Prophet of the Sandlots

Windgardner, Mark. Prophet of the Sandlots: Journeys with a Major League Scout. New York: Atlantic Monthly Press 1990. Print.

First Sentences:

A good fifty years ago, the St. Louis Cardinals had a Class D minor league baseball team in Fostoria, Ohio, and the shortstop on that team was a five-foot-five kid from the South Side of Chicago named Tony Lucadello.


Description:

Not quite sure why I have been reading so many baseball books lately, but each one references another, pulling me in deeper and deeper into great writing about this sport. From fictional teams (Brittle Innings and The Great American Novel) to the creating of baseball films (The Church of Baseball), to in-depth biographies (I Was Right on Time), oral histories from the Negro Leagues (The Glory of Their Times), reminiscences (Road Swing and Wait Till Next Year), and baseball columns (Jim Murray: An Autobiography), each has revealed what is so exciting, humorous, and deeply captivating about this game. 

Somehow, they have all led me to my latest plunge into the rabbit hole of baseball writing: Mark Winegardner's Prophet of the Sandlots: Journeys with a Major League Scout, Where Brittle Innings was a fictionalized memoir of a baseball scout's former playing days, Prophet of the Sandlots is the real McCoy: the observations, thoughts, and decisions made by a real life baseball scout, Tony Lucadello, as recorded by the author. 

Winegardner was allowed to accompany Philadelphia Phillies' scout Tony Lucadello as he toured the midwest high school and college fields looking for talent, mile after mile, in rain, cold, and blustery days, even into the nights sometimes. Lucadello rarely sat still during these games, observing players from the outfield, first base stands, and even behind trees. 

That's how I analyze their body, by looking individually at the top front, back, right, and left sides and the bottom front, back, right, and left sides. That makes eight.

Oh, and he also constantly strolled under the bleachers and the sidelines looking for loose change, the donating his findings once a year on September 15 to the first church he sees on his travels.

Lucadello, while driving over 2.2 million miles in nine states and three Canadian provinces over the last fifty years, has signed forty-nine major league players, including Fergeson Jenkins, Mike Marshall, and Mike Schmidt. He knows what he is looking for, what players need to do to improve their chances of signing, and how to deal with parents to close a deal or present the bad news that their son will not be given a contract.

The weather in Tony's territory in March April, and May -- the critical months before the annual draft -- ranges from erratic to arctic. To have a fighting chance to see the players he wants to see, Tony gets the schedules from every baseball team in Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan and plots out where he needs to go and when. 

Tony has two important pieces of advice for young players that he shares with parents who want to improve their son's chances. These already have been utilized by several of his prospects at an early age and their improvement has been significant.

1. Build a 4' cinderblock wall in the backyard. Inspired after seeing basketball hoops in every driveway, Tony felt boys should have an opportunity to groove their fielding and throwing every day, using a wall as a partner;
2. Hit 100 or more plastic golf ball a day with a bat to improve hand-eye coordination and confidence.
   

Lucadello, himself, had briefly been a baseball player as a Class D (lowest level) minor leaguer as well.

Tony Lucadello was a dirty-uniformed, clean-living little guy who never drank or smoked or swore, who always knew how many outs there were, who never threw to the wrong base, who always was the first to the ballpark and the last to leave, who never made a one-handed catch unless he absolutely had to. Not a lot of talent, really, and a build more like a jockey's than a ball player's.

In short, Tony Lucadello is an interesting, knowledgeable, personable man, someone the author feel very lucky to spend a scouting season with and glean tidbits of Tony's wisdom. The book is a wonderful insight into the man himself, the players and coaches trying to make the major leagues, and the insights he has on how to identify which player from among the hundreds that he watches has the best chance to make the next step to a contract.

And last of all, Tony is a modest man, even after 50 years of successful scouting. It was intially difficult for author Winegardner to persuade Tony to allow him access on his travels, mainly because Tony felt his story might be uninteresting to readers. It is far from that, trust me.

I had doubts, to be honest with you. Why would anyone want to read about me? I'm not famous. I don't want the attention. I'm just an old man who loves the game of baseball. I've given my life to it. And you -- maybe you [Winegardner] can help me spread the word. Maybe you can help me save the game of baseball.

Happy reading. 

 

Fred

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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

Bishop, Michael. Brittle Innings.   

A fictional, quirky look from the eyes of an aged baseball scout about his younger years as a minor league prospect rooming with the real Frankenstein creature, the team's hard-hitting, erudite first baseman. (previously reviewed here)