High Heat; The Secret History of the Fastball and the Improbable Search for the Fastest Pitcher of All Time
Language: English
Published by Da Capo Press, Cambridge, MA, 2010
- First Edition
- Hardcover
- Used

Seller: Ground Zero Books, Ltd., Silver Spring, MD, U.S.A.Ground Zero Books, Ltd.
AbeBooks seller since August 14, 1998
Condition: Used - Very good
£ 34.76
Quantity: 3 available
Add to basketItem description from seller
xii, 268 pages. Illustrations. Bibliography. Index. DJ has slight wear and soiling. Tim Wendel (born 1956 Philadelphia) is an American writer whose works have appeared in many newspapers and magazines such as the National Geographic Traveler, The New York Times, both the Huffington Post and Washington Post among others. In 2004 he was awarded with the Professional Achievement Award and five years later received an Award for Teaching Excellence from Johns Hopkins University. He is the author of more than nine books. Wendel is also a writer in residence at Johns Hopkins University. He is also a recipient of the Walter E. Dakin Fellow and Tennessee Williams Scholar to the Sewanee Writers' Conference. He also co-founded USA Today Baseball Weekly, which he edited and wrote for. Wendel has also been nominated twice for the Virginia Literary Award. He has won the USA Today Luminary Award. In High Heat Tim Wendel undertakes a journey to explore the often remarkable lives of some of the greatest hard-throwing pitchers in baseball history in what he describes as "the improbable search for the fastest pitcher of all time". Identifying the fastest pitcher might seem easy at first. We are told the speed of every pitch at Major League ballparks and on TV broadcasts and can look up all the data. Some of the most entertaining passages in High Heat are the descriptions of the various ways that people have tried to measure the speed of a pitcher's fastball. None can quite match the dare-devil drama of Bob Feller's 'motorcycle' test in 1940, in which 'Rapid Robert' was recorded throwing a fastball just as a motorbike sped past at 86 MPH. Even if you could go back and calculate the speed of every top pitcher's best fastball, that alone wouldn't be enough to tell you who is the fastest pitcher. High Heat tells you that pure heat alone is not enough. First Edition [Stated], First Printing [Stated].…
Seller Inventory # 75793
- Title
- High Heat; The Secret History of the Fastball and the Improbable Search for the Fastest Pitcher of All Time
- Author
- Wendel, Tim
- Publisher
- Da Capo Press, Cambridge, MA
- Publication year
- 2010
- Condition
- Very good
- Dust jacket
- Very good
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 0306818485
- ISBN 13
- 9780306818486
- Edition
- 1st Edition
Drawing on interviews with current and former players, managers, scouts, experts, and historians, Tim Wendel delivers the answers to some of the most intriguing questions about the fastball, providing insight into one of baseball’s most exhilarating yet mystifying draws. In High Heat he takes us on a quest to separate verifiable fact from baseball lore, traveling from ballparks across the country to the Baseball Hall of Fame, piecing together the fascinating history of the fastball from its early development to the present form while exploring its remarkable impact on the game and the pitchers who have been blessed (or cursed) with its gift.
From legends such as Nolan Ryan, Walter Johnson, Steve Dalkowski, and Satchel Paige to present-day standard bearers like Tim Lincecum, Billy Wagner, and Randy Johnson, Wendel examines the factors that make throwing heat an elusive ability that few have and even fewer can harness. Along the way he investigates the effectiveness of early speed-testing techniques (including Bob Feller’s infamous motorcycle test), explains why today’s radar gun readings still leave plenty of room for debate, and even visits an aerodynamic testing lab outside of Birmingham, Alabama, in order to understand the mechanics that make throwing heat possible in the first place.
At its heart, High Heat is a reflection on our infatuation with the fastball—the expectation it carries, the raw ability it puts on display, and, most of all, the feats and trials of those who have attempted to master it. As Wendel puts it, “The tale of high heat can lead in several different directions at once, and the real story has more to do with triumph and tragedy that with the simple act of throwing a baseball.”
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About the Author
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Ground Zero Books, Ltd.
Silver Spring, MD, U.S.A.
AbeBooks seller since August 14, 1998
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