, antisemitism still existed in America. His closest teammates on the Dodgers were the black players who understood his position as a minority and went out of their way to make him feel welcome. Leavy cites a meeting between Hank Greenberg and Jackie Robinson during Jackie’s first year and Hank’s last; Greenberg told Jackie he understood what he would be going through and he had his support. By the time Koufax came up as rookie toward the end of Robinson’s career, Robbie, named so by broadcaster Vin Scully, took him under his wing so to speak. Although he did not get much playing time until the team moved west, Koufax had supportive teammates and stayed on as a baseball player rather than returning to college to study architecture. We are the people of the book after all, but Koufax’s career lied down a different path.
According to physicians, Koufax should not have been a pitcher. His arm was too muscular and too susceptible to injury. Between 1961 and 1966, he was untouchable. In those same years, his arm deteriorated and he had to take a cocktail of pills and treatments just to be able to pitch. His record and dominance speak for themselves but his arm looked like a balloon after starts and he knew that he was pitching on borrowed time. Those Dodgers relied on pitching and he was the leader. Without him there would be no World Series for those light hitting teams of the early 1960s. He never pitched on Jewish holidays and over time became the most eligible Jewish bachelor in America. One time he started a game against fellow Jewish pitcher Ken Holtzman. Holtzman’s mom was in a quandary: she wanted both her son and her favorite star to win and hoped for a no decision. At his peak, Koufax received more invitations to bar mitzvahs than pulpit rabbis, the majority of which he declined. Leavy notes that at a time only two decades after the Holocaust when Jews started to assimilate in America, Koufax showed that it’s ok to follow one’s dream and be Jewish. Jewish mothers everyone shepped nachas from this nice Jewish boy from Brooklyn, who would be the dream son-in-law for all of them.
He pitched because he loved it, loved the camaraderie of being on a team. Otherwise he would have become a doctor or lawyer or architect, professions more befitting of Jews. Leavy has the narrative come to a climax at the height of Koufax’s powers in 1965. On September 9, his arm in immense pain and the Dodgers in a pennant race, Koufax pitched a perfect game against my beloved Cubs. For a more descriptive account of the game itself, a wonderful read is Perfect Eloquence, which details the life of Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully. For the batter by batter account, Leavy breaks the game down inning by inning, leaving me on the edge of my seat while reading, even though I knew who won. There is a grainy video available on YouTube and it is wonderful. Somehow, Koufax lead the Dodgers back to the World Series. The first game fell out on Yom Kippur, and he declared that he would not pitch. Although Minnesota area rabbis claimed that he attended services at their congregations, Koufax spent the day of atonement reflecting in his hotel room. By not pitching, Leavy states that this is symbolic of the 1960s rebellion movements, but it stands for something more, that Sandy Koufax is a Jew, although not religious, but he is making a statement for Jews that on Yom Kippur we do not work because this is what we do as a people. The following day, Koufax pitched and lost but would lead the Dodgers to the title pitching three times in eight days, his left arm all but done.
On October 7, 1965 Minnesota rabbi Moshe Feller presented Koufax with a pair of tefillin (phylacteries) as a gift of appreciation for not pitching on Yom Kippur. Koufax told the rabbi that he is not religious and might not lay the tefillin regularly, but he never pitched on Yom Kippur because it is not the right thing to do. His act brought hope to Jews that they can show pride in America at a time when anti semitism still abounded. One young man who idolized Koufax was Ira Green, whose son Shawn went on to play for the Dodgers later in his career. I doubt we will ever have another Jewish star like Koufax. There are not many Jews who are athletic stars as we are known for our brains more than for our brawn. During the 1960s Koufax made it ok to be Jewish when a younger generation more removed from immigration culture had began to assimilate. Jane Leavy interviewed Koufax’s friends, family, and teammates. She honored his privacy while still crafting a poignant picture of a man who is still regarded as the Jewish star of stars, not just in baseball but in all sports. From a purely baseball perspective, Jackie Robinson inspired me more so than Koufax. As a Jew, Koufax inspired a generation. When I read about the man or watch the grainy video footage, I can’t help but kvell.
Lshana tova u’mesuka. May you be inscribed for a good year in the book of life.
4.5 ✡️ stars
April 28, 2018
Non-fiction about the legendary Dodgers’ pitcher Sandy Koufax. It is told in alternating chapters of one of his best pitching performances and biographical insights. The author sets the record straight regarding several myths. It harkens back to an earlier age in baseball, prior to free agency, when “bonus babies” were required to remain on the major league team even if it would have served everyone better to go through the learning experiences in the minor leagues. It covers a wide range of topics, including his Jewish faith, friendships with other players, integrity, and accomplishments. It raises questions of how much better he could have been if not mishandled by the Dodgers early in his career. It sheds light on decisions such as the joint hold-out with Don Drysdale and why he retired when he did. I was astounded at the extremes he endured to deal with the pain in his arm, near the end of his career, while still managing to attain spectacular results.
The author weaves together many interviews from players, fans, and management to provide a fascinating picture of an interesting man. This is not a typical biography, as in it does not follow a linear progression through his life, but instead contains social commentary about the times and stories from his life that highlight his personal qualities. Overall, I found it an enjoyable read. Recommended to baseball fans interested in learning more about the life of Sandy Koufax.
The author weaves together many interviews from players, fans, and management to provide a fascinating picture of an interesting man. This is not a typical biography, as in it does not follow a linear progression through his life, but instead contains social commentary about the times and stories from his life that highlight his personal qualities. Overall, I found it an enjoyable read. Recommended to baseball fans interested in learning more about the life of Sandy Koufax.
July 4, 2019
I don't know the contours of his character as well as I have in some biographical subjects, but I'm sure the author got as much out of her subject as she could. She certainly made up for it in my other criteria for biographies, how well does the author conveyed to the reader the flavor of the times. I think she could have written a book on the transition in the mid-1960s by itself, and it would have been less frustrating for her than trying to draw information out of this reluctant superstar.
January 18, 2008
This one surprised me. Harper Coliins' cheap packaging and the uninspired title (A Lefty's Legacy?) screamed formulatic hagiography. You know the genre: lots of stats, cheesy writing, exclamation points...
Instead this is as subtle, probing, smartly written as any biography could be. Jane Leavy is a skillful researcher with a relentless drive to get at her subject from every angle. And she knows how to tell her story. She is a masterful writer, able to draw us in to her quest. We are led to discover aspects of this man through a process that mirrors her own.
As others have noted this is more than a simple biography of Koufax. It really uses Koufax as a lens to do some significant social history. In the process we are led through some critical reflections on Jewish identity, baseball, physiology, American values, etc.
Truly one of the most compelling things I have ever read. It really deserved a better title, and pages that don't yellow on teh edges after just three years.
Instead this is as subtle, probing, smartly written as any biography could be. Jane Leavy is a skillful researcher with a relentless drive to get at her subject from every angle. And she knows how to tell her story. She is a masterful writer, able to draw us in to her quest. We are led to discover aspects of this man through a process that mirrors her own.
As others have noted this is more than a simple biography of Koufax. It really uses Koufax as a lens to do some significant social history. In the process we are led through some critical reflections on Jewish identity, baseball, physiology, American values, etc.
Truly one of the most compelling things I have ever read. It really deserved a better title, and pages that don't yellow on teh edges after just three years.
January 22, 2024
Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy by Jane Leavy was written in 2003.
This was an exceptionally well written and interesting book about, arguably, the best left-handed pitcher in baseball history. Koufax’s prowess as America’s greatest Jewish athlete also added a significant and compelling angle to the biography as well. Koufax was a fiercely competitive man and multi-sport athlete who succeeded at everything he tried athletically. In the early years he struggled mightily with his control but he was a bonus baby. So he was guaranteed two years at the Major League level before he could be demoted to the minors and he needed every last pitch of those two years to prove he belonged. In his fourth year he became virtually unbeatable as he learned to locate his pitches. He set the major league record for most no-hitters and set individual game and season strikeout records as well. He did this in less than ten years as a starting pitcher.
The suffering Koufax went through with his black and swollen arm in the final years of his career makes for dramatic reading. The painkillers were eating a hole in his stomach and he was urged not to throw any pitches between his scheduled starts. These final years were also, despite his deteriorating arm condition, some of his (and baseball’s) best pitching seasons as well.
Days after the end of the ‘66 season Koufax called a press conference to announce his retirement. The Dodger’s management and ownership were apoplectic. Koufax had even told a sports writer eighteen months before when he would retire and asked him not to write about it until he made the announcement. This was a classic Koufax moment — he was going to go out on his own terms. He was only thirty years old.
Leavy is a gifted storyteller. The only criticism of the book, and it is a significant departure from most biographies, is that Sandy Koufax reads like a series of self contained chapters that are not in chronological order. This might be because Leavy is an award winning journalist and not a historian by trade. So there are a few redundant events that re-occur in multiple chapters.
4 stars. Highly recommended and a must read for any baseball fan. Admittedly I have always been a Dodgers fan but I think you could be a Giants fan and appreciate the excellent writing in this one.
This was an exceptionally well written and interesting book about, arguably, the best left-handed pitcher in baseball history. Koufax’s prowess as America’s greatest Jewish athlete also added a significant and compelling angle to the biography as well. Koufax was a fiercely competitive man and multi-sport athlete who succeeded at everything he tried athletically. In the early years he struggled mightily with his control but he was a bonus baby. So he was guaranteed two years at the Major League level before he could be demoted to the minors and he needed every last pitch of those two years to prove he belonged. In his fourth year he became virtually unbeatable as he learned to locate his pitches. He set the major league record for most no-hitters and set individual game and season strikeout records as well. He did this in less than ten years as a starting pitcher.
The suffering Koufax went through with his black and swollen arm in the final years of his career makes for dramatic reading. The painkillers were eating a hole in his stomach and he was urged not to throw any pitches between his scheduled starts. These final years were also, despite his deteriorating arm condition, some of his (and baseball’s) best pitching seasons as well.
Days after the end of the ‘66 season Koufax called a press conference to announce his retirement. The Dodger’s management and ownership were apoplectic. Koufax had even told a sports writer eighteen months before when he would retire and asked him not to write about it until he made the announcement. This was a classic Koufax moment — he was going to go out on his own terms. He was only thirty years old.
Leavy is a gifted storyteller. The only criticism of the book, and it is a significant departure from most biographies, is that Sandy Koufax reads like a series of self contained chapters that are not in chronological order. This might be because Leavy is an award winning journalist and not a historian by trade. So there are a few redundant events that re-occur in multiple chapters.
4 stars. Highly recommended and a must read for any baseball fan. Admittedly I have always been a Dodgers fan but I think you could be a Giants fan and appreciate the excellent writing in this one.
May 25, 2010
I was very let down by this book. Sandy Koufax was a great pitcher, an inspirational human being, and is a hero to many people (including myself). But this book is just a big heaping mess of hero-worship (hagiography). It was a one-dimensional look at a man who is very complex and enigmatic.
I thought the structure of the book was interesting, alternating the innings of Koufax's perfect game with more biographical chapters. But that’s about it. I know there's some other Sandy Koufax literature out there. Maybe they do a better job of living up to the subject.
I thought the structure of the book was interesting, alternating the innings of Koufax's perfect game with more biographical chapters. But that’s about it. I know there's some other Sandy Koufax literature out there. Maybe they do a better job of living up to the subject.
April 7, 2020
The date is September 9, 1965. Vin Scully the famous Dodger sportscaster said it best, "On the scoreboard in right field it is 9:46 p.m. in the city of the Angels, Los Angeles, California, and a crowd of 29,139 just sitting in to see the only pitcher in baseball history to hurl four no-hit, no-run games. He has done it four straight years. And now he capped it. On his fourth no-hitter, he made it a perfect game.(p.251) This is the story line that Jane Leavy's book Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy is about. The no hitter between the Dodgers and the Cubs is related in ten chapters that alternate with biographical material of how Sandy Koufax became a great Major League Baseball player. Leavy does a great job bringing out the man who was more then just a pitcher, through interviews with former coaches, players and even fans. I sat the edge of my seat reading between chapters on how his no hitter would end. Sandy Koufax had one of the most spectacular careers that ended to short in the history of the game. Baseball fan or not the book is worth reading.
March 6, 2014
A Lefty’s Legacy
Anyone who spends more than ten minutes with me knows that I am a huge baseball fan. I love the game; the history, the stories, the smell of fresh cut grass, that moment of mystical silence when the catcher has given the signal and the pitcher has accepted it, followed by that magical moment when the field of potentiality is wide open and anything can happen. The pitcher winds up, muscles rippling in weird physiologic perfection that is almost alien. That being said; I read a lot of baseball books, which brings me to Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy, by Jane Leavy.
Let me state upfront: I am in the minority. I did not enjoy this book. As I closed the final page, I was left sadly unfulfilled and disappointed. I probably wouldn't have even finished this book, had it not been for that pesky New Year’s resolution I made; to finish books that I start, even if I don’t like them, and then figure out and articulate my reason for said displeasure.
The reviews are overwhelmingly positive, but then again, the subject matter is Sandy Koufax, a left handed pitcher who is arguably one of the best players the game has ever seen; the youngest player ever elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame, the first 3-time Cy Young winner in baseball history and the only one to win 3 times when the award was for all of baseball, not just one league. He was the first major leaguer to pitch four no-hitters (including the eighth perfect game in baseball history), amongst many other accolades. These things are barely—(if at all) mentioned in the book. In The Glory of Their Times—(possibly one of the best baseball books ever written), Harry Hooper says, “…and that Koufaux. You name a better left hander in the history of baseball and I’ll eat my hat.”
I was excited to read the book, so when I got to a page numbered xviii in the Preface, with this quote, “Hi, Ms. Leavy, this is Sandy, uh, Koufax. I don’t really have any interest in this project…” I was on alert, but I wasn't sure what to make of it. Perhaps Sandy would come around and ultimately embrace the project, participating fully and sharing little known stories of the game. Alas, that was not to be. What the line meant, was exactly what it said. Ms. Leavy goes on to justify the 269 page book, by interviewing 469 friends and acquaintances of Sandy Koufax, making some observations about the game, social history and civil persuasions of the era; all which can be found in any Google search or Wikipedia entry.
Sandy Koufax is well known for not pitching the first game of the 1965 World Series due to the fact that it fell on Yom Kippur. This monumental act, which transcends the field, making Sandy Koufax as big on the field as off, receives approximately one paragraph—unless you include the comments from two random Rabbis’.
In reading the book, I felt like Ms. Leavy had been given a book contract, signed on the line that was dotted and subsequent to that, received a ‘no interest’ clause from Sandy Koufax himself; because his voice is strangely absent in a book titled; Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy. Maybe she paced around her kitchen, nervously chewing pencil erasers. What could she do? She had a contract; she had to write a book—any book. I, of course have no proof that such a thing occurred, but, it would seem a plausible explanation.
I bleed Orange and Black, which almost necessarily dictates that I am NOT a fan of the Dodgers. However, I am a fan of baseball, and I think one of the greatest players who have ever graced the game, Sandy Koufax deserved better. I would be willing to eat my hat over it.
Anyone who spends more than ten minutes with me knows that I am a huge baseball fan. I love the game; the history, the stories, the smell of fresh cut grass, that moment of mystical silence when the catcher has given the signal and the pitcher has accepted it, followed by that magical moment when the field of potentiality is wide open and anything can happen. The pitcher winds up, muscles rippling in weird physiologic perfection that is almost alien. That being said; I read a lot of baseball books, which brings me to Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy, by Jane Leavy.
Let me state upfront: I am in the minority. I did not enjoy this book. As I closed the final page, I was left sadly unfulfilled and disappointed. I probably wouldn't have even finished this book, had it not been for that pesky New Year’s resolution I made; to finish books that I start, even if I don’t like them, and then figure out and articulate my reason for said displeasure.
The reviews are overwhelmingly positive, but then again, the subject matter is Sandy Koufax, a left handed pitcher who is arguably one of the best players the game has ever seen; the youngest player ever elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame, the first 3-time Cy Young winner in baseball history and the only one to win 3 times when the award was for all of baseball, not just one league. He was the first major leaguer to pitch four no-hitters (including the eighth perfect game in baseball history), amongst many other accolades. These things are barely—(if at all) mentioned in the book. In The Glory of Their Times—(possibly one of the best baseball books ever written), Harry Hooper says, “…and that Koufaux. You name a better left hander in the history of baseball and I’ll eat my hat.”
I was excited to read the book, so when I got to a page numbered xviii in the Preface, with this quote, “Hi, Ms. Leavy, this is Sandy, uh, Koufax. I don’t really have any interest in this project…” I was on alert, but I wasn't sure what to make of it. Perhaps Sandy would come around and ultimately embrace the project, participating fully and sharing little known stories of the game. Alas, that was not to be. What the line meant, was exactly what it said. Ms. Leavy goes on to justify the 269 page book, by interviewing 469 friends and acquaintances of Sandy Koufax, making some observations about the game, social history and civil persuasions of the era; all which can be found in any Google search or Wikipedia entry.
Sandy Koufax is well known for not pitching the first game of the 1965 World Series due to the fact that it fell on Yom Kippur. This monumental act, which transcends the field, making Sandy Koufax as big on the field as off, receives approximately one paragraph—unless you include the comments from two random Rabbis’.
In reading the book, I felt like Ms. Leavy had been given a book contract, signed on the line that was dotted and subsequent to that, received a ‘no interest’ clause from Sandy Koufax himself; because his voice is strangely absent in a book titled; Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy. Maybe she paced around her kitchen, nervously chewing pencil erasers. What could she do? She had a contract; she had to write a book—any book. I, of course have no proof that such a thing occurred, but, it would seem a plausible explanation.
I bleed Orange and Black, which almost necessarily dictates that I am NOT a fan of the Dodgers. However, I am a fan of baseball, and I think one of the greatest players who have ever graced the game, Sandy Koufax deserved better. I would be willing to eat my hat over it.
October 6, 2019
So I reread the book after fifteen years and it got better, Maybe it's nostalgia or my old age, but I loved the book. Leavy was hampered by the fact that Sandy made it abundantly clear in a polite way that he would not participate in the biography, but invited her to talk to his friends and teammates. She does a wonderful job of presenting his unparalleled five year prime supremacy of any pitcher in baseball.(Some may differ and offer Pedro Martinez). Hall of Famer Bob Feller said in 1995 that Sandy was the best he ever saw. Casey Stengel said. "forget Walter Johnson, the Jewish kid has him beat." And she does a fascinating job of interspersing quotes from teammates and friends while at the same time chronicling his perfect game of September 9th, 1965 against the Chicago Cubs via intermittent short chapters of that game. It was perhaps one of the greatest regular season games ever pitched. Sandy threw a perfect game and Bob Hendley threw a one hitter. Joey Amalfitano, raised in the same Bensonhurst neighborhood as Sandy, had the unenviable job of pinch hitting against him late in the game. After Sandy threw a 100 MPH fastball, Amalfitano turned to plate umpire Ed Vargo and said, "That ball sounded inside" and Vargo laughed. Casey Stengel said something similar in the 1963 world series when he said, "umpires often can't see where Koufax pitches go, so they have to judge from the sound of them hitting the catcher's glove. He's very tough on those hard of hearing".But we do learn a lot about the "mysterious" legend of the game even without Koufax's own words. Leavy refutes the allegations that he was aloof, strange, or didn't really love the game itself. Don Sutton called him a "clinical introvert" but pointed out that the difference between solitude and loneliness. Sometimes people misunderstood someone who is simply quiet for being aloof. Sutton called his unwillingness to trade his privacy for commercial gain(as did Drysdale and especially Dimaggio) as evidence of an ethical life. As Vin Scully said, "He was a minimalist." Leavy makes a persuasive case that Sandy lived his life the way he wanted-as a non conformist. He had ideals born of his modest Bensonhurst neighborhood. He didn't reach for celebrity, fame, or even material possessions. He was fiercely competitive, but that was his inner self commanding perfection. It was not an "other directed" need. How else can you explain Sandy continuing to pitch in 1962 with a crushed artery in his palm until finally the finger split? How else can you explain a man who had traumatic arthritis in his elbow so that his UCL would swell his arm like a balloon and yet keep pitching from the onset in mid season 1964 through 1966. I can't get over the pain he endured(nor could his appalled teammates who witness an arm in full hemorrhage). He took codeine, cortisone, drugs so strong they were used on horses to kill pain, and regularly applied Capsolin to his arm to keep it hot and loose. That substance was made of hot pepper and was so potent that Lou Johnson once wore Sandy's sweatshirt, which was laced with the Capsolin, and broke out in boils, sweats, and ultimately vomited. That is the extent of his competitiveness that Koufax endured pain that modern pitchers would never consider. So while he was shy and comfortable reading at home with a glass of wine listening to classical music, he was still loyal to his teammates and friends whenever an occasion warranted his appearance to celebrate their accomplishments or team reunion. So while Maury Wills, one of his closest friends on the team, continued to say in 2002 "There was so much depth there, and complexity too. He is still a mystery to a lot of us, Leavy does a great job in making him understandable. I loved he chapter on being Jewish and how his roots and ethnicity never left him. He accepted the burden of high expectency placed upon him as a role model for Jews. He did so because he knew that his community felt pride because of him and that this pride made for a bond that was shared by all Jews. It was part of the reason he had a real friendship with black teammates or even opposing black players. He understood the racism they experienced because he had experienced anti-semitism as well. One of the best lines in the book is from Minnesota catcher Earl Battey who paid Koufax a compliment. Says Battey, "I accused him of being black. I told him he was too cool to be white." It's wonderful to still be able to see Sandy in the front row of Dodger Stadium as I write this review. He is a hero to many and Leavy's book explains why in so many ways that he is worthy of our admiration. PS The cover photograph is worth the price of the book.
April 28, 2018
Anyone who watched baseball in the five year period between 1962 and 1966 will tell you that the best pitcher during that stretch was Sandy Koufax of the Los Angeles Dodgers. There are so many stories about how good he was, and many of them are shared in this excellent biography of the pitcher written by Jane Leavy.
The format of the book is not the typical format for a sports biography. The chapters alternate between Koufax stories and the innings of the most spectacular game of his career – a perfect game thrown against the Chicago Cubs on September 9, 1965. That game was also marked by the fact that the Cubs pitcher, Bob Hendley, threw a great game as well, allowing only one hit, but ended up as the losing pitcher. No matter whether the chapter is about that game, Koufax’s teenage years in Brooklyn, his struggles early in his career, his meteoric rise to greatness or his post-baseball life, the reader is sure to not only be engrossed in the material, but will also learn something new about the pitcher.
All of the legendary stories about Koufax are covered – his decision to not pitch on Yom Kippur when it fell on the same day as game 1 of the 1965 World Series is described in great detail and what it meant to Jewish people across the country is just one of them. Later in that series, he shut out the Minnesota Twins in game 7 with just two days’ rest.
Leavy covers the famous holdout against the Dodgers that he and fellow Los Angeles pitcher Don Drysdale executed in 1966. She makes a case that this action was just as important to the eventual abolishment of baseball’s reserve clause as was Curt Flood’s legal case that was heard by the Supreme Court. She states that had Koufax and Drysdale had not held out, then Flood’s case could not have happened. While I agree with her argument, it is hard to see how they are connected.
Leavy writes about Koufax’s early troubles with the Dodgers as part of a bigger issue that all teams had with “bonus baby” players, which Koufax was. If a player was offered a bonus to sign his first contract about a certain threshold, he had to remain on the major league roster for at least two years. This rule was in effect until the amateur draft began in 1965, and many clubs let these players languish on the bench or only gave them sporadic game action. The latter was the case for Koufax, as he didn’t get a lot of innings until the decade changed to the 1960’s. Ironically, once it was seen how dominant a pitcher Koufax became, the same manager (Walter Alston) who used him so little early in his career now seemed to overuse Koufax.
The last topic this review will mention that the author wrote about in depth was the extent of his arm pain, which led to his retirement after the 1966 World Series when he was at the peak of his performance. The description of his arm during off days, rubdowns on game day and the lotion used to relieve his pain runs the gamut from funny (the reaction of a kid who put on a game-used jersey by Koufax that still had the ointment on the sleeve was hilarious) to the grotesque (just about any description of the swelling of the arm after a game).
There is much more to this book but these are just a few snippets of the wonderful stories that Leavy weaves together to make this a book that every baseball fan, especially fans of the game in the 1960’s, will want to pick up.
http://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/201...
The format of the book is not the typical format for a sports biography. The chapters alternate between Koufax stories and the innings of the most spectacular game of his career – a perfect game thrown against the Chicago Cubs on September 9, 1965. That game was also marked by the fact that the Cubs pitcher, Bob Hendley, threw a great game as well, allowing only one hit, but ended up as the losing pitcher. No matter whether the chapter is about that game, Koufax’s teenage years in Brooklyn, his struggles early in his career, his meteoric rise to greatness or his post-baseball life, the reader is sure to not only be engrossed in the material, but will also learn something new about the pitcher.
All of the legendary stories about Koufax are covered – his decision to not pitch on Yom Kippur when it fell on the same day as game 1 of the 1965 World Series is described in great detail and what it meant to Jewish people across the country is just one of them. Later in that series, he shut out the Minnesota Twins in game 7 with just two days’ rest.
Leavy covers the famous holdout against the Dodgers that he and fellow Los Angeles pitcher Don Drysdale executed in 1966. She makes a case that this action was just as important to the eventual abolishment of baseball’s reserve clause as was Curt Flood’s legal case that was heard by the Supreme Court. She states that had Koufax and Drysdale had not held out, then Flood’s case could not have happened. While I agree with her argument, it is hard to see how they are connected.
Leavy writes about Koufax’s early troubles with the Dodgers as part of a bigger issue that all teams had with “bonus baby” players, which Koufax was. If a player was offered a bonus to sign his first contract about a certain threshold, he had to remain on the major league roster for at least two years. This rule was in effect until the amateur draft began in 1965, and many clubs let these players languish on the bench or only gave them sporadic game action. The latter was the case for Koufax, as he didn’t get a lot of innings until the decade changed to the 1960’s. Ironically, once it was seen how dominant a pitcher Koufax became, the same manager (Walter Alston) who used him so little early in his career now seemed to overuse Koufax.
The last topic this review will mention that the author wrote about in depth was the extent of his arm pain, which led to his retirement after the 1966 World Series when he was at the peak of his performance. The description of his arm during off days, rubdowns on game day and the lotion used to relieve his pain runs the gamut from funny (the reaction of a kid who put on a game-used jersey by Koufax that still had the ointment on the sleeve was hilarious) to the grotesque (just about any description of the swelling of the arm after a game).
There is much more to this book but these are just a few snippets of the wonderful stories that Leavy weaves together to make this a book that every baseball fan, especially fans of the game in the 1960’s, will want to pick up.
http://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/201...
October 29, 2014
This would have been a lot better book if the author, Jane Leavy, had more focus on Sandy Koufax instead of her repeated asides, tangents and pages about Koufax fans that were scattered throughout the book.
Koufax's story is compelling and the author does include some good perspectives, my favorite is dispelling the commonly held notion(including myself) that Koufax was a wild, unpredictable pitcher early in his career who could could not be counted on. Leavy showed that instead Koufax's often uneven performance was the result of poor managing, Koufax would pitch a complete game shutout and then not be used for the next three weeks and when used would be bounced between bullpen and rotation. Another great perspective was about how Koufax should be viewed in history, contrasting Bob Gibson's statement that Koufax's career was too short to be considered the top pitcher of his generation contrasted with Willie Mays who said Koufax shouldn't be penalized for accomplishing in five years what others took 20 years to accomplish
Leavy also explains Koufax as an introvert not as an aloof snob and traces great character, especially his refusal to commercialize on his fame. I wish there was more time and emphasis on his faith and refusal to play on Yom Kippur even when it fell during the World Series which showed great character that we see far too seldom
Koufax's story is compelling and the author does include some good perspectives, my favorite is dispelling the commonly held notion(including myself) that Koufax was a wild, unpredictable pitcher early in his career who could could not be counted on. Leavy showed that instead Koufax's often uneven performance was the result of poor managing, Koufax would pitch a complete game shutout and then not be used for the next three weeks and when used would be bounced between bullpen and rotation. Another great perspective was about how Koufax should be viewed in history, contrasting Bob Gibson's statement that Koufax's career was too short to be considered the top pitcher of his generation contrasted with Willie Mays who said Koufax shouldn't be penalized for accomplishing in five years what others took 20 years to accomplish
Leavy also explains Koufax as an introvert not as an aloof snob and traces great character, especially his refusal to commercialize on his fame. I wish there was more time and emphasis on his faith and refusal to play on Yom Kippur even when it fell during the World Series which showed great character that we see far too seldom
May 6, 2019
Where to begin with Sandy Koufax? Which mark is bigger, the one he left in terms of wins and losses, strikeouts, clutch games and no-hitters? Or the one he left as a person, an individual who stuck to his way of going about his life?
“No other baseball immortal in memory retired so young, so well, or so completely,” writes Jane Leavy in the preface to this energetic biography. “He may be the last athlete who declined to cash in on his fame. He has refused to cannibalize himself, to live off his past. He remains unavailable, unassailable (and) unsullied.”
Immortal? For lots of reasons. If the stat sheet didn’t glow, nobody might care how Koufax lived his life and went about his work. But the pitching record is crammed with “wow” numbers and amazing feats—six straight All-Star appearances, four no-hitters, one perfect game, twice the World Series MVP—and despite the fame he moved through the world in a very private way.
Was Koufax simply inscrutable? Merely aloof? Or just an athlete who wanted to define his own terms? Yes. Did Koufax’s character contribute to his success on the mound? It had to—right? Koufax was as tenacious about maintaining his privacy as he was about striking out good hitters.
Jane Leavy’s biography, written with Koufax’s awareness but without his direct involvement, is remarkable. Leavy writes that Koufax made it clear that he didn’t want the book to be written “but if it was going to be done, he wanted it to be done right.” Koufax gave friends approval to talk and verified some biographical details. But Koufax got Leavy to agree not to bug his close relatives. “You don’t need to know everything to write the truth,” writes Leavy. “You just need to know enough.”
Well, Leavy spoke to 469 people and it’s hard to imagine there’s another truth out there. Leavy covers all the basic details of Koufax’s family, youth, and early days in sports as a budding basketball player (yes, basketball) and all his struggles for his first few yeas as a big-league pitcher. Crammed with telling details and colorful anecdotes, Sandy Koufax is as much about the player as the era. It’s also about one pitcher working to figure out the art of pitching and then perfecting everything that goes into it—preparation, technique, mental attitude. Everything.
It’s about the move of the Dodgers from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, about the rise of players standing up for their share of baseball revenue (Koufax and fellow Dodger Don Drysdale raised a ruckus before the whole battle over free agency), and about one man maintaining his personal integrity from start to finish. Even the Jewish community wanted to claim Koufax as the “Chosen One” but Koufax, as in all aspects of his life, had things to say (or not say) about being pigeonholed in any aspect of his private life.
"Sandy Koufax-A Lefty’s Legacy" recounts the highlight-reel games and provides ample, gritty detail on the deterioration of Koufax’s elbow—along with Koufax’s stoic battle to pitch through the pain until he could pitch no more.
The world of sports, in my humble opinion, could use a few more unique forces like Sandy Koufax. Perhaps no one anecdote illustrates Koufax’s reluctance to do the autograph circuit (where he could make a fortune to this day). Occasionally, Koufax signs stuff—he does so every year at the annual dinner held to raise money for indigent ballplayers who came of age before free agency. The lines at Koufax’s table are long.
"What is this impulse, this need for a shred of greatness, a name scrawled on a sweet spot?” asks Leavy. “Koufax doesn’t get it. The need mystifies him; he is dubious about his ability to fill it. But he does the best he can, within the bounds of taste and decorum, bringing dignity to this most undignified pursuit—the sycophantic elevation of one human being over another and the exploitation of that difference for material gain.”
If we had more athletes (and celebrities of all sorts) who better understood that distinction, the world would be a better place. Leavy's biography is a home run.
“No other baseball immortal in memory retired so young, so well, or so completely,” writes Jane Leavy in the preface to this energetic biography. “He may be the last athlete who declined to cash in on his fame. He has refused to cannibalize himself, to live off his past. He remains unavailable, unassailable (and) unsullied.”
Immortal? For lots of reasons. If the stat sheet didn’t glow, nobody might care how Koufax lived his life and went about his work. But the pitching record is crammed with “wow” numbers and amazing feats—six straight All-Star appearances, four no-hitters, one perfect game, twice the World Series MVP—and despite the fame he moved through the world in a very private way.
Was Koufax simply inscrutable? Merely aloof? Or just an athlete who wanted to define his own terms? Yes. Did Koufax’s character contribute to his success on the mound? It had to—right? Koufax was as tenacious about maintaining his privacy as he was about striking out good hitters.
Jane Leavy’s biography, written with Koufax’s awareness but without his direct involvement, is remarkable. Leavy writes that Koufax made it clear that he didn’t want the book to be written “but if it was going to be done, he wanted it to be done right.” Koufax gave friends approval to talk and verified some biographical details. But Koufax got Leavy to agree not to bug his close relatives. “You don’t need to know everything to write the truth,” writes Leavy. “You just need to know enough.”
Well, Leavy spoke to 469 people and it’s hard to imagine there’s another truth out there. Leavy covers all the basic details of Koufax’s family, youth, and early days in sports as a budding basketball player (yes, basketball) and all his struggles for his first few yeas as a big-league pitcher. Crammed with telling details and colorful anecdotes, Sandy Koufax is as much about the player as the era. It’s also about one pitcher working to figure out the art of pitching and then perfecting everything that goes into it—preparation, technique, mental attitude. Everything.
It’s about the move of the Dodgers from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, about the rise of players standing up for their share of baseball revenue (Koufax and fellow Dodger Don Drysdale raised a ruckus before the whole battle over free agency), and about one man maintaining his personal integrity from start to finish. Even the Jewish community wanted to claim Koufax as the “Chosen One” but Koufax, as in all aspects of his life, had things to say (or not say) about being pigeonholed in any aspect of his private life.
"Sandy Koufax-A Lefty’s Legacy" recounts the highlight-reel games and provides ample, gritty detail on the deterioration of Koufax’s elbow—along with Koufax’s stoic battle to pitch through the pain until he could pitch no more.
The world of sports, in my humble opinion, could use a few more unique forces like Sandy Koufax. Perhaps no one anecdote illustrates Koufax’s reluctance to do the autograph circuit (where he could make a fortune to this day). Occasionally, Koufax signs stuff—he does so every year at the annual dinner held to raise money for indigent ballplayers who came of age before free agency. The lines at Koufax’s table are long.
"What is this impulse, this need for a shred of greatness, a name scrawled on a sweet spot?” asks Leavy. “Koufax doesn’t get it. The need mystifies him; he is dubious about his ability to fill it. But he does the best he can, within the bounds of taste and decorum, bringing dignity to this most undignified pursuit—the sycophantic elevation of one human being over another and the exploitation of that difference for material gain.”
If we had more athletes (and celebrities of all sorts) who better understood that distinction, the world would be a better place. Leavy's biography is a home run.
September 18, 2024
“…he held the ball without his thumb, rolling it off his uncommonly long fingers with such velocity and spin that when the ball met the wind, the air cried.”
-Clem Labine
“Trying to hit Sandy Koufax was like drinking coffee with a fork”
-Willie Stargell
4 stars.
I became fascinated with Sandy Koufax when i was a young kid watching baseball with my father. No pitcher was better than Koufax. If we were watching (fill in the blank with any great pitcher - Ryan, Seaver, Palmer, etc) a pitcher, my dad would say "he's good but Koufax was better".
Not sure why it took me so long to read this. While slightly disjointed, the book fulfilled all my expectations of learning much more about this God of the mound.
Highly recommended for any baseball fan!
-Clem Labine
“Trying to hit Sandy Koufax was like drinking coffee with a fork”
-Willie Stargell
4 stars.
I became fascinated with Sandy Koufax when i was a young kid watching baseball with my father. No pitcher was better than Koufax. If we were watching (fill in the blank with any great pitcher - Ryan, Seaver, Palmer, etc) a pitcher, my dad would say "he's good but Koufax was better".
Not sure why it took me so long to read this. While slightly disjointed, the book fulfilled all my expectations of learning much more about this God of the mound.
Highly recommended for any baseball fan!
July 21, 2017
Starting tonight after work - perhaps. Something light after "Canada".
And done in a couple of days. It'a an enjoyable "puffy" kind of look at a short-term great pitcher. No mysteries about Koufax are cleared up, such as whether or not he's a closeted gay man(not that there's anything wrong with that). She never mentions it. I was never a big fan because he was in the National League and because of my Red Sox I was American League all the way. Still, I have to admit that by reading this I'm more of a fan now. I remember in 1963 at boarding school there was an underclassman named Richard Sherman(Jewish) who was a huge Koufax/Dodger fan. I never got that whole connection either, between Sandy and his Jewish roots and his Brooklyn fan base. Come to think of it there were plenty of things I didn't get back then. Oh well... As for his place in MLB pitching history he's right up there of course. Nobody dominated like he did but it was for such a short period of time. Warren Spahn(a lefty) won 200 more games than Koufax and Steve Carlton must be considered too. My own personal favorite pitcher is Nolan Ryan(7 no-hitters but no perfectos due to his wildness). No doubt this is partly because he was on the staff of the two Strat-O-Matic teams I had that won championships. He "pitched" a no-hitter in one of those playoff runs.
And done in a couple of days. It'a an enjoyable "puffy" kind of look at a short-term great pitcher. No mysteries about Koufax are cleared up, such as whether or not he's a closeted gay man(not that there's anything wrong with that). She never mentions it. I was never a big fan because he was in the National League and because of my Red Sox I was American League all the way. Still, I have to admit that by reading this I'm more of a fan now. I remember in 1963 at boarding school there was an underclassman named Richard Sherman(Jewish) who was a huge Koufax/Dodger fan. I never got that whole connection either, between Sandy and his Jewish roots and his Brooklyn fan base. Come to think of it there were plenty of things I didn't get back then. Oh well... As for his place in MLB pitching history he's right up there of course. Nobody dominated like he did but it was for such a short period of time. Warren Spahn(a lefty) won 200 more games than Koufax and Steve Carlton must be considered too. My own personal favorite pitcher is Nolan Ryan(7 no-hitters but no perfectos due to his wildness). No doubt this is partly because he was on the staff of the two Strat-O-Matic teams I had that won championships. He "pitched" a no-hitter in one of those playoff runs.
December 16, 2013
In an effort to catch up with the multitudes of fascinating gaps in my reading, every year as Spring Training begins, I start a baseball book. This one by Jane Leavy, on one of my all-time favorite figures in baseball, has been sitting on my shelves for 5 years now and I took to it. What happened? The most frustrating of reading experiences.
I only give this book a reasonable rating based on the subject matter itself. In the venerable world of sports writing there are definitely the good and the bad, and without having read any of her other work how Koufax allowed Ms. Leavy to create this is beyond me. It's obvious her efforts were well intentioned and she was thorough and fair in her research and interviews with the many people surrounding the career of Sandy Koufax. All that effort makes the book quite well-rounded in perspective. Frankly it's the language, voice and structure that makes for almost intolerable reading. Furthermore, it's as she lifted the conventions of Ken Burns films and just applied them to the page in the way of setting up a chapter's era.
The result is horsey, unoriginal, and uninspired writing on a story that begs for better.
�����Philip Swanstrom Shaw
I only give this book a reasonable rating based on the subject matter itself. In the venerable world of sports writing there are definitely the good and the bad, and without having read any of her other work how Koufax allowed Ms. Leavy to create this is beyond me. It's obvious her efforts were well intentioned and she was thorough and fair in her research and interviews with the many people surrounding the career of Sandy Koufax. All that effort makes the book quite well-rounded in perspective. Frankly it's the language, voice and structure that makes for almost intolerable reading. Furthermore, it's as she lifted the conventions of Ken Burns films and just applied them to the page in the way of setting up a chapter's era.
The result is horsey, unoriginal, and uninspired writing on a story that begs for better.
�����Philip Swanstrom Shaw
December 12, 2010
Jane Leavy has written a fine work on Mickey Mantle recently. She authored this work in 2002. It is a fascinating examination of one of the best pitchers that I have ever watched (on TV only, I'm sorry to say).
The book begins with Koufax working with the Dodgers in 1997. The book goes back and forth in time--and it doesn't seem distracting to me. The perfect game that Koufax authored against the Cubs cuts in and out as Leavy relates the early years and developing career of Koufax. We get a better picture of why he retired and what he did after his retirement, including his quiet involvement with baseball thereafter.
Many interviews enrich the narrative, as we get a sense of what people thought at each stage of Koufax' career. We also get a sense of the pitcher as a person--and, for the most part, he comes off pretty well.
In short, a nice sports biography, with considerable emphasis on Koufax the person rather than just Koufax the pitcher.
Some pluses: a nice interview that Sports Illustrated carried out with Leavy; Koufax's pitching statistics from his all too brief career (on page 276).
The book begins with Koufax working with the Dodgers in 1997. The book goes back and forth in time--and it doesn't seem distracting to me. The perfect game that Koufax authored against the Cubs cuts in and out as Leavy relates the early years and developing career of Koufax. We get a better picture of why he retired and what he did after his retirement, including his quiet involvement with baseball thereafter.
Many interviews enrich the narrative, as we get a sense of what people thought at each stage of Koufax' career. We also get a sense of the pitcher as a person--and, for the most part, he comes off pretty well.
In short, a nice sports biography, with considerable emphasis on Koufax the person rather than just Koufax the pitcher.
Some pluses: a nice interview that Sports Illustrated carried out with Leavy; Koufax's pitching statistics from his all too brief career (on page 276).
August 6, 2010
Simply put, a great biography. I came away from it feeling like I knew as much about Sandy Koufax as I could possibly know without knowing him personally, like I knew where he came from and how he got where he got to, and how he felt about the journey. With (generally) stylish writing as part of the mix, a better achievement in biography seems difficult to imagine, particularly for a subject as elusive as Koufax. This is a splendid book.
December 12, 2012
A great book about a great pitcher and a good guy. Koufax was so much better than anyone else in the league there's only ever been one pitcher that has approximated his success over a shot time period. Well written in a clever format. If you like baseball, and like the Koufax era, you'll enjoy this book.
May 14, 2014
Gave up after twenty pages -- listening to everyone who grew up on Koufax's block talk about how wonderful the "old neighborhood" was made me want to throw up. It was like a circle-jerk.
April 5, 2022
This was a fun and interesting biography of the incomparable Koufax and a trip down distant memory lane for me. Of course the Dodgers left NY in 1957 and in 1962 the Mets were born to bring National League ball back to New York. I became dimly aware of major league baseball around this time and remember the Dodgers sweeping the powerful and hated (already) Yankees in the 1963 World Series in which Koufax was amazing (won the MVP and set a then one game strikeout record for the WS). I attended my first MLB game the next year at brand-new Shea Stadium. I regret that I never got to see the Mets at the Polo Grounds not did I ever see Koufax pitch. Intertwined with the more standard biography is her retelling of his perfect game, on Sept. 9, 1965 versus the Cubs. It was more than a 'simple' perfect game because the opposing pitcher (Bob Hendley) was nearly perfect as well with only 1 bloop hit and an unearned run against. The game's scoresheet is even reproduced on the inside cover! She does an ok job, though with some excess, of placing baseball in the social context of a changing America with frequent reference to the well-worn '60s events and themes. Where she goes off the rails some is her near obsession with Sandy Koufax as the Jewish hero. There is every bit of evidence (in her book) that he was mostly indifferent to religion but for many American Jews he was apparently viewed as an icon to overcome stereotypes and she repeats this, well repeatedly. Still he comes off as a fine man of great integrity, as shown by his warm treatment of black and young players coming into the big leagues. Still Koufax the man remains a bit of a mystery which he apparently was even at the time, but no can deny his greatness at the top of his meteoric arc. You can only wonder how great he could have been if modern medical treatments were available (MRIs, arthroscopy, etc.). Of course that could be said of many greats of the past, certainly Mickey Mantle comes to mind.
February 9, 2020
(3.5 stars)
I'm old enough to remember the last few seasons of Sandy Koufax's spectacular, injury-shortened pitching career, so reading anything about him is a bit of an exercise in nostalgia for me. And so it was just fine for me that Jane Leavy's book about Koufax is simply drenched in nostalgia. It's certainly a bit hagiographic as well, which was also okay with me. Not that I idolized Koufax as much as some of my baseball fan friends -- or for that matter as much as at least 99% of the folks Leavy talks to and quotes in this book -- but I was more than ready to be convinced by Leavy that Koufax truly was a unique type of athletic star. He didn't just retire at the height of his success, and more or less shun celebrity, but in Leavy's account, he also "refused to cannibalize himself, to live off his past. He remains unavailable, unassailable, [and] unsullied."
Because Leavy mostly presents Koufax as a relic from a bygone era, an exemplar of virtues like decency and integrity, its interesting to think about the "Legacy" that's promised by the book's subtitle. It's not a legacy on a grand scale, in the sense of influencing the game of baseball or the culture at large. Certainly, in the nearly two decades since Leavy wrote the book (in 2002), the cult of celebrity in the sports world (as in the rest of the world), the need for everyone to cash in to the max on their fame, has only grown. No, it seems like what she's after in describing Koufax's legacy is what he gave to so many individuals -- his Brooklyn boyhood friends, his Dodger teammates, and the innumerable fans who admired and were inspired by him.
I'm old enough to remember the last few seasons of Sandy Koufax's spectacular, injury-shortened pitching career, so reading anything about him is a bit of an exercise in nostalgia for me. And so it was just fine for me that Jane Leavy's book about Koufax is simply drenched in nostalgia. It's certainly a bit hagiographic as well, which was also okay with me. Not that I idolized Koufax as much as some of my baseball fan friends -- or for that matter as much as at least 99% of the folks Leavy talks to and quotes in this book -- but I was more than ready to be convinced by Leavy that Koufax truly was a unique type of athletic star. He didn't just retire at the height of his success, and more or less shun celebrity, but in Leavy's account, he also "refused to cannibalize himself, to live off his past. He remains unavailable, unassailable, [and] unsullied."
Because Leavy mostly presents Koufax as a relic from a bygone era, an exemplar of virtues like decency and integrity, its interesting to think about the "Legacy" that's promised by the book's subtitle. It's not a legacy on a grand scale, in the sense of influencing the game of baseball or the culture at large. Certainly, in the nearly two decades since Leavy wrote the book (in 2002), the cult of celebrity in the sports world (as in the rest of the world), the need for everyone to cash in to the max on their fame, has only grown. No, it seems like what she's after in describing Koufax's legacy is what he gave to so many individuals -- his Brooklyn boyhood friends, his Dodger teammates, and the innumerable fans who admired and were inspired by him.
November 18, 2018
As a baseball fan I have high expectations when it comes to engaging in text surrounding the game. This book just really didn't work for me. It took the story of a pitcher by the name of Sandy Koufax, who only had a twelve year career with the Dodgers, and really gave detailed descriptions of things that just weren't important to me as a reader. This was problematic in my opinion because as Sandy had such a short career in baseball, there was no way Leavy was going to have an entire story to tell over about 300 pages of writing, especially if he isn't even going to write about Sandy's childhood that much. I mean, come on! It's a biography, there should've been more information about the man's life rather than his charitable events that he does today and his little golf tournaments that he plays in. I lnow a lot of people who play golf that are retired and participate in charitable events, so I don't want to hear that kind of stuff when I'm reading a biography. Tell me about how he "got there" in "the spotlight" abd about his success as a Jewish athlete in America, you know, instead of just rambling about his little injuries and post baseball life. I must say I enjoyed the chapters surrounding his perfect game against the Cubs, however, as Leavy did a good job bringing Snady's historic game to life on the pages. Overall, not my favorite.
August 20, 2018
I was just a kid when Sandy Koufax was the greatest pitcher of his era. I am told I was taken to see him pitch a night game against the Mets, although I recall the game, not the lean, fireballer on the mound. But I have since come to know his legacy and impact on the game.
I've been meaning to read Jean Leavy's thoughtful biography since it was released in 2002 and am glad I finally got to it. COnsidering Koufax didn't actively participate, this is a well-handled look into the life and events that shaped him. In some ways, he's a living Rorschach test as people see what they want in him, but the accomplishments more than speak for themselves.
It's a good look at what baseball was like in the 1950s and 1960s, as it began to morph just as he was exiting. He was overlooked and underused early on, delaying his evolution, but once he got regular work, he quickly dominated the game in an era when there were many excellent pitchers and batters at work.
There were dozens of people interviewed providing a well-rounded look at the athlete, which made for entertaining reading.
I've been meaning to read Jean Leavy's thoughtful biography since it was released in 2002 and am glad I finally got to it. COnsidering Koufax didn't actively participate, this is a well-handled look into the life and events that shaped him. In some ways, he's a living Rorschach test as people see what they want in him, but the accomplishments more than speak for themselves.
It's a good look at what baseball was like in the 1950s and 1960s, as it began to morph just as he was exiting. He was overlooked and underused early on, delaying his evolution, but once he got regular work, he quickly dominated the game in an era when there were many excellent pitchers and batters at work.
There were dozens of people interviewed providing a well-rounded look at the athlete, which made for entertaining reading.
December 13, 2022
Meh!
I grew up following Sandy Koufax’s illustrious career as a pitcher for the Brooklyn (and then Los Angeles) Dodgers but never felt I knew enough about Koufax The Man, and was hoping Jane Leavy’s book would enlighten me on what I wanted to know. Unfortunately, this did not turn out to be the case. Leavy seemed to be so infatuated with Koufax prior to writing this book that she filled the book much too heavily with positive quotes from a myriad of baseball players he teamed with and competed against, as well as from regular people he met in his life. As such, I felt I got a very one-sided perspective of Koufax, and one that was too limited due to Leavy spending a seemingly insufficient amount of time interviewing Koufax directly. As such, I found the book to be a very slow read and a disappointing biography of one of baseball’s living legends.
I grew up following Sandy Koufax’s illustrious career as a pitcher for the Brooklyn (and then Los Angeles) Dodgers but never felt I knew enough about Koufax The Man, and was hoping Jane Leavy’s book would enlighten me on what I wanted to know. Unfortunately, this did not turn out to be the case. Leavy seemed to be so infatuated with Koufax prior to writing this book that she filled the book much too heavily with positive quotes from a myriad of baseball players he teamed with and competed against, as well as from regular people he met in his life. As such, I felt I got a very one-sided perspective of Koufax, and one that was too limited due to Leavy spending a seemingly insufficient amount of time interviewing Koufax directly. As such, I found the book to be a very slow read and a disappointing biography of one of baseball’s living legends.
July 10, 2023
Sandy Koufax sounds like he was an exceptional person and baseball player. Having read Leavy's book on Mickey Mantel I was a bit disappointed in this book. However, Koufax didn't get into the shenanigans that Mantle did. It is sad that arthritis ended his career too soon - at the age of 30. He was also a very private person and didn't draw attention to himself. I'm glad this book was written and I had a chance to learn more about this great ball player.
How did this book find me? It was a book on baseball and recommend by a Facebook Baseball group.
How did this book find me? It was a book on baseball and recommend by a Facebook Baseball group.
August 3, 2016
This is a very interesting book that tells the story of the great Sandy Koufax from the beginning. It tells a story that you wouldn't expect would come from such a dominant pitcher in baseball's history. The main subject is about the fantastic pitching ability of Sandy and how he was able to perfect his craft in a way that was ahead of the science of the sport of baseball. Most observations have been about the key points in Sandy's mechanics and how they all work together to create an end result that blew everyone away. It also tells a great a story of how to overcome adversity and become a legend in the world. This book deals a lot with anti-Semitism in America and how it affected baseball and its few Jewish players.
My experience with the book was great! I loved it because I learned so much, not only about Sandy Koufax but about how to better my own pitching mechanics. I think the author wrote the book with an end to beginning feel because she wanted to start the book off with memories and stories of how Sandy was so great and then she could go into depth on how he got to the top. The language that the author uses is very passionate. It is as if she is writing with all the awe and amazement that comes with seeing Sandy for the first time. Also the author not only writes with her point of view but with the points of view of the many players that Sandy played with and against all throughout his life. Everyone that is quoted in the book is talking about Sandy in a positive and amazed way.
"Koufax's fastball inspired scientific debate, pitting the empiricism of the batting eye against scientific principle. The laws of physics and logic dictate that an object hurtling through space must lose height and momentum. Anyone can make a Whiffle ball rise, sure. But a man standing on a fifteen-inch-high mound of dirt throwing a five-ounce horsehide sphere downhill? 'Rise, my butt,' Roseboro, the skeptic says." This passage is important because it shows that Sandy Koufax was able was able to perfect his pitching in such a way that it defied physics and caused arguments in the scientific world of baseball. Also he made even the most sane and perfect sighted men go crazy whenever he pitched and all you could do was say, wow, let me see that again!
"Jackie Robinson, then in his final season, clashed with Alston on many subjects, including Koufax. Villante, who was affiliated with the Dodgers throughout the fifties and sixties , said, 'The one thing about Jackie was, no matter who the hell you were, Jackie appreciated talent. If you were good, he was on your side. I think he saw that in Sandy... Jackie always thought Alston was dumb. And the very fact that Sandy would every so often show this terrific flash of brilliance and pitch a terrific game and not pitch again for thirty days would add to Jackie saying how dumb this guy was.'" This passage shows significance to me because even though Sandy wasn't at peak performance yet and even though no one high up in the Dodger's organization trusted him enough to pitch regularly, a baseball great believed in him and protected him and pushed him to achieve the greatness he knew he had in him.
I loved it because I got to learn so much about one of the greatest, if not the greatest, pitchers of all time. It was really interesting to see how Sandy developed himself into the pitching phenomenon that he was and also into the great, honest and kind man that everyone looked up to. I would highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone that has any desire to learn about Sandy Koufax, to further their general knowledge of the time of baseball displayed in the book, or someone who wants to read about the story of a person who fought a hard battle against religious adversity and would like to learn how to overcome their own.
What I have learned from this book is that anyone can achieve something if they put their mind to it and have the strong will to compete for the their goal and get on top. This book shows you that even through the toughest times of adversity; the strong will excel and rise above those that torment him. This book deals a lot with anti-Semitism in America and how it affected baseball and its few Jewish players. The consequences of this book are aimed more toward the people that taunted and belittled Sandy Koufax and his fellow Jewish, black and Hispanic ball players because they showed that the hateful words had little effect on them and they rose to become some of the best, if not the best, players at their position. Even though Sandy was looked down upon by the Dodgers' manager and fans, he kept with his craft and perfected it so when he got his chance he would show everyone that they were wrong and that he couldn't be pushed aside. These issues do not affect my life personally now or probably not even in the future but that doesn't mean it doesn't affect other people today or affect them in their futures. I wish people wouldn't disparage others because of how they look or because of what they believe in because in the end the people they make fun of are usually on a higher level than they are whether it's in a particular sport or occupation. They are always on a higher level than they are in a humanity stand point.
My experience with the book was great! I loved it because I learned so much, not only about Sandy Koufax but about how to better my own pitching mechanics. I think the author wrote the book with an end to beginning feel because she wanted to start the book off with memories and stories of how Sandy was so great and then she could go into depth on how he got to the top. The language that the author uses is very passionate. It is as if she is writing with all the awe and amazement that comes with seeing Sandy for the first time. Also the author not only writes with her point of view but with the points of view of the many players that Sandy played with and against all throughout his life. Everyone that is quoted in the book is talking about Sandy in a positive and amazed way.
"Koufax's fastball inspired scientific debate, pitting the empiricism of the batting eye against scientific principle. The laws of physics and logic dictate that an object hurtling through space must lose height and momentum. Anyone can make a Whiffle ball rise, sure. But a man standing on a fifteen-inch-high mound of dirt throwing a five-ounce horsehide sphere downhill? 'Rise, my butt,' Roseboro, the skeptic says." This passage is important because it shows that Sandy Koufax was able was able to perfect his pitching in such a way that it defied physics and caused arguments in the scientific world of baseball. Also he made even the most sane and perfect sighted men go crazy whenever he pitched and all you could do was say, wow, let me see that again!
"Jackie Robinson, then in his final season, clashed with Alston on many subjects, including Koufax. Villante, who was affiliated with the Dodgers throughout the fifties and sixties , said, 'The one thing about Jackie was, no matter who the hell you were, Jackie appreciated talent. If you were good, he was on your side. I think he saw that in Sandy... Jackie always thought Alston was dumb. And the very fact that Sandy would every so often show this terrific flash of brilliance and pitch a terrific game and not pitch again for thirty days would add to Jackie saying how dumb this guy was.'" This passage shows significance to me because even though Sandy wasn't at peak performance yet and even though no one high up in the Dodger's organization trusted him enough to pitch regularly, a baseball great believed in him and protected him and pushed him to achieve the greatness he knew he had in him.
I loved it because I got to learn so much about one of the greatest, if not the greatest, pitchers of all time. It was really interesting to see how Sandy developed himself into the pitching phenomenon that he was and also into the great, honest and kind man that everyone looked up to. I would highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone that has any desire to learn about Sandy Koufax, to further their general knowledge of the time of baseball displayed in the book, or someone who wants to read about the story of a person who fought a hard battle against religious adversity and would like to learn how to overcome their own.
What I have learned from this book is that anyone can achieve something if they put their mind to it and have the strong will to compete for the their goal and get on top. This book shows you that even through the toughest times of adversity; the strong will excel and rise above those that torment him. This book deals a lot with anti-Semitism in America and how it affected baseball and its few Jewish players. The consequences of this book are aimed more toward the people that taunted and belittled Sandy Koufax and his fellow Jewish, black and Hispanic ball players because they showed that the hateful words had little effect on them and they rose to become some of the best, if not the best, players at their position. Even though Sandy was looked down upon by the Dodgers' manager and fans, he kept with his craft and perfected it so when he got his chance he would show everyone that they were wrong and that he couldn't be pushed aside. These issues do not affect my life personally now or probably not even in the future but that doesn't mean it doesn't affect other people today or affect them in their futures. I wish people wouldn't disparage others because of how they look or because of what they believe in because in the end the people they make fun of are usually on a higher level than they are whether it's in a particular sport or occupation. They are always on a higher level than they are in a humanity stand point.
June 6, 2021
I really can't add to the praise others gave to this book. A very in depth portrait of one of the most private players ever. I really enjoyed the chapter about when he and Drysdale held out and how that was so important for future players. It was interesting learning how he was handled when he first got to the Dodgers and how manager Walter Alston wouldn't use him very much. It was almost like he had a grudge against him. I think Leavy really got to know Koufax despite him not being terribly forthcoming.
April 23, 2021
I’ve read all three of Leary’s baseball biographies, Mantle and Ruth being the others, and I thought this was the weakest. But not by much, and perhaps mostly because Koufax guarded his privacy and emotions the most. The book strayed from chronological order a bit, making it a challenge to follow in parts. But, overall well written and compelling, especially the narrative of Koufax’s 1965 perfect game.
September 12, 2020
Halfway through the book I told my friend that the only words I had about it, and about Koufax, were "It's so much". "He's so much." *Edit: meaning that this book, in some ways, was indescribably emotional and it really just. Hit. The right spots emotionally! Love a brilliant and loving and wonderful and in pain baseball god.
I didn't grow up a baseball fan. In fact, before the beginning of this year I'd never given it a second thought, much less knew who Sandy Koufax was. But uh. This book was just. A Real Lot. The best biography I could have asked for.
*Edit: Might re-read it after I watch his perfect game and cry
I didn't grow up a baseball fan. In fact, before the beginning of this year I'd never given it a second thought, much less knew who Sandy Koufax was. But uh. This book was just. A Real Lot. The best biography I could have asked for.
*Edit: Might re-read it after I watch his perfect game and cry
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