The Zen Of Zim: Baseball, Beanballs And Bosses

Don Zimmer is baseball. His first book, Zim-A Baseball Life, was a New York Times bestseller and one of the best baseball memoirs ever published. Now, in The Zen of Zim, one of baseball's most beloved figures offers readers an insightful look into the baseball of yesterday and today. Baseball fans will love hearing Zim's opinions on such topics as pitching inside, managing, bosses, and more.

With more than fifty-six years in baseball, Don Zimmer had seen it all before he ran into George Steinbrenner. Zimmer provides a revealing account of his eight years as Joe Torre's right-hand man—and the jealousy, vindictiveness, and pettiness that ultimately destroyed a twenty-five-year friendship with Steinbrenner.

Zim also discusses the circumstances that led to his charging onto the field at Fenway Park and throwing a haymaker at Boston Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez. He shares what it was like to work for other baseball owners, sheds light on general managers like Branch Rickey and Dan Duquette, and critiques the managing styles of famous and notorious managers from the twentieth century.

In a chapter called "What Have They Done to My Game?", Zim offers a crash course in baseball anthropology, describing how the game and its players have changed over the past fifty years and showing how big money and free agency have affected team camaraderie. He celebrates his close-knit teammates from the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers and the lifelong friendships made.

Zim has seen it all, and here readers learn more about his life, dreams, and baseball through his extensive experience. It is a story filled with laughs, anecdotes, excitement, and comedy.