Davey Johnson - My Wild Ride in Baseball and Beyond

 

Erik teamed up with baseball legend Davey Johnson on his autobiography entitled, DAVEY JOHNSON: My Wild Ride In Baseball and Beyond(Triumph Publishing. 2018). Davey, of course, became a household name in New York as manager of the World Champion 1986 Mets and averaging better 96 wins over seven seasons in New York.  Everywhere he managed--New York, Cincinnati, Baltimore, Los Angeles and Washington--he took over poor to mediocre teams and greatly improved their organizations in short order.  Then, after leaving those clubs, they usually went into a tailspin.  Prior to his managing, he was a terrific second baseman, helping the Orioles to four pennants and two world Championships.  He was also truly the first baseball man to bring Sabermetrics into the game, using computers back in 1969 in an attempt to convince manager Earl Weaver to bat him second in the Baltimore lineup. Then he went to the Atlanta Braves in 1973 and set an all-time record for home runs hit by a second baseman--43--a mark that still stands today.  Davey doesn't hold back in this memoir, telling it like it was working for meddling general managers like Frank Cashen and difficult owners as Marge Schott and Peter Angelos.  This was not always an easy book for Davey to write, as he shared his ups and downs both in his professional and personal life, including the tragic passing of both his daughter and stepson.  This is an incredibly detailed book about a proud and extremely bright man who lives life on his own terms.