Roger Maris: Baseball's Reluctant Hero

The definitive biography of the baseball legend who broke Babe Ruth s single-season home-run record the natural way and withstood a firestorm of media criticism to become one of his era s preeminent players.

ROGER MARIS may be the greatest ballplayer no one really knows. In 1961, the soft-spoken man from the frozen plains of North Dakota enjoyed one of the most amazing seasons in baseball history, when he outslugged his teammate Mickey Mantle to become the game s natural home-run king. It was Mantle himself who said, "Roger was as good a man and as good a ballplayer as there ever was." Yet Maris was vilified by fans and the press and has never received his due from biographers until now.

Tom Clavin and Danny Peary trace the dramatic arc of Maris s life, from his boyhood in Fargo through his early pro career in the Cleveland Indians farm program, to his World Series championship years in New York and beyond. At the center is the exciting story of the 1961 season and the ordeal Maris endured as an outsider in Yankee pinstripes, unloved by fans who compared him unfavorably to their heroes Ruth and Mantle, relentlessly attacked by an aggressive press corps who found him cold and inaccessible, and treated miserably by the organization. After the tremendous challenge of breaking Ruth s record was behind him, Maris ultimately regained his love of baseball as a member of the world champion St. Louis Cardinals. And over time, he gained redemption in the eyes of the Yankee faithful.

With research drawn from more than 130 interviews with Maris s teammates, opponents, family, and friends, as well as 16 pages of photos, some of which have never before been seen, this timely and poignant biography sheds light on an iconic figure from baseball s golden era and establishes the importance of his role in the game s history.

Library Journal

Maris remains an enigmatic figure notwithstanding the attention he received in large part for his 1961 home run season. Prolific writers Clavin and Peary reveal a complex and private individual, making plain not only his underappreciated talent in all aspects of the game but his humanity and love for family and friends. There is no greater praise than being a "gamer," and Maris was that and much more. This book's ultimate contribution may be its indictment of irresponsible reporters and image makers who failed to accord a hero his due. Without question an entertaining book for ball fans, but general readers of biography may also enjoy understanding the life of one who achieved greatness despite adversity.

Tom Clavin is the author or co-author of eleven books, and currently associate editor of The Medical Herald and The Spiritual Herald, two national monthly publications with a combined circulation of 100,000. For fourteen years he covered sports, business, and entertainment for The New York Times, Newsday, Good Housekeeping, Child, Cosmopolitan, Family Circle, Parade, Reader's Digest, Woman's Day, Golf, Men's Journal and other publications. Tom was also editor-in-chief of The Independent weekly newspaper chain for ten years. He lives in East Hampton, New York.

Danny Peary is a sports and pop culture historian who has published twenty books. His movie, television, music, and sports articles and interviews have appeared in such publications as FilmInk, Movieline, Satellite Direct, OnDirect TV, TV Guide, TV Guide-Canada, Cosmopolitan, The New York Times, The Daily News, The Boston Globe, Sports Collectors Digest, The Soho News, The Philadelphia Bulletin, Films in Focus, Films and Filming, Slant, L.A. Panorama, Memories and Dreams, The East Hampton Independent, and Country Weekly. He is the New York correspondent for the Australian magazine FilmInk and a contributing editor for brink.com He lives in New York City and Sag Harbor, New York.