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Uppity: My Untold Story About The Games People Play
There are very few major personalities in the world of sports who have so much to say about our National Pastime. And even fewer who are as well respected as Bill White.
Bill White, who's now in his mid 70s, was an All-Star first baseman for many years with the New York Giants, St.Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies before launching a stellar broadcasting career with the New York Yankees for 18 years. He left the broadcast booth to become the President of the National League for five years.
A true pioneer as an African-American athlete, sportscaster, and top baseball executive, White has written his long-awaited autobiography in which he will be candid, open, and as always, most forthcoming about his life in baseball. Along the way, White shares never-before-told stories about his long working relationship with Phil Rizzutto, insights on George Steinbrenner, Barry Bonds, Reggie Jackson, Thurman Munson, Bob Gibson, Bart Giamatti, Fay Vincent, and scores of other top baseball names and Hall of Famers.
Best of all, White built his career on being outspoken, and the years fortunately have not mellowed him. Uppity is a baseball memoir that baseball fans everywhere will be buzzing about.
Bill White, who's now in his mid 70s, was an All-Star first baseman for many years with the New York Giants, St.Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies before launching a stellar broadcasting career with the New York Yankees for 18 years. He left the broadcast booth to become the President of the National League for five years.
A true pioneer as an African-American athlete, sportscaster, and top baseball executive, White has written his long-awaited autobiography in which he will be candid, open, and as always, most forthcoming about his life in baseball. Along the way, White shares never-before-told stories about his long working relationship with Phil Rizzutto, insights on George Steinbrenner, Barry Bonds, Reggie Jackson, Thurman Munson, Bob Gibson, Bart Giamatti, Fay Vincent, and scores of other top baseball names and Hall of Famers.
Best of all, White built his career on being outspoken, and the years fortunately have not mellowed him. Uppity is a baseball memoir that baseball fans everywhere will be buzzing about.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2011
70 people are currently reading
145 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
November 9, 2014
Just suppose Major League Baseball gave you a gold card encased in a leather wallet that will serve as your lifetime free pass to any baseball game in any stadium in any city in America. Would you use it? Not if you’re Bill White.
In this sports biography, White tells you why he hardly ever goes to baseball games anymore. This is the same Bill White that spent thirteen years in the major leagues, played in 1,673 regular season baseball games, not to mention high school, college, minor league and spring training competitions. On top of that, for eighteen years as a sports broadcaster, White watched almost three thousand baseball games. Now he can do all that for free, but chooses not to.
A former first baseman for the Saint Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies, White pulls no punches. He documents his struggles as a minor league player in the racially segregated American south. He takes us through those years in the majors, up to the broadcast booth and all the way up to the front office as president of the National League.
What makes White’s story different from all the other athletes turned authors is White’s commitment to his “reputation for integrity and honesty, brutally blunt honesty when necessary.” White says he values that “more than anything else.”
If you grew up in the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s, you remember Bill White and all of the boyhood heroes he played with and against; Mays, Aaron, Howard, Boyer, Gibson, Flood, etc., etc. Taking this trip back in time with the boys of summer is to relive your own childhood one more time. Or, in the alleged words of Yogi Berra, “déjà vu all over again.” Reason enough to get Uppity!
In this sports biography, White tells you why he hardly ever goes to baseball games anymore. This is the same Bill White that spent thirteen years in the major leagues, played in 1,673 regular season baseball games, not to mention high school, college, minor league and spring training competitions. On top of that, for eighteen years as a sports broadcaster, White watched almost three thousand baseball games. Now he can do all that for free, but chooses not to.
A former first baseman for the Saint Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies, White pulls no punches. He documents his struggles as a minor league player in the racially segregated American south. He takes us through those years in the majors, up to the broadcast booth and all the way up to the front office as president of the National League.
What makes White’s story different from all the other athletes turned authors is White’s commitment to his “reputation for integrity and honesty, brutally blunt honesty when necessary.” White says he values that “more than anything else.”
If you grew up in the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s, you remember Bill White and all of the boyhood heroes he played with and against; Mays, Aaron, Howard, Boyer, Gibson, Flood, etc., etc. Taking this trip back in time with the boys of summer is to relive your own childhood one more time. Or, in the alleged words of Yogi Berra, “déjà vu all over again.” Reason enough to get Uppity!
April 5, 2012
Before reading this book, I didn't know who Bill White was. People who aren't baseball fans can enjoy this book. It's written in a charming, upbeat, straightforward manner that's easy for anyone to digest. The book is full of inside interesting facts and happenstances and insights into people of the game, from players to owners to broadcasters. Lovely book. What I loved most is Bill White's attitude. Always. About everything. He's a man of integrity.
Bill speaks about the early days of his playing career, when black players couldn't eat or stay overnight at the same places the team did. It must have been unimaginably difficult. The racism of those days is a dark, unhumane chapter in American history. Although I experienced racism firsthand moving from Connecticut to New Orleans in the early 1960's, -- and it was appalling to even a young teen -- I'd never heard about the atrocities of baseball until this book. I'd heard about top name black entertainers dealing with similar situations. Thank goodness for sports and the military for helping pioneer integration.
America has made big strides but still has a distance to cover as regards racism. The book is about Bill White's experiences as a player, broadcaster, National League President, and his personal observances and reflections. There's quite a lot of baseball history here.
Bill, if you read this, I know nearly nothing about top name entertainers, sports figures, or anybody else who's famous. They aren't part of my life, and it's enough to keep up with those who are. Like you, I try to enjoy my life and do what's right. Maybe that's one reason I loved the book. It's not a literary work, but it's a story every person can read, told in an easygoing style. It was a welcome respite from a difficult book I'm reading currently.
Although I live with an avid baseball fan and have attended numerous Cardinals games over the years, I don't usually read "baseball books". This one I wanted to read before it was released, and it was well worth it.
Bill speaks about the early days of his playing career, when black players couldn't eat or stay overnight at the same places the team did. It must have been unimaginably difficult. The racism of those days is a dark, unhumane chapter in American history. Although I experienced racism firsthand moving from Connecticut to New Orleans in the early 1960's, -- and it was appalling to even a young teen -- I'd never heard about the atrocities of baseball until this book. I'd heard about top name black entertainers dealing with similar situations. Thank goodness for sports and the military for helping pioneer integration.
America has made big strides but still has a distance to cover as regards racism. The book is about Bill White's experiences as a player, broadcaster, National League President, and his personal observances and reflections. There's quite a lot of baseball history here.
Bill, if you read this, I know nearly nothing about top name entertainers, sports figures, or anybody else who's famous. They aren't part of my life, and it's enough to keep up with those who are. Like you, I try to enjoy my life and do what's right. Maybe that's one reason I loved the book. It's not a literary work, but it's a story every person can read, told in an easygoing style. It was a welcome respite from a difficult book I'm reading currently.
Although I live with an avid baseball fan and have attended numerous Cardinals games over the years, I don't usually read "baseball books". This one I wanted to read before it was released, and it was well worth it.
June 2, 2018
Anyone that desires to say that privilege hasn’t uplifted, enriched, educated , promoted etc. , White People in the USA is obtuse deliberately. Being born in the 50’s as a person of color in the USA , reading is one of my passions. Never reading about yourself can make one question their own identity, and contributions. Which I now know was done purposefully.
My prayer is that all public schools paid for by our tax dollars, in all communities., can never receive there financial allotment unless they include books, by African Americans. No more excuses. Deception and omission is a dangerous ingredient. They make White People believe the lies and Liars, that say we don’t matter. It’s time to Know the truth, so that we all can be made free. Thanks Bill, for another truthful story.
My prayer is that all public schools paid for by our tax dollars, in all communities., can never receive there financial allotment unless they include books, by African Americans. No more excuses. Deception and omission is a dangerous ingredient. They make White People believe the lies and Liars, that say we don’t matter. It’s time to Know the truth, so that we all can be made free. Thanks Bill, for another truthful story.
September 6, 2022
A very interesting story of Bill White's career in baseball. A focus on the people he interacted with in his playing days, broadcasting days and NL President days. It is too bad there are not more individuals in baseball who look at the big picture of baseball.
March 15, 2020
An excellent tale of a successful life..
Bill white has done it all and shows how in this excellent autobiography. Free m his very humble beginnings to the very top of his field . At times the book is hilarious and touching a worthy trip to get on ..
Bill white has done it all and shows how in this excellent autobiography. Free m his very humble beginnings to the very top of his field . At times the book is hilarious and touching a worthy trip to get on ..
August 20, 2025
A different sports biography . Bill White started his professional baseball career with the New York Giants. Besides playing baseball, he announced baseball games and later President of the National League. He played during the 1950's and 60's. He discusses the discrimination inside baseball and out, he writes about Pete Rose and the steroid era. He put into words many of my thoughts about the difference in baseball from my childhood to the current day.
.
.
August 31, 2022
I decided to read this book after watching the History Channel documentary After Jackie, which featured Bill White, Bob Gibson and Curt Flood of the St. Louis Cardinals. White had an incredible career in baseball. He played first base the New York Giants, the St. Louis Cardinals, and the Philadelphia Phillies from 1956 to 1969, winning six Gold Glove Awards, and was selected to the All-Star Game five times. After his playing days, he had a second career in the media, including serving as an announcer on New York Yankees games on radio and television from 1971 to 1989. Then, from 1989 to 1994 he served as President of Major League Baseball’s National League. In 2020, White was elected into the Cardinals Hall of Fame.
White was born in Paxton, Florida, near the Florida-Alabama border, in 1934. His mother was only 16. His father left town shortly after White was born and played no role in his upbringing or his life. In 1937, White and his mother boarded a train to Warren, Ohio, which he has always considered home.
White was an honor student and graduated second in his high school class of 120 students in 1952. However, until the day his mother died in 2001, despite all his accomplishments in professional baseball and beyond, his mother never quite forgave him for not finishing college.
He writes of encountering racism while playing minor league baseball. He was called “the n-word” for the first time in his first road game with the Danville Leafs, based in Danville, Virginia. He was the only black player in the entire Carolina League. The baseball stadium was the only place in Danville where White was allowed to interact with his white teammates. He writes that for a black man in the South, minor league baseball was a lonely place to work. The five months he spent playing in the Carolina League was probably the worst time of his life, a time of loneliness and frustration and rage.
He played his first game in the major leagues on May 7, 1956 against the Cardinals in St. Louis, hitting a home run in his first at bat.
He writes of Willie Mays (who wrote the “Foreword” to the book), being a mentor to him.
White was then drafted into the United States Army and missed a season and a half. When he returned to the Giants, Orlando Cepeda had replaced him at first base. White was then traded to the Cardinals. White writes that the move would eventually turn out to be one of the best moves of his life.
He writes of the racism in St. Petersburg, Florida during Spring Training, which was addressed at length in the After Jackie documentary.
His writes of getting his own show in 1965, The Bill White Show, a five-minute segment that aired on Saturday afternoons before Cardinals’ home games.
White would be traded to the Philadelphia Phillies following the 1965 season. He would play three seasons for the Phillies. He would retire as a player after the 1969 season.
He then began his career as a Yankees broadcaster, working with Phil Rizzuto. White writes that the years he spent Rizzuto were some of the best of his life. He would leave broadcasting in 1989 after being named President of the National League.
He writes of his divorce from his wife Mildred, indicating that she was a good wife and mother to their five children, but that they had grown apart over the years.
White writes of his positive relationship with Baseball Commissioner Bart Giamatti and his strained relationship with Commissioner Fay Vincent. He writes of his relationships with umpires and owners, and at length about expanding the number of teams in the National League. He states that guiding the National League through the expansion was his biggest accomplishment as National League President.
After thirteen years as a player, eighteen years as a broadcaster, and five years as National League president, White walked away from baseball. He rarely goes to games anymore, indicating that baseball is not his game anymore. He writes that to him it has become more of an entertainment than a competition.
Throughout this excellent book - which contains some adult language - White openly shares his opinions, which I found refreshing.
White was born in Paxton, Florida, near the Florida-Alabama border, in 1934. His mother was only 16. His father left town shortly after White was born and played no role in his upbringing or his life. In 1937, White and his mother boarded a train to Warren, Ohio, which he has always considered home.
White was an honor student and graduated second in his high school class of 120 students in 1952. However, until the day his mother died in 2001, despite all his accomplishments in professional baseball and beyond, his mother never quite forgave him for not finishing college.
He writes of encountering racism while playing minor league baseball. He was called “the n-word” for the first time in his first road game with the Danville Leafs, based in Danville, Virginia. He was the only black player in the entire Carolina League. The baseball stadium was the only place in Danville where White was allowed to interact with his white teammates. He writes that for a black man in the South, minor league baseball was a lonely place to work. The five months he spent playing in the Carolina League was probably the worst time of his life, a time of loneliness and frustration and rage.
He played his first game in the major leagues on May 7, 1956 against the Cardinals in St. Louis, hitting a home run in his first at bat.
He writes of Willie Mays (who wrote the “Foreword” to the book), being a mentor to him.
White was then drafted into the United States Army and missed a season and a half. When he returned to the Giants, Orlando Cepeda had replaced him at first base. White was then traded to the Cardinals. White writes that the move would eventually turn out to be one of the best moves of his life.
He writes of the racism in St. Petersburg, Florida during Spring Training, which was addressed at length in the After Jackie documentary.
His writes of getting his own show in 1965, The Bill White Show, a five-minute segment that aired on Saturday afternoons before Cardinals’ home games.
White would be traded to the Philadelphia Phillies following the 1965 season. He would play three seasons for the Phillies. He would retire as a player after the 1969 season.
He then began his career as a Yankees broadcaster, working with Phil Rizzuto. White writes that the years he spent Rizzuto were some of the best of his life. He would leave broadcasting in 1989 after being named President of the National League.
He writes of his divorce from his wife Mildred, indicating that she was a good wife and mother to their five children, but that they had grown apart over the years.
White writes of his positive relationship with Baseball Commissioner Bart Giamatti and his strained relationship with Commissioner Fay Vincent. He writes of his relationships with umpires and owners, and at length about expanding the number of teams in the National League. He states that guiding the National League through the expansion was his biggest accomplishment as National League President.
After thirteen years as a player, eighteen years as a broadcaster, and five years as National League president, White walked away from baseball. He rarely goes to games anymore, indicating that baseball is not his game anymore. He writes that to him it has become more of an entertainment than a competition.
Throughout this excellent book - which contains some adult language - White openly shares his opinions, which I found refreshing.
April 15, 2023
RICK “SHAQ” GOLDSTEIN SAYS: “GRUMPY”
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have read literally hundreds upon hundreds of baseball books in my life and this is the first one I have ever read in which the subject of the baseball biography didn’t proclaim an exhilarating love of the game. To quote Hall Of Fame catcher Roy Campanella, : "YOU HAVE TO BE A MAN TO BE A BIG LEAGUE BALLPLAYER... BUT YOU HAVE TO HAVE A LOT OF LITTLE BOY IN YOU TOO! Author Bill White, after not only playing in his first Major League game… but after hitting a home run in his first Major League at bat… states: “PEOPLE SOMETIMES ASK ME HOW IT FELT TO TAKE THE FIELD FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A MAJOR LEAGUER’S UNIFORM”… “THEY’RE SURPRISED WHEN I TELL THEM THAT FOR ME, THAT FIRST GAME IN THE BIG LEAGUES WAS JUST ANOTHER DAY AT WORK-AND THAT FIRST HOME RUN WAS NOTHING SPECIAL. I DON’T MEAN TO DISAPPOINT THEM. BUT IT ALL HAS TO DO WITH THE WAY I FELT ABOUT BASEBALL AT THE TIME.” Love of the game had nothing to do with it for White… as he blatantly writes: ‘BUT I DIDN’T LOVE BASEBALL. BECAUSE I KNEW THAT BASEBALL WOULD NEVER LOVE ME BACK.”
White’s autobiography starts with a look forward with the retired Bill White who had amassed seven gold glove awards at first base (Despite the last page in the book entitled “ABOUT THE AUTHORS” mistakenly stating he received six gold glove awards.) along with having been a baseball broadcaster for nineteen years and president of the National League from 1989 to 1994… angrily turning down a proposed award dinner with the owners by saying: “I’M NOT GOING TO THAT DINNER. YOU CAN TELL THE OWNERS I SAID THE HELL WITH THEM.”
In between all that unpleasant venom is what at times is an informative and entertaining read. The ugly racial hatred that White along with many other men had to face from the time Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball… is as always reprehensible. But it seems even when prejudice isn’t involved… White is never happy unless he’s fishing. I do give him credit though… he does not pull any punches when he voices his displeasure with everyone from former baseball commissioner Fay Vincent… whom he makes quite clear, that in his opinion, was totally… and I mean totally… unqualified for the job. To head of the umpire’s union Richie Phillips… to Bob Howsam of the Cardinals… and the list goes on and on. Unfortunately there is more grumpiness in this book than there is titillating inside baseball info. One of the lonely baseball nuggets involved the discussion of bean ball pitchers in the sixties. “ALTHOUGH BOB (GIBSON) HAD A REPUTATION AS THE MEANEST PITCHER IN BASEBALL-DICK ALLEN ONCE SAID HE WOULD “KNOCK YOU DOWN AND THEN MEET YOU AT THE PLATE TO SEE IF YOU WANTED TO MAKE SOMETHING OUT OF IT”-BOB WASN’T REALLY BASEBALL’S PRIMARY “HEADHUNTER,” A PITCHER WHO ROUTINELY THREW BEANBALLS. HE ACTUALLY HIT FEWER BATTERS THAN DON DRYSDALE.”
The one extended portion of the book where *GRUMPY-WHITE* allowed sunshine to actually shine on the pages, was the portion of the book regarding his longtime broadcast partner Phil Rizzuto. The nuances and friendship of “The Scooter” are hilarious and touching. Everything from Rizzuto’s habit of leaving games early… to making unpaid for… on air plugs of restaurants that “pleased” Rizzuto… to the most hilarious part of the entire book… the descriptions of Rizzuto’s fear of thunder and lightning!
In summary, it was quite surprising how unhappy Bill White was with the game of baseball and many of the people that passed his way.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have read literally hundreds upon hundreds of baseball books in my life and this is the first one I have ever read in which the subject of the baseball biography didn’t proclaim an exhilarating love of the game. To quote Hall Of Fame catcher Roy Campanella, : "YOU HAVE TO BE A MAN TO BE A BIG LEAGUE BALLPLAYER... BUT YOU HAVE TO HAVE A LOT OF LITTLE BOY IN YOU TOO! Author Bill White, after not only playing in his first Major League game… but after hitting a home run in his first Major League at bat… states: “PEOPLE SOMETIMES ASK ME HOW IT FELT TO TAKE THE FIELD FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A MAJOR LEAGUER’S UNIFORM”… “THEY’RE SURPRISED WHEN I TELL THEM THAT FOR ME, THAT FIRST GAME IN THE BIG LEAGUES WAS JUST ANOTHER DAY AT WORK-AND THAT FIRST HOME RUN WAS NOTHING SPECIAL. I DON’T MEAN TO DISAPPOINT THEM. BUT IT ALL HAS TO DO WITH THE WAY I FELT ABOUT BASEBALL AT THE TIME.” Love of the game had nothing to do with it for White… as he blatantly writes: ‘BUT I DIDN’T LOVE BASEBALL. BECAUSE I KNEW THAT BASEBALL WOULD NEVER LOVE ME BACK.”
White’s autobiography starts with a look forward with the retired Bill White who had amassed seven gold glove awards at first base (Despite the last page in the book entitled “ABOUT THE AUTHORS” mistakenly stating he received six gold glove awards.) along with having been a baseball broadcaster for nineteen years and president of the National League from 1989 to 1994… angrily turning down a proposed award dinner with the owners by saying: “I’M NOT GOING TO THAT DINNER. YOU CAN TELL THE OWNERS I SAID THE HELL WITH THEM.”
In between all that unpleasant venom is what at times is an informative and entertaining read. The ugly racial hatred that White along with many other men had to face from the time Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in baseball… is as always reprehensible. But it seems even when prejudice isn’t involved… White is never happy unless he’s fishing. I do give him credit though… he does not pull any punches when he voices his displeasure with everyone from former baseball commissioner Fay Vincent… whom he makes quite clear, that in his opinion, was totally… and I mean totally… unqualified for the job. To head of the umpire’s union Richie Phillips… to Bob Howsam of the Cardinals… and the list goes on and on. Unfortunately there is more grumpiness in this book than there is titillating inside baseball info. One of the lonely baseball nuggets involved the discussion of bean ball pitchers in the sixties. “ALTHOUGH BOB (GIBSON) HAD A REPUTATION AS THE MEANEST PITCHER IN BASEBALL-DICK ALLEN ONCE SAID HE WOULD “KNOCK YOU DOWN AND THEN MEET YOU AT THE PLATE TO SEE IF YOU WANTED TO MAKE SOMETHING OUT OF IT”-BOB WASN’T REALLY BASEBALL’S PRIMARY “HEADHUNTER,” A PITCHER WHO ROUTINELY THREW BEANBALLS. HE ACTUALLY HIT FEWER BATTERS THAN DON DRYSDALE.”
The one extended portion of the book where *GRUMPY-WHITE* allowed sunshine to actually shine on the pages, was the portion of the book regarding his longtime broadcast partner Phil Rizzuto. The nuances and friendship of “The Scooter” are hilarious and touching. Everything from Rizzuto’s habit of leaving games early… to making unpaid for… on air plugs of restaurants that “pleased” Rizzuto… to the most hilarious part of the entire book… the descriptions of Rizzuto’s fear of thunder and lightning!
In summary, it was quite surprising how unhappy Bill White was with the game of baseball and many of the people that passed his way.
June 18, 2019
Bill White certainly had a fascinating series of interwoven careers. Baseball playing career for 13 years. Baseball broadcaster for the Yankees for 18 seasons. National League President for 5 years. This book chronicles his struggles and his successes spanning over 40 years. I really did enjoy reading this book which was full of insightful stories as a black man playing minor league baseball in the 1950's, then his transition into a successful broadcaster with the always entertaining Phil Rizzuto, and then his challenges as NL president. As the title insinuates, Bill seemed to have an attitude, an arrogance, something that made him feel, act, and speak… different. It popped out of the pages of the book a number of times, but it never made me put down the book though. Here are some fun and interesting nuggets from the book. 1) Bill played on a semi-pro team in Kentucky in 1955(?) where the league implemented rules to limit the dominance of the emerging black players (no more than 5 black players on the roster and no more than 4 black players on the field at once). 2) After Cardinals Manager Solly Hemus was fired mid-1961, Johnny Keane took over and unleashed Curt Floor and Bob Gibson into very successful careers (Solly had limited playing time of both players). 3) Bill mentioned that Rizzuto frequently used WW in his scorebook during those Yankees broadcasts which stood for "wasn't watching". 4) During an on-field, live interview of Bobby Murcer, Rizzuto dropped the mic and ran for cover after a loud thunder clap. Murcer picked up the mic and said "Folks, we'll be right back." 5) After being a hurdler and football running back at Williams College, George Steinbrenner energized the lackluster athletics programs while at Lockbourne Air Force Base by coaching baseball, basketball, football, and track. 6) Al Campanis is known for his terrible commentary on ABC's "Nightline" in April 1987. You may not know that the same Al Campanis was the roommate of Jackie Robinson while playing for the Montreal Royals in 1946. 7) Bill got to decide the consequences when umpire Joe West body slammed pitcher Dennis Cook during an on-field brawl in August 1990. **** So I give this book 4 baseballs out of 5.
February 16, 2022
Bill White covered the gamut in this autobiography--and did it very well. He pulls no punches as he discusses the situations that he encountered during his years in the game as a player, broadcaster, and ultimately National League President. I am a 70-year old white male who remembers him mostly through baseball cards and articles in The Sporting News, Baseball Digest, etc. Television broadcasts back in the 1960s were very limited--my Pirates only had about 30 TV games a season. Because of that, my real knowledge about "White" (with apologies to Phil Rizzuto...lol), other than the basic baseball statistics of the day, was very limited. This book gives one a very good look at him as a man--his thoughts, how he handled situations, his stand-up morality, his willingness and ability to meet challenges head on, etc. Although the book, by necessity of his having to face the challenges of racism throughout his life, is very serious in tone, White does include a number of (what I found to be) quite funny and/or interesting behind the scene incidents. He may not thought of them as funny at the time, but time has a way of changing one's outlook. His discussions on Phil Rizzuto, Marge Schott, the umpires (especially Joe West), George Steinbrenner, the owners lockout, and the story behind how Bud Selig came to become the Commissioner of Baseball are all worthwhile reading. One thing that really knocked my socks off was the scheming by the owners in moving Selig into the Commissioner's position. The owners didn't like Fay Vincent, and finally succeeded at pushing him out, eventually moving Selig into the position. Vincent was an independent outsider (needed to keep the owners in line), which didn't sit well with the owners. Selig, owner of the Milwaukee Brewers at the time, turned over control of the team to his daughter in order to become a "neutral" commissioner. When Vincent was forced to resign and Selig was ushered in in 1992, Vincent's salary was $650,000 per year. As soon as the owners got one of their own into the commissioner's chair, Selig's salary was $16 million per year! The behind the scenes revelations in this book are eye-opening at times. Highly recommended.
January 18, 2021
Bill White has written a very intelligent biography of his baseball career both on the field, in the broadcast booth and in the administrative offices of the sport.
He also discusses the prejudism shown him while he played, but it's not overbearing like John Thompson's autobiography. Despite his poor treatment because of his race, White overcame and was a solid baseball player and a brilliant National League president.
He writes humbly of his broadcasting days with the New York Yankees and Phil Rizzuto, but it was amazing to read about the games he covered. He was there for Reggie Jackson's three home runs in Game 6 of the 1977 World Series, he commented on the fact that Chris Chambliss didn't touch home plate after hitting the American League Championship Series winning homer against Kansas City in 1977 and he saw Bucky Dent's home run in 1978 that beat Boston in the one-game playoff.
White doesn't pull any punches, either. He really thought former baseball commissioner Fay Vincent was not good for baseball. White was the president during a pivotal time in baseball when salaries accelerated and the league expanded.
This is one of the better written baseball memoirs and fans should really enjoy this one.
He also discusses the prejudism shown him while he played, but it's not overbearing like John Thompson's autobiography. Despite his poor treatment because of his race, White overcame and was a solid baseball player and a brilliant National League president.
He writes humbly of his broadcasting days with the New York Yankees and Phil Rizzuto, but it was amazing to read about the games he covered. He was there for Reggie Jackson's three home runs in Game 6 of the 1977 World Series, he commented on the fact that Chris Chambliss didn't touch home plate after hitting the American League Championship Series winning homer against Kansas City in 1977 and he saw Bucky Dent's home run in 1978 that beat Boston in the one-game playoff.
White doesn't pull any punches, either. He really thought former baseball commissioner Fay Vincent was not good for baseball. White was the president during a pivotal time in baseball when salaries accelerated and the league expanded.
This is one of the better written baseball memoirs and fans should really enjoy this one.
February 10, 2021
If you were a Yankee fan during the seventies and eighties the chapter on Phil Rizzuto is worth the price of the book.
Bill White’s story is one of championing over prejudice and bigotry, and a window into one of the great eras of baseball. There are so many stories, topics and anecdotes that I was left with the feeling that there was so much more that needed to be said. Bill White doesn’t pull any punches, but his witness of what it was like to be a black ballplayer in the fifties and sixties must have been horrifying.
As much as I dislike mixing sports with politics, I think the reality for black athletes in that era needs to be fully and completely put on the record. I was a child during that era and it will always mean a simpler time of cheap seats, chocolate malt ice cream and the best ball players that ever lived. But, as an adult, I have to acknowledge that for some, a generation older than me, this era has a different meaning.
Bill White’s story is one of championing over prejudice and bigotry, and a window into one of the great eras of baseball. There are so many stories, topics and anecdotes that I was left with the feeling that there was so much more that needed to be said. Bill White doesn’t pull any punches, but his witness of what it was like to be a black ballplayer in the fifties and sixties must have been horrifying.
As much as I dislike mixing sports with politics, I think the reality for black athletes in that era needs to be fully and completely put on the record. I was a child during that era and it will always mean a simpler time of cheap seats, chocolate malt ice cream and the best ball players that ever lived. But, as an adult, I have to acknowledge that for some, a generation older than me, this era has a different meaning.
July 23, 2022
Very well written and easy to read book. This book tells a very interesting story of the career and life of Mr. Bill White. The writing of the book is very approachable and makes the book very easy to read and a quick read. Mr. White’s story is very compelling and truly opened my eyes to what people of color have to deal with everyday.
It was always terrific to hear Mr. White and Phil Rizzuto call Yankee games. I was touched by their friendship when at an awards dinner when Mr. Rizzuto became a little shaky looked like he might not be able to stand Mr. White put his arm around to help steady Mr. Rizzuto.
More than just a good man, and a good baseball player, and a good color commentator, Mr. White’s a good friend.
It was always terrific to hear Mr. White and Phil Rizzuto call Yankee games. I was touched by their friendship when at an awards dinner when Mr. Rizzuto became a little shaky looked like he might not be able to stand Mr. White put his arm around to help steady Mr. Rizzuto.
More than just a good man, and a good baseball player, and a good color commentator, Mr. White’s a good friend.
July 3, 2020
My original familiarity with Bill White was as the affable announcer for the New York Yankees in the 1970s and 1980s. As a result of reading this book, I learned so much more about him. He is a very fair, decent, and intelligent individual who firmly believes in standing up for himself and matters of importance. I really enjoyed this book!! While baseball is the central theme, it is about so much more.
November 19, 2021
A weird title for a good book. It skips around a bit and accents the racial problems maybe a bit too much. I grew up in the St. Louis area. Bill White was not my favorite Cardinal first baseman. That would be Joe Cunningham. In spite of White winning several Gold Gloves, Cunningham was a magician in the field (of course White could hit much better). Recommended reading, however.
October 19, 2018
Not a baseball fan, and I don't think I'd ever even heard of Bill White before I started reading this. Still, a very well-written book, especially (unsurprisingly) for his insights into racism in baseball, from pre-Jackie Robinson days all the way up to Marge Schott.
July 27, 2021
Entertaining with tons of back stories about guys he knew throughout his years in the game. And humble? White occasionally claims he wasn’t such a good ball player. 13 seasons in the majors, 8 gold gloves and a 7-time all star… yeah ok.
June 26, 2024
There are scenes from this book that are still with me. This book is a must read. Read it for the love of the game. I wasn’t a fan of baseball, but I sure came away for an appreciation for it. Read it for the history. Read it because Bill White is just a cool person who has lived a lot of life.
August 9, 2017
Insightful combination of writing about sports and writing about critical issues of race. Well-done.
January 10, 2021
Good book by a man with a good deal of integrity. I always like reading about the players from my youth.
March 3, 2021
Great baseball book
As a long time baseball fan i remember Bill white as a better than average player. This book gives an honest perspective on the facets of big league baset
As a long time baseball fan i remember Bill white as a better than average player. This book gives an honest perspective on the facets of big league baset
August 3, 2025
excellent
White wore many different hats in baseball and achieved a rich perspective on the game. Recommended for baseball fans of all ages.
White wore many different hats in baseball and achieved a rich perspective on the game. Recommended for baseball fans of all ages.
August 19, 2011
From 1956 through 1959, the New York/San Francisco Giants debuted Bill White, Orlando Cepeda, and Willie McCovey at first base; McCovey and Cepeda are in the Hall of Fame, but White (ranked 39th all-time amongst firstbasemen by Bill James in the NBJHBA) was no slouch. He won multiple Gold Gloves and All-star Game nominations, and posted hitting statistics which would be impressive in any era, let alone the pitching-dominated '60's. White then went on to a long career broadcasting Yankees' games, before serving a 5 year hitch as President of the National League. His tenure in that post was certainly eventful; it saw the Pete Rose gambling scandal, a lock-out of the players, skirmishes with the umpires' union, several controversies engendered by wacky Reds' owner Marge Schott, the expansion of the National League, and the destruction of the autonomy of the Commissioner's Office. All together, quite an amazing and accomplished life in the game.
As for his memoir: it's a fairly standard Baseball memoir; short paragraphs, simple sentences, nothing which could tax our intelligence or attention spans. The stand out parts of the book are his descriptions of sharing a broadcast booth with Phil Rizzuto, and his accounts of the machinations of the owners through Fay Vincent's bungled Commissionership.
As for his memoir: it's a fairly standard Baseball memoir; short paragraphs, simple sentences, nothing which could tax our intelligence or attention spans. The stand out parts of the book are his descriptions of sharing a broadcast booth with Phil Rizzuto, and his accounts of the machinations of the owners through Fay Vincent's bungled Commissionership.
May 6, 2011
I expected this book to be enlightening given White's reputation for honesty and directness, and it was even better than I expected. Inside info on people like George Steinbrenner, Billy Martin, Fay Vincent, and (my favorite) a few major league umpires. Two of my umpire school instructors, the late John McSherry and the late Eric Gregg, were told by White to lose weight from their 400-pound frames in 1990 but it didn't help. McSherry died of a heart attack on the field at Cincinnati on opening Day 1996, and Gregg succumbed 10 years later to a massive stroke. There is also much here on the racial prejudice encountered by White and others in the early days of baseball desegregation. Five stars for the in-your-faceness here.
May 25, 2014
Bill White's UPPITY is a straight shooter memoir about a prominent figure in Major League Baseball. By primarily focusing on the major accomplishments of his career, White, who player for the Giants, Cardinals and Phillies, shared Yankees play-by-play with Phil Rizzuto and served, as the first African-American and the first ex-player, as President of the National League during the Pete Rose banishment, the umpire strike and the expansion to Miami and Denver, takes the reader into the early years of integration, free agency and the emasculation of the office of commissioner by the club owners. UPPITY is a historically informative account of almost fifty years of baseball as White shares his insights into the events that shaped out national pastime's history.
August 14, 2011
Player, broadcaster, and National League president Bill White reflects on his life and the thirty-six years he spent in baseball. White started playing in the mid-fifties, when the color line had broken in baseball but the South (and to a lesser extent the North) was still thoroughly segregated. His portrait of that time is unflinching, as is the rest of the book.
The best lesson to be drawn from White's story? Liking your job is better than loving it. If you can take your work or leave it, you can negotiate for the terms you want, and nobody can push you around. Also, Fay Vincent was a louse.
The best lesson to be drawn from White's story? Liking your job is better than loving it. If you can take your work or leave it, you can negotiate for the terms you want, and nobody can push you around. Also, Fay Vincent was a louse.
September 12, 2011
This is a truthful, direct and honest account of one man's journey in MLB.
It ends with his observation of how two owner's purposefully dismantled the
Commissioner's Office and now there is no oversight in baseball. What the
owner's want, the owners get.
Bill White is a wonderful man, generous and kind. He had a great playing
career and his disillusionment of the business of baseball is well written
and very understandable.
Recommend to anyone who loves baseball and the history of baseball.
It ends with his observation of how two owner's purposefully dismantled the
Commissioner's Office and now there is no oversight in baseball. What the
owner's want, the owners get.
Bill White is a wonderful man, generous and kind. He had a great playing
career and his disillusionment of the business of baseball is well written
and very understandable.
Recommend to anyone who loves baseball and the history of baseball.
April 25, 2011
Would probably give this 7/10, can't go as far as to give it 4/5 stars, though. A lot of fun for a long time Yankee fan such as myself who grew up listening to the author call games with Phil Rizzuto and Frank Messer. A few fun stories that I hadn't heard before and a whole heap of "baseball isn't what it was in the old days" (but never overbearing).
August 14, 2011
The breadth of the things this guy has done is amazing. I really enjoyed the chapters about his ball-playing days, but I wasn't so interesting in the politics of baseball that came into play during his National League presidency. I think it probably would have been more entertaining to someone who knows a little bit more about baseball than I do.
August 21, 2013
Bill White pulls no punches on the issue of racism and on the idiocy of front office baseball politics, but talks positively of the many players and managers he's know and those he worked with in the broadcast booth. His Phil Rizzuto anecdotes are priceless. An excellent easy read with which to compliment the baseball season.
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