The Summer of ’64

The 1964 season, highlighted by two significant trades, a game-winning home run, and three no-hitters, was a dramatic one for the National League. But even more thrilling was that season’s final week and the race for the pennant.
All the drama of the 1964 National League season through the Cardinals’ league championship is in this book. It covers Johnny Callison’s All-Star game-winning home run, Duke Snider’s trade from the New York Mets to the San Francisco Giants and Lou Brock’s trade from the Cubs to the Cardinals, Reds manager Fred Hutchinson’s battle with cancer (and his replacement, and death in November 1964), the controversial remarks made by Giants manager Alvin Dark about African American and Latin players on his own team, the no-hitters pitched by Sandy Koufax of the Dodgers, Jim Bunning of the Phillies, and Ken Johnson of the Colt .45s (later the Astros), the opening of Shea Stadium, and the demolition of the Polo Grounds. Special attention is given to the final weeks of the season when the Phillies collapsed with a six and a half game lead and twelve games to go, while battling it out with the Cardinals and the Reds.

William A. Cook is the author of numerous books, including 11 on baseball history, and has appeared in productions on ESPN2 and the MLB Network. A former health care administrator and township councilman in North Brunswick, New Jersey, he resides in Manalapan, New Jersey.

William A. Cook
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 296
Bibliographic Info: photos, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2002
pISBN: 978-0-7864-1216-7
Imprint: McFarland

Introduction      1

1 Spring Training     5

2 Opening Day     20

3 An Amazin’ May     44

4 A Perfect June     67

5 July, Part One     103

6 The 1964 All-Star Game     113

7 July, Part Two     126

8 Trials and Tribulations of the Dog Days     147

9 September Collapse     195

10 The Final Weekend     246

Notes     265

Bibliography     273

Index     275

“vivid prose…good clean fun”—Booklist.