My favorite part of Leavy’s book is when Mantle put his hand on her leg during an interview and then promptly fell asleep before doing anything. The book does nothing if not portray Mantle as a flawed human being that was really good at playing baseball.

Errr….while it’s true that Cobb was better for those couple of years that Ruth was in Boston and, well…a pitcher, I can’t thin of any other time when Babe would have been second to anybody.

Think of it this way, Cobb’s career high in OPS+ was an incredible 209. Babe Ruth had 9 seasons with a higher OPS+!!!

He could’ve went to the Yankees I guess and Babe Would’ve been the 2nd best player on the team.

Nothing will convince me that most of yester-years players wouldn’t do the same.

I also think he would have accepted whatever extensions the team offered him.

Back them, players had no opportunity to go to a different city and were forced to negotiate with just one team, thus providing this illusion.

Anyone who ever met Bob Feller knows he wouldn’t never left Cleveland, especially for Boston. Back then, players actually took pride in their teams/cities…it was more of a game and less of a business.

How many players today go their home teams when they hit free agency? How many of them say they’ve always wanted to play in their dear old hometown even though other teams offered them millions more? I doubt the players of yesterday cared less about money than the players today.

I wonder why Anderson didn’t write that Pujols would have signed with his hometown Royals?

Also known as the major league farm team of the New York Yankees.

Anderson also has Satchel Paige signing with the Royals, who didn’t exist until he was 62. Or thereabouts. I would guess that he is aware of the discrepancy.