Here is a thrilling, nostalgia-filled and candid look inside the game of baseball-from the dugout to the field manager's office-by the men who made it all happen.

Covering the years from 1947 to 1964, more than sixty players-from Hall of Famers to utility players and bench-warmers-offer firsthand memories, opinions and gripes, and tell the real stories behind baseball's most colorful decades. Fans can relive all of the great moments on and off the field through the eyes of those closest to the action, including:

- Roger Maris's record sixty-first homer

- Ted Williams's final at bat (a home run)

- Eddie Waitkus being shot by a female fan (the premise for The Natural)

- Joe DiMaggio's desire to meet Marilyn Monroe-and many, many more.

From arguments with managers to encounters with groupies, from racial conflicts to salary negotiations, all of the key stories are here, including many not recorded elsewhere.

"What a joy-one of the best pure baseball books I've ever read," raved Larry King when this marvelous volume was first published in 1994.