About this item
The Detroit Tigers gave a memorable performance in the pennant race against the New York Yankees in 1961, the American League's first expansion season. Starting faster, the Tigers held first place for more than half the season, until the Yankees caught up in late July. They met in a climactic three-game series at Yankee Stadium. The Bronx Bombers swept all three, winning the pennant for the eleventh time in 13 seasons. But the 18 games the Tigers and Yankees played against each other were some of the most exciting contests of '61. The Yankees' saga is well known but the Tigers' tale has largely been ignored. This book chronicles the season highlights, such as the home run duel between Roger Maris, who slugged a record 61, and Mickey Mantle, who hit a personal best 54. Other outstanding performances were given by the Tigers' Norm Cash, who led the league with a .361 average, and Rocky Colavito, who hit 45 home runs.
About the Author
Jim Sargent grew up loving sports, especially baseball, in Flint, Michigan. After graduating from Kearsley High in 1958, he attended Flint Junior College, worked for two years, and completed the Bachelor's Degree at Eastern Michigan University in 1964. Later, he earned the Master's and PhD Degrees in US History at Michigan State University. Starting in 1970, he taught American History for five years at Clemson University and two years at Ball State. He moved to Roanoke in 1977 and taught at Virginia Western Community College, where he also served as Dean of the Social Science Division for the last 15 years, until retiring in 2010. Jim's books include Roosevelt and the Hundred Days (Garland, 1981), co-author of Danny Litwhiler (Temple, 2006), and co-author of The South Bend Blue Sox (McFarland, 2012). His forthcoming book is Yesterday's Heroines, 42 AAGPBL interviews to be published by McFarland early in 2013. Currently he is writing a book about major league baseball, Tigers of '56. Jim and his wife Betty live in Roanoke, Virginia.
