Most people cannot throw a baseball very fast when they are young. Gradually, they get faster and faster. At some point, they get slower and slower as injuries and wear affect the arm. Jim Morris had the opposite experience. Despite many injuries, he was throwing a 98 mile an hour fastball long after most pitchers are only playing catch with their youngsters in the backyard. When he was younger, a 90 mile an hour fastball was the best he could muster. That had gotten him many opportunities in the minors, but the injuries cut those short. Soon, with his newfound speed, he made it into the Big Show with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in September 1999. His first appearance in relief made him the oldest rookie in the majors in several decades. This is his story.Although the context is major league baseball, this book is really focused on a man finding his identity. That task was complicated for Mr. Morris by having parents who were not too fond of each other, having to move frequently with his father's reassignments in the navy, and not having a clear idea of what his goals in life and values were. The one credo that stuck was one from his grandfather Ernest, "Remember who you are." It took him a long time to figure out who he was, in order to follow that credo.
He had loved baseball from the age of 3. His mother and grandmother would play catch with him while his father was at sea. By age 7, he could throw a baseball 230 feet in the air from the outfield. His playmates were older boys, as a result. His parent's dream was for him to play high school football, so his baseball career got short shrift until the end of high school when his speed got him a contract and a signing bonus with the Brewers.
Minor league baseball was a problem for him, because he never had had the coaching to know how to play the game. So he was injured a lot, and suffered lots of pain and rehabilitation. Through this, he tried to go to school. Long past 30, he was still working on his college degree.
The turnaround in his life came when he challenged the high school team he was coaching to make the most out of their talent. They challenged him in turn to try out one more time if the team won the district championship. When they did, he kept his word, and that was the beginning of his most recent return to baseball.
Much of the book recounts the difficulties that he and his wife went through in raising three children, trying to juggle two careers, and finding a decent life together. The marriage was on the rocks several times, but Mr. Morris's hard-working wife hung in there as did Mr. Morris.
A lot of the book's appeal is that Mr. Morris is everyman in many ways, but just with an amazing arm.
The key weakness of the book is that it dwells too much on the details of Mr. Morris's life leading up the the baseball triumph. There are some fascinating baseball stories here in the book, like when he struck out Mark McGwire while in the minors (in a year when he was 5-6 with an e.r.a. of 6.04). The book could have used more cameos of famous players and managers, or stories like this one.
Also, Mr. Morris is not much of a communicator, so he doesn't share a lot. "I don't have much to say . . . ." He says that his wife complains because he is so quiet. That makes it tough for creating a book.
The book is confusing in many areas because the dates and lengths of time stated often don't seem to match. But that problem is not important, just mildly annoying.
But Mr. Morris definitely deserves five stars, and his wife deserves more than that.
Where have you given up on something you love to do? I challenge you to find a new way to take it up again.
Grasp all the joy you can find, and share it with everyone you love!
