Stan Musial: An American Life

When baseball fans voted on the top twenty-five players of the twentieth century in 1999, Stan Musial didn#x19;t make the cut. This glaring omission-later rectified by a panel of experts-raised an important question: How could a first-ballot Hall of Famer, widely considered one of the greatest hitters in baseball history, still rank as the most underrated athlete of all time?<br /> <br /> In<i>Stan Musial</i>, veteran sports journalist George Vecsey finally gives this twenty-time All-Star and St. Louis Cardinals icon the kind of prestigious biographical treatment previously afforded to his more celebrated contemporaries Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio. More than just a chronological recounting of the events of Musial#x19;s life, this is the definitive portrait of one of the game#x19;s best-loved but most unappreciated legends, told through the remembrances of those who played beside, worked with, and covered #x1C;Stan the Man#x1D; over the course of his nearly seventy years in the national spotlight.<br /> <br /> Stan Musial never married a starlet. He didn#x19;t die young, live too hard, or squander his talent. There were no legendary displays of temper or moodiness. He was merely the most consistent superstar of his era, a scarily gifted batsman who compiled 3,630 career hits (1,815 at home and 1,815 on the road), won three World Series titles, and retired in 1963 in possession of seventeen major-league records. Away from the diamond, he proved a savvy businessman and a model of humility and graciousness toward his many fans in St. Louis and around the world. From Keith Hernandez#x19;s boyhood memories of Musial leaving tickets for him when the Cardinals were in San Francisco to the little-known story of Musial#x19;s friendship with novelist James Michener-and their mutual association with Pope John Paul II-Vecsey weaves an intimate oral history around one of the great gentlemen of baseball#x19;s Greatest Generation.<br /> <br /> There may never be another Stan the Man, a fact that future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols-reluctantly nicknamed #x1C;El Hombre#x1D; in Musial#x19;s honor-is quick to acknowledge. But thanks to this long-overdue reappraisal, even those who took his greatness for granted will learn to appreciate him all over again.<br /> <br /> <br /> <i>From the Hardcover edition.</i