It's Not over 'Til It's over

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Summary: Sports history from Merkle's [erection] to Chastain's sports bra
Review: You can quibble about the thirteen sports stories picked for "It's Not Over 'Til It's Over" as "the Most Magnificent, Heart-Stopping Sports Miracles of Our Time," but just keep in mind that Al Silverman can certainly write a similar book in the future. For the record, here are the selections: (1) 1908 Merkle Forever: New York Giants vs. Chicago Cubs; (2) 1923 The Battle of the Century: Dempsey vs. Firpo; (3) 1937 A Supreme Day for Tennis: Don Budge vs. Gottfried von Cramm; (4) 1951 The Most Theatrical Home Run: Bobby Thompson and Ralph Branca at the Polo Grounds; (5) 1958 Sudden Death: The Colts vs. the Giants; (6) 1960 Head on, the Generations Collide: Hogan, Palmer, and Nicklaus at the U.S. Open; (7) 1964 Chosen by the Gods: Billy Mills in the 10,000 Meter Olympic Final; (8) 1968 The Game of Fames: Harvard-Yale football; (9) 1971 They Left it on the Table: Frazier-Ali I; (10) 1975 Body English: Cincinnati Reds vs. Boston Red Sox; (110 1980: Do You Believe in Miracles?: U.S. vs. USSR hockey; 1992: Weep No More, My Lady: Duke-Kentucky basketball; and (13) Awesome! World Cup: U.S. vs. China.

Already I can hear you quibbling. Yes, the U.S. Olympic hockey team winning the gold medal in 1980 was a miracle as was what Bily Mills did in Tokyo in 1964, but does anything else on the list qualify? After all, Thompson had already hit a home run off of Branca in the National League playoff in 1951 and when Christian Laettner hit the winning shot at the buzzer in 1992 he was on the defending national champions and had not missed a shot from the floor or the line all day. That was certainly the greatest college basketball game of time and you also have the greatest baseball game (1975) and football game (1958) on the list as well, but none of those are miracles. Heart-Stopping might be the key part of the equation here when all is said and done.

The test for this book is quite simple. If you are a sports fan there should be a point in this list where you have not simply heard of these events, you have witnessed them (I pick up the list at 10). When you read those stories you have your best opportunity to determine how well Silverman not only retells the story but provides added dimensions that enhance your appreciation of a great sports moment. You can then make the assumption that Silverman is doing just as fine a job talking about those older events. However, that logic should be irrelevant as soon as you begin reading the book, when Silverman begins with the story of a loser, who is presented as being a "romantic hero, whose name continues to stand the test of time." The story of the Merkle [erection] matters because it represents the opposite end of the spectrum from the hero of the moment. The fact that Silverman picks this particular story to begin his stroll through sports history sets the tone for the rest.

Each story ends with an epilogue, printed in italics, which gives the event the perspective of history. But the history of the players, the teams, the events, and all the rest is woven into each of these thirteen stories. For me the story that stands out is the Duke-Kentucky game, probably because I watched it twice last month when ESPN was showing it during this years NCAA tournament. You understand what this came meant for the Kentucky program that had been on probation for three seasons and the Duke program trying to repeat as champions. Silverman uses quotes from the participants and reporters provided at the time and long after the game to bring out the nuances. The shifting angles of the story match the frantic breakneck pace of the game. But compare this with the stately grace he uses to tell about Arnold Palmer coming from way behind to beat Ben Hogan and Jack Nicklaus to win his first U.S. Open. "It's Not Over 'Til It's Over" is a pleasant nostalgic review of history by a first-rate sportswriter. He will even make you enjoy the stories about sports you do not particularly care about.