David Halberstam, "The Teammates," (New York: Hyperion;
2002), 217 pages.
This small book is about the enduring friendships between four former
professional baseball players (Ted Williams, John Pesky, Dominic DiMaggio and
Bobby Doerr). The author provides an oversight of how each started his
professional baseball career, how they were recruited to play in Boston, their
lives after they finished playing baseball, and the ways in which the
friendships continued for the remainder of their lives.
The book benefits a great deal from the author’s love of baseball. He is
very knowledgeable of the game, and knows a great deal about these four players
from having written a previous book about their famous team the Boston Red
Socks. Hence, the obvious appeal of this book to baseball fans. Readers should
note that The Teammates is more than just a book about baseball; it’s also a book
about friendships and how they endure throughout the years. The author shows us
what friends do for each other throughout the years, and what they do for each
other in their twilight, more vulnerable years. We also get a glimpse of the
lives of professional sportsmen, and how each of the four men made different
choices that had significant impacts of the rest of their lives. This dual aspect
of the book makes it enjoyable for the baseball fan and the non-fan, or anyone
interested in how four men could remain friends for about seventy years.
