Tim McCarver's Baseball for Brain Surgeons and Other Fans: Understanding and Interpreting the Game So You Can Watch It Like a Pro

by Tim McCarver and Danny Peary

Book Overview

Tim McCarver, major league baseball's premier analyst, has been surprising and delighting viewers for years with his remarkable insight. Fans who once were content to merely watch baseball were... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0375500855
• ISBN13: 9780375500855
• Release Date: March 1998
• Publisher: Villard Books
• Length: 344 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.4" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

For Serious Fans Only

Let me begin by saying that I like so many baseball fans have two thoughts regarding McCarver. 1) I appreciate this former Major League catcher's immense understanding of the game and 2) I get tired during broadcasts of listening to his endless (and seemingly self-serving and self-inflating) ramblings about what is going on in the heads of players and coaches. That said, the only problem I really had when reading this book was getting McCarver's voice out of my head. Once I did that I found the material within its pages useful (even in coaching youth baseball) and interesting. It is not however, for the faint hearted or simply casual fan. I think to fully appreciate McCarver's insights, one has to have a little more that rudimentary knowledge of the game. Having been involved in baseball for youth through college I found an easy grasp of his theories and thoughts...I'm not sure the simple newcomer to the game will (but they may). All-in-all I found the book very enjoyable and it is actually one of the few books that I have actually read TWICE!

Suprise! I like this book!

I'm not a big fan of Tim McCarver, the TV analyst. So when I've seen this book I didn't give it much of a glance until just recently. I leafed through a few pages and became intrigued. I read a few more and was hooked. He does a wonderful job explaining the "intricacies" of the game. McCarver takes a kind of 'scientific' approach in explaining the various parts of the game, from the preparation he goes through before a televised game, to the pre-game meetings, to the actual game itself, "working a lineup," what is involved in playing the various positions, pitcher-batter duels, and so on. He also talks about what is going on with each pitch and how everyone, batter, pitcher, catcher and all the other players react to various pitch counts.Since I've read the book, I've tried to be more conscious of what goes on during a game, checking to see if I can tell what signals a first or third base coach is giving, what kind of signs a catcher is giving a pitcher, or the other various strategies going on within a game. These "games within the game" have made watching baseball more fun. I may still at times get aggravated with McCarver's analysis during a game, but this book has made me a more knowledgeable fan.

A great baseball book

I picked up this book thinking I knew everything there is to know about the game of baseball, boy was I wrong! I have learned so much from this book, I feel that if I told George Steinbrenner that I read Tim McCarvers Baseball For Brain Surgeans and Other Fans, that he would hire me on the spot as manager and fire Torre. This book is that good. This book is also fun to read. You would't be able to enjoy this book if you do not know about baseball already, because it gets a little complex sometimes. So go out and get this book if you like baseball and want to learn more about how the game is played

I'll never watch baseball the same again

Baseball for Brain Surgeons gave me a penetrating look behind the surface of baseball. This is a very challenging book, so challenging that those who don't love the game might find it intimidating or boring. If you're an intelligent baseball fan, however, McCarver will "raise your game" at least a notch, and probably more. He'll answer a number of possibly nagging questions along the way--Why didn't the runner tag in that situation?...What IS the difference between a two-seam and a four seam fastball? My own enjoyment of the game has increased tremendously because I invested some time in this book. I notice that some reviewers were put off by the level of analyis. Please don't blame the writer (so what if he is showing off). Baseball, as they say, is as boring as the person who is watching it. So is Baseball for Brain Surgeons.

I Love Watching Baseball on TV Now!

I always thought I was a baseball "FAN" .[ I followed the Mets since I was a kid in little league.] After reading this book I can watch a baseball game on TV intelligently. McCarver has transformed me into a TRUE FAN. The book includes WHAT to look for when watching a game on TV and how the manager will/should react. I began to notice the pitch locations, catcher's role, the batting stances, lineups, pitch count and fielding positions. I sit back and try to guess what pitch will be thrown or how a manger will react in a given situation. Baseball is a game of strategy not just hit the ball and run. In the past I always loved going to the baseball park [Shea] and watching a game. I found watching a baseball game on TV to be very boring- NOT ANY MORE! I truly enjoy watching ANY baseball game on TV. In addition, I enjoyed the short vignettes located thoughout the book. They were informative and humorous.