A left-handed batter in the NCAA’s Division 1, Max Gordon still had a lot to live for, provided he would live at all. Facing a devastating loss–the death of his brother, Nick–and a life-threatening physical injury, he went on a transformative personal journey that united his family through the most difficult time they had ever faced. In this intimate narrative about the healing power of sports, a family is made whole again through the determination of a son who proves that in life as in baseball, no matter the score, as long as you have one more at bat, you’re still in the game. The authors tell the story from the perspective of having shared relationships with the Gordon brothers.

Jacob Kornhauser is a student at Duke Law School. He is a former television and digital video producer at FOX Sports and ESPN as well as a local TV sports anchor in Medford, Oregon.

Dylan Kornhauser was a Presidential Scholar at the University of Alabama and is now an international scholar living in Paris, France, where he studies philosophy at the American University of Paris.

Jacob Kornhauser and Dylan Kornhauser

Afterword by Pat Casey

Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 243
Bibliographic Info: 36 photos, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2021
pISBN: 978-1-4766-8483-3
eISBN: 978-1-4766-4255-0
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
Chapter 1: Etna 3
Chapter 2: Ashland 14
Chapter 3: “We love and care for each other” 26
Chapter 4: Family First 37
Chapter 5: Big Brother 44
Chapter 6: Up in the Air 48
Chapter 7: Get Well Soon 58
Chapter 8: State 71
Chapter 9: Juco 83
Chapter 10: Walking Away 97
Chapter 11: A New Way Forward 110
Chapter 12: Legend 114
Chapter 13: Trailer 125
Chapter 14: Sophomore 142
Chapter 15: Junior 159
Chapter 16: Senior 177
Chapter 17: Omaha 195
Chapter 18: Life After Omaha 213
Afterword by Pat Casey 223
Chapter Notes 225
Bibliography 229
Index 233

• “One region of America’s ‘republic of baseball’ that gets far too little attention is the college game. Jacob and Dylan Kornhauser have explored that region and returned with a crackerjack book that will have you on the edge of your seat until you leap up from the excitement of the exhilarating story they tell.”—George F. Will, author of A Nice Little Place on the North Side

• “Most baseball stories take place far from the bright lights of the big leagues—and the best of those stories transcend baseball. Luckily, we have Jacob and Dylan Kornhauser to tell this one, about Max Gordon, who endured a horrifying tragedy to become an inspiring walk-on center fielder in the College World Series. Readers will treasure this richly reported story of devastation, desire and dreams.”—Tyler Kepner, national baseball writer, The New York Times

• “Max Gordon is a terrific baseball player who’ll never win a major league batting title, an MVP, or a World Series ring. But read Jacob and Dylan Kornhauser’s tale of Gordon’s inexhaustible passion and perseverance, and all Max will do is win your heart.”—Jon Pessah, author of Yogi: A Life Behind the Mask