Wrigleyville: A Magical History Tour of the Chicago Cubs

Wrigleyville... a real place and a state of mind. For baseball fans, Wrigleyville means green grass and ivied walls, long summer afternoons in the bleacher seats, the voice of Harry Caray conjuring ghosts of pennant races past, the magical romance and companionable heartbreak of rooting for the Chicago Cubs.
From the "friendly confines" of Wrigley Field, the Cubs each year begin again their legendary quest for a World Series Championship, a goal that has eluded them since 1908. Beginning with the 1871 founding of the Chicago franchise, Wrigleyville beautifully captures a history of triumph, futility, dreams, and cruel fate - in the voices of Chicago players, coaches, batboys, clubhouse personnel, fans, and sportswriters who were there, from the nineteenth century to the present.
In these pages, the Cubs and Chicago itself come to vivid life. Cap Anson, the Hall of Fame first baseman and team leader of the 1880s champion teams. Mike "King" Kelly, the flamboyant base stealer and bon vivant, one of baseball's first media superstars. Tinker to Evers to Chance. Fred Merkle's infamous blunder that launched the Cubs toward their last World Series championship. Babe Ruth's "called shot" off Cubs pitcher Charlie Root - and the eyewitnesses who dispute the event. Hack Wilson, the slugging 1920s outfielder whose single-season RBI record remains unsurpassed. Ernie Banks and "Let's play two." The great Cubs team of 1969 and the dramatic pennant race against the upstart New York Mets. The quiet dignity and skill of Billy Williams, Ferguson Jenkins, Andre Dawson, and Ryne Sandberg.