In a decade that featured such legendary hurlers as Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Don Drysdale, and other Hall of Famers, no pitcher won more games than Juan Marichal in the 1960s. His unique, high-kick pitching style was imitated by kids from New York to San Francisco to Santo Domingo, and it is immortalized in a bronze statue outside of the Giants’ current ballpark. Marichal was the first Dominican-born player to play in an All-Star Game and the first elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, and he won more games than any of his countrymen. And while Dominican and other Latino players have come to dominate many aspects of baseball in recent years, Marichal was a trailblazer in his day, entering the league at a time when Latin American players were routinely discriminated against, underpaid, and presented with numerous obstacles on their journey to the big leagues. In Juan Marichal , Marichal tells the story of his rise from living on a rural farm as a young boy in the Dominican Republic to his status as one of the great pitchers of all time. Along the way, he was enlisted by the son of the country’s dictator to play for the national team, was threatened at gunpoint to throw a game during a tournament in Mexico, fought homesickness as a minor leaguer in rural Indiana, and went head-to-head with some of the greatest pitchers and hitters the game has ever seen. For the first time, Marichal gives his perspective on life as a Latino ballplayer in the 1960s, describes the highs and lows of a 16-year major league career, and explores what the recent influx of Dominicans in the majors has meant to baseball and to his home country. He offers reflections on lingering stereotypes, the impact of steroids, and the general state of the game in the 21st century. Booklist Major league baseball in the 1960s was dominated by pitching. Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, and Bob Gibson may be the names that come to mind most easily, but Hall of Famer Juan Marichal also belongs on that list. No pitcher won more games in the decade than Marichal did for the San Francisco Giants. He was one of the first big leaguers from the Dominican Republic, and in his life after baseball he has been instrumental in his country becoming a hotbed for major league prospects and players. In this as-told-to autobiography, Marichal recounts his youth in the rural countryside, his experience playing for the Dominican Air Force team, and his brief journey through the minor leagues to the Giants. There are dozens of anecdotes about his major-league years and the rivalries he had with the other great pitchers of the era. He also discusses his post-baseball life as a scout and later as a key government promoter of the Dominican’s sports program. Overall, an intelligent sports memoir that will appeal particularly to fans who remember Marichal on the mound. From 1960 to 1969 the decade of Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Don Drysdale, and numerous other all-time greats no pitcher in major league baseball won more games than Juan Marichal. The nine-time all-star was also a groundbreaking presence, debuting at a time when only a handful of Latin-born players were playing big league ball. Coming from humble origins in the Dominican Republic, Marichal went on to become a dominant pitcher in his time, an icon in two countries, and an international ambassador for the game of baseball. In this first full account of his life and career, Marichal tells of his experiences growing up on a Dominican farm, where he had to fashion his own baseball equipment balls made out of golf balls wrapped in cloth, bats from the branches of the wassama tree, and gloves cut from canvas tarps. Despite these limited tools, the young Juan could never get enough of his beloved game, and he vowed to his mother that she would one day hear his name on radio. Marichal s journey to stardom took him down some unexpected roads. As a teenager, he was enlisted by the family of the nation s dictator, Rafael Trujillo, to play baseball for the Dominican Air Force. Although scouting by the majors was still in its infancy in Latin America, Marichal soon caught the attention of representatives from the San Francisco Giants, who brought him to the United States in 1958. Adjusting to a foreign culture and language while playing in towns from Massachusetts to Indiana to Washington was a challenge for the young hurler, but the greatest surprise and adjustment was the racial intolerance he encountered in his new home during the early 1960s. Despite these obstacles, Marichal quickly established himself as an elite pitcher, throwing a complete-game one-hitter in his first major league game in 1960 242 more victories and 243 more complete games were to come. More than 50 years after that auspicious debut, Marichal reflects on the bonds he established with teammates like Willie Mays, Orlando Cepeda, Gaylord Perry, and childhood friend Felipe Alou, as well as his battles and friendships with opposing hitters, from Robe