The Called Shot

Babe Ruth, the Chicago Cubs, and the Unforgettable Major League Baseball Season of 1932

By: Thomas Wolf

Narrated by: Barry Abrams

In the summer of 1932, at the beginning of the turbulent decade that would remake America, baseball fans were treated to one of the most thrilling seasons in the history of the sport. As the nation drifted deeper into the Great Depression and reeled from social unrest, baseball was a diversion for a troubled country - and yet the world of baseball was marked by the same edginess that pervaded the national scene.

On-the-field fights were as common as double plays. Amid the National League pennant race, Cubs' shortstop Billy Jurges was shot by showgirl Violet Popovich in a Chicago hotel room. When the regular season ended, the Cubs and Yankees clashed in what would be Babe Ruth's last appearance in the fall classic. After the Cubs lost the first two games in New York, the series resumed in Chicago at Wrigley Field, with Democratic presidential candidate Franklin Roosevelt cheering for the visiting Yankees from the box seats behind the Yankees' dugout.

In the top of the fifth inning the game took a historic turn. As Ruth was jeered mercilessly by Cubs players and fans, he gestured toward the outfield and then blasted a long home run. Ruth's homer set off one of baseball's longest-running and most intense debates: did Ruth, in fact, call his famous home run?

©2020 Thomas Wolf (P)2020 Tantor

The history

I loved the history in this book, I love hearing stories of the pioneers of the sport.

Ok for baseball fans

There is some great material here, and a plethora of colorful characters. The book really suffers from some poor organization. As it focuses on individual people, it jumps back and forth in time. It's still a worthwhile listen, but could have been better..

Disappointing

The subject of this book made me eagerly anticipate its arrival. Unfortunately, there was little to no new information in the book. I stayed through to the end but found the reader to have a somewhat grating mechanical cadence. There are lots of interesting tidbits on hall of fame players and managers but nothing I had not read/heard before.