Pandemic Baseball Book Club

Valentine's Way, with Author Peter Golenbock

Between his playing career and managerial stints with the Rangers, the Mets and the Red Sox, Bobby Valentine is one of baseball's true characters. In Valentine's Way, author Peter Golenbock helps him reflect on the remarkable moments of his career, from his wild times as a player in the early 1970s to his transition to coaching with the Mets after a catastrophic injury derailed his playing days; from managing the Texas Rangers in 1985, where he employed sabermetrics and witnessed the beginning of the steroid era, to his iconic stretch at Shea Stadium, when he led the Mets to the 2000 World Series while battling a dysfunctional front office and ownership; from his time in Japan managing the Chiba Lotte Marines to the absolute disaster of a season in Boston, where he was greeted by a toxic clubhouse and fractured organization. Valentine's off-the-field exploits include his early years as an international ballroom dancing champion and his post-playing days, where he may have invented the wrap sandwich and the modern sports bar. Golenbock is here in conversation with Dan Levitt, co-author of Intentional Balk.